DAISY
OUR OCEAN HERO
Daisy told us an inspiring story: that it only takes a decision to change one’s life to focus on quality and sustainability. When the world breaks down or stands still what do you need most? Family and nature is the answer.
Growing up in a ski resort in Switzerland, our Ocean Hero, Daisy Moana has always been close to nature and enjoyed both the snowboarding and skiing in the winter and hiking and mountain biking in the summer. But as she puts it “for me the horizon was missing, the power of water”. Daisy admits she has always been attracted to water, so when she discovered stand up paddling 3 years ago, she instantly fell in love and spent as much time as possible in the water. She has since completed both a SUP instructor and later a SUP Yoga instructor course.
The ocean is full of untamed magic and power. When I look at it, I am quiet and thankful for what I see and feel. It doesn’t matter if it's sunny, hot and quiet, or it's stormy, rainy and rough. The ocean calms my mind and I feel grounded.
A NEW PLACE TO CALL HOME
During COVID-19 in Denmark, Daisy and her family spent a lot of time in their summer house, located between Søndervig and Hvide Sande. It began feeling more like home than ‘at home’.
“With my growing passion for SUP and beach cleaning, suddenly I questioned myself - why living in the middle of Denmark, far from water? When the world breaks down or stands still what do you need most? Clothes? Fashion? Material things? No, you need your family and nature.”
This realisation combined with her daughter, Malou, recovering from a difficult time with sickness and brain surgery led to the family making a radical change and deciding to move to Ringkøbing this summer to be closer to the ocean. Daisy quit her job and is now studying to be a school teacher.
“I want to do something valuable in my life. I want to teach our next generation what it means to be a good person, how to take care of each other and most importantly how to treat nature and how worth it is to do small things”
Daisy is also very passionate about sharing her love for the ocean with the people surrounding her, and through her education as SUP instructor she has found a way to bring people out on the water with her. “I want to take people with me on the water, take them with me on this wonderful journey of SUP yoga and show them how wonderful it is.”
And not only is SUP yoga great because of the closeness to the water, it also does wonders for the mind and body. Daisy explains: “It reduces stress, it's pure and you get so close to nature. At the same time, you do something good for your deep musculature and your mind. You get in touch with the elements of nature and you are able to build a deep connection with the water.”
THE CHALLENGES WE FACE
During the COVID-19 lockdowns, Daisy was beach cleaning every day and could see her bag full - so much that she couldn’t carry more trash back to the bins. She describes it as being almost addicted to cleaning the beach and helping our oceans. The peacefulness of meeting nobody on their walks and feeling one with nature made Daisy realise how insignificant her job all of a sudden had become.
“Beach cleaning by walking at the beach and cleaning from my SUP (the fjord ground or the coast ) is a true hobby and a passion to me and it feels good to do something for our ocean, beach and animals. All the big and small plastic pieces, ropes, bottles I find on the beach are dangerous for our seagulls, seals and fish.”
According to Daisy our biggest challenge when it comes to saving our oceans is the human attitude. She believes that humans have become selfish and it is now difficult to change their needs. It has become too easy to buy new things, travel the world and so on. She also points out that social media is blinding us.
“We must change our mindset and stop buying more materials and plastic from China. We must learn to buy local materials, buy used clothes, or exchange clothes. I think people are not always fully aware of the crisis we are in.”
TAKING CARE OF OURSELVES AND THE OCEAN
Daisy has had some of her fondest memories near the beach, but an especially meaningful time for her was back when her daughter was sick. She describes it:
“She had days with many epileptic seizures and she was mostly so frustrated, sad, aggressive, she almost couldn’t be in her own body. But the ocean calmed her down. I could play with her for hours in the sand, collecting stones and shells, building castles, listening to the sea, feeling the wind. It gave her peace and calm. These moments she was free, even happy I would say. This is truly an unforgettable memory.”
About #Tavaha: “This is really a wonderful slogan. I like it, and it says everything, everything we need to think about every single day when we cross the beach, but also the nature in general. Tag vare på havet, tag vare på naturen. We must talk even more and louder about it and spread the news! (…)
As Daisy tells us, she thanks the ocean for what it is - when she is standing there and watches the waves hit the beach, she thanks the ocean for the patience and strength towards us, humans, for the life the ocean secures us, so we can live here on planet earth.”
I try to buy vegetables and fruits not packed in too much plastic, but this is very difficult sometimes. We always use reusable bags for groceries. I use reusable metal drinking bottles for water and coffee and the same goes for kids. Instead of wrapping Christmas presents in wrapping paper, I will wrap them in newspapers this year.
Daisy’s own Ocean Heroes are all the people who respect the ocean and understand the importance and beauty of it. She also applauds people to have made the decision to do something against pollution and stand up for the climate.
#TAVAHATIPS
Daisy has given us her favourite tips for taking care of the ocean:
Our children are our next generation. Take your children, nephews, nieces, grandchildren, schoolkids, Friends etc. to the beach and collect trash, talk about how important it is to take care of our ocean and nature. Show them how beautiful it is to take trash away from the beach. Take always your own trash with you, and also the trash you find.
Think about what you eat. Eat local and less animals, eat local and good quality instead of quantity. Eat less tropical fruits and vegetables and choose local fruits and vegetables. Make some vegetarian, or even better, vegan days. Make it a routine.
Shop with reusable bags, instead of plastic bags, use reusable bottles for water and coffee instead of plastic bottles.