Our Team

Saylor (they/them) is our new co-chair and also leads our Blue Water Task Force Program. Saylor is a womper aka body surfer and boogie boarder in their beloved adopted home of Far Rockaway, Queens.  Growing up in Rochester NY sandwiched between massive polluting factories, farms, wetlands, Lake Ontario, and an aging nuclear power plant really forged their understanding of environmental justice from birth.  They’ve been raising a good ruckus with Surfrider NYC for over a decade, getting happily involved with, well, kind of everything!  Their favorite part is teaming up with other people and they want to give a big shout-out to everyone who has taught them how to protect what they love.   You can contact them at: cochairocean@nyc.surfrider.org

Moe is our new co-chair and also leads our Rockaway Youth program to help kids get in the water and learn the value of a clean ocean. Moe is an all-around water sports enthusiast who grew up surfing the coast of Long Island. He has been a member of Surfrider NYC’s core volunteer since 2013 and has served as our Chapter’s Youth Coordinator since 2016. To cultivate the next generation of ocean protectors, Moe has expanded Surfrider NYC’s signature youth program Surfing for the Environment, which has been featured on BRIC Arts Media’s Going with Brian Vine. Moe currently works for a boutique urban planning and management consulting firm where he designs sustainable solutions facing mission organizations and their communities. He also serves on the board of Newtown Creek Alliance and is an active volunteer with STOKED Mentoring. Please contact him here: cochairwaves@nyc.surfrider.org

Maggie is originally from Eastern Long Island. Growing up near the beach, she has always had a love for the ocean and the outdoors. That love has led to a passion for ocean conservation and environmental sustainability. Maggie is excited to work with the Surfrider NYC team to work towards an ocean-friendly city that preserves and looks for ways to make the ocean safe, clean, and accessible for all New Yorkers, now and for generations to come.

Please contact our Secretary, Maggie, here: secretary@nyc.surfrider.org

Olivia relocated to New York City after graduating from the University of Virginia last spring and is very excited to be joining Surfrider’s mission to protect and restore New York’s coastal environment.

Please contact her at volunteercoordinator@nyc.surfrider.org for any questions related to volunteering with Surfrider!

Leaving Scotland to chase waves around the world, Nikita settled on New York City as her new home break. Having always believed that we should protect what we love, it was only a matter of time before she found her way to the Surfrider Foundation.

Nikita started volunteering with Surfrider by leading a victorious campaign to defeat Port Ambrose, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) port proposed for off the coast of NY. In 2016, Nikita was elected Chair of the NYC Chapter where she has focused on growing the chapter by encouraging an inclusive community, expanding the chapter’s agenda and creating strategic partnerships. Nikita has also worked to elevate the value that the chapter can bring to the broader environmental movement, primarily through coalition work and she currently sits on the People’s Climate Movement NYC planning committee.

Nikita has shared the work of Surfrider Foundation NYC at SXSW, the UN Youth Assembly, VICE and the Soho House Impact Series, is a recipient of the 2015 Wavemaker Award in Environmental Leadership and  been featured in Whalebone, The Daily Record and The Scottish National Herald.

Professionally, Nikita works in the social impact sector and is a graduate of the University of Glasgow, Scotland.

Please contact her here: nscottadvisory@nyc.surfrider.org

Forrest grew up living by and sailing in the Chesapeake Bay every summer, something that gave him a deep love and appreciation for how beneficial our oceans are for coastal communities. He moved to NYC in 2019 and joined Surfrider in 2020, hoping to find a community and help that community make strides toward preserving NYC waterways.

You can contact him at: social@nyc.surfrider.org

Kiera grew up in Northern California where she fell in love with the coastal landscape. Over the past 9 years living in NYC, she has fallen in love with the waterways and communities that make this city what it is. Now living in Rockaway, Kiera is using her organizing and community building skills to lead our Offshore Campaigns which range from conservation to water safety.

 

You can contact her at: offshore.rep@nyc.surfrider.org

 

Greg Aronson has been a resident of NYC since 2019. During his high school years, he was a formal member of the Surfrider Club in Virginia Beach, and participated in several water related cleanup activities — beach, rivers, and creeks. He is a Software Engineer by trade, and is passionate about the reduction of plastics in our oceans. As such, he is coordinating the Ocean Friendly Restaurant initiative within the NYC chapter to help restaurants reduce plastic in their supply chain, which ultimately make its way back into our waterways.

You can contact him at: ofr@nyc.surfrider.org

Tague is a dedicated outdoorsman. Born and raised in Southeastern Pennsylvania, he learned how to fly fish and snowboard at a young age. Both activities informed his perspective on climate change and the importance of protecting the planet. Since, his passion for the natural world has translated to the oceans. In early 2022, Tague spent considerable time in Mexico, volunteering with a marine turtle conservation project. Having had this experience, he was motivated to join the Surfrider team a few months later, in the summer of 2022.

Please contact him here: marketing@nyc.surfrider.org

 

Justine fell in love with the ocean when she was still wearing arm floaties, able to see clearly through the tropical waters to the colorful coral and sea life. She is always chasing this memory and would like for others to be able to experience that same feeling.

You can reach out to her at: website@nyc.surfrider.org

Please reach out to lsalomon@nyc.surfrider.org if you are interested in this position