The Waterman’s gala returns for an in-person event scheduled for August 14, 2021, at The Ranch at Laguna Beach.

The Surf Industry Manufacturers Association (SIMA) will honor four-time world champion and 2021 Olympian Carissa Moore as Waterman of the Year; musician, artist and ocean environmental brothers Ben, Joel and Peter Harper as Environmentalists of the Year; and surf traveler, retailer and culture preservationist Dick Metz with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Waterman’s benefits the SIMA Environmental Fund, a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation that awards grants to environmental groups based on their “dedication to preserving and protecting the world’s oceans and beaches.” The gala is expected to raise $200,000 for 15 ocean conservation groups. A list of the 2020 Waterman’s environmental beneficiaries can be found here.

Since 1989, Waterman’s has raised “more than $8 million to support beneficiaries that are dedicated to keeping plastics out of the ocean, overseeing beach clean-ups, protecting surf breaks from destruction, and more on behalf of surfers,” said Waterman’s.