Introduction to Oriente Salvaje and Surfing’s Threats
In the late 1990s in El Salvador, Rodrigo Barraza sought what many surfers dream of: an untouched wave far from the crowds. After traveling down a rough dirt track hours from any city, he discovered a little-known surf spot on the country’s eastern shores. This location features long lines of waves forming a crisp right-hand break, surrounded by thousands of hectares of tropical forest.
“I fell in love with the place,”says Barraza. In 2004, he opened a small hotel there and, together with some surfing friends, founded a tourism association. They developed sustainable tourism standards and committed to protecting the surrounding biodiverse ecosystem, which includes rare dry tropical forest, rivers, and mangroves. They named the area Oriente Salvaje – the “wild east.”
Today, Oriente Salvaje encompasses 19 kilometres of coastline and supports a thriving surf industry that attracts adventurous wave hunters eager to ride its world-class breaks, Las Flores and Punta Mango. A surf break is a natural feature such as a sandbar, coral reef, or headland that causes ocean swells to break, forming rideable waves. However, this surfer’s paradise faces increasing threats from climate change. Intense tropical storms cause flooding, disrupt the waves, block transport routes, and deter surfers.
Economic Impact of Surf Tourism and Climate Vulnerability
Oriente Salvaje’s local economy depends heavily on surf tourism, which supports a network of hotels, restaurants, surf shops, fishers, and drone experts.
“Surf tourism is the backbone of our local economy,”Barraza explains.
“However, this same dependence makes us highly vulnerable to climate-related disruptions.”
Concerned about the community’s future, in 2023 Barraza partnered with Save the Waves, an international surfing nonprofit organisation. Together, they made an innovative decision: to take out an insurance policy specifically for Oriente Salvaje.
Parametric Insurance: A New Approach to Climate Risk
This insurance is not traditional but a parametric type designed to support recovery from climate change impacts. Unlike conventional insurance, which requires lengthy claim assessments, parametric payouts are triggered immediately when damaging conditions exceed a predetermined threshold, such as specific wind speeds, earthquake magnitudes, or rainfall levels.
This rapid payout model appeals to property owners, fishers, and farmers vulnerable to climate breakdown. It also benefits conservation efforts; parametric insurance has supported post-hurricane recovery globally, helping maintain ecosystems that serve as storm buffers and fish nurseries.
The Oriente Salvaje project represents the first time parametric insurance is being tested on surfing. Save the Waves was founded by a group of international surfers witnessing the destruction of their favourite surf breaks worldwide and seeking change, according to Nik Strong-Cvetich, the organisation’s chief executive.
World Surfing Reserve and Economic Research
One of Save the Waves’ initiatives is designating World Surfing Reserves, a programme recognising the significant overlap between biodiversity and surf locations, as Strong-Cvetich notes. The organisation collaborates with local groups to protect these areas. Oriente Salvaje was designated a World Surfing Reserve in 2024 after a campaign led by Barraza and other local stakeholders.
Save the Waves also conducts research on surfers’ economic contributions to local economies, revealing that surfing generates billions of dollars annually in many regions. This data supports advocacy efforts encouraging governments and local authorities to protect these ecosystems.
Developing the Insurance Model with Local Collaboration
Aware that many surf breaks are endangered by extreme weather, parametric insurance became a focus for Save the Waves.
“We scoured the world for places that were easily disrupted by a climate event and had a large dependence on the surf economy,”Strong-Cvetich says. Oriente Salvaje emerged as an ideal pilot location.
The organisation partnered with international insurance brokers Willis Towers Watson (WTW) to develop a bespoke financial model in collaboration with the local community. The first step was identifying a measurable trigger for payouts. WTW evaluated various metrics and concluded that rainfall was the most robust and suitable single-trigger option for the region, according to Juanita Blanco, director of alternative risk transfer solutions for Latin America at WTW.
Forty years of rainfall data combined with ten years of surfer visitation data showed that wetter conditions correlate with disruptions. Diego Sancho Gallegos, director of conservation programmes at Save the Waves, explains,
“We saw that every time there was a very big storm, there was a clear dip in surfer visitation, associated with accumulated rainfall.”
A survey of 50 local businesses revealed that, on average, 70% of their income depends on surf tourism. Many informal operators such as surf photographers, guides, and boat drivers are particularly vulnerable to weather variability.
“It’s crazy,”Strong-Cvetich remarks.
“People can predict their income based on the surf report.”
Insurance Payouts and Community Impact
The insurance payout will be triggered when weather conditions reach an extreme level linked to observable income loss, Blanco states. The funds will be distributed to several hundred to several thousand beneficiaries in the region. The payout size and insurer are still being finalized, with WTW currently presenting the concept to multiple companies. If successful, Save the Waves aims to launch a pilot by June to coincide with the rainy surf season, Sancho Gallegos says.
Future Plans: Ecosystem Restoration and Environmental Protection
Save the Waves intends to refine the insurance to include dedicated payouts for ecosystem restoration. Rebuilding coastal mangroves could strengthen buffers against land runoff during storms, which degrade surf quality. Restoring watersheds may also reduce erosion and flooding risks for residents. This aligns with the organisation’s broader vision of using surfing as a catalyst for environmental protection, Strong-Cvetich explains.
Challenges and Community Engagement
The pioneering programme has faced challenges. Angelo Picardo, Save the Waves’ local coordinator in El Salvador, notes:
“El Salvador is a developing country and we don’t have an insurance culture – people don’t even have health insurance – so there’s a lot of work you have to do on the ground to bring people on board.”
Another difficulty is funding the insurance premiums without imposing burdens on local businesses. Other community-focused parametric projects have relied on philanthropic funds or explored options like tourism taxes. Save the Waves is in discussions with the Salvadorian government, which since 2019 has invested millions from loans into a nationwide surf tourism initiative. The organisation is optimistic that the annual premium cost will be
“a drop in the bucket”compared to these investments, Sancho Gallegos says.
Expert Perspectives and Broader Implications
Swenja Surminski, an international expert on innovative insurance for ecosystems at the London School of Economics who is not involved with the project, believes this type of insurance will expand as more communities face weather extremes. However, she cautions that
“parametric solutions must be combined with broader resilience and adaptation strategies,”including disaster planning, ecosystem restoration, and stronger building standards to protect these areas comprehensively.
Barraza concurs from his experience in Oriente Salvaje, emphasizing that insurance must be part of a broader solution framework.
“The community does not only face income losses,”he says,
“but also landslides, property damage and poor water quality when storms strike.”
Conclusion: Optimism for the Future
For now, the insurance programme offers hope comparable to the crisp waves that roll into Oriente Salvaje on a clear day.
“Everybody’s positive. There’s nothing but good things to hear from this,”Barraza says.
“We just hope that it turns out to be the best that it can be.”
