Paddle Out to Celebrate the Life of Dr. Wallace ‘J’ Nichols
At 10 AM PST on Wednesday, July 23, WORLD BLUE MIND DAY, a paddle out from Cowell Beach in Santa Cruz will celebrate the life of marine scientist, author, and Blue Mind innovator Wallace J Nichols, who passed away in 2024 at the age of 56. Paddlers are encouraged to show up on the sand by 9:45 AM. The first 900 paddlers will receive a blue marble, which J frequently held up to eye level to represent our blue planet, for the event. Friends and family will also be on the Team O’Neill catamaran and the Chardonnay sailboat, and a program will be conducted. Those not able to get into the water can view the event from the west side of the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf as well as along West Cliff Drive. It will be an official Get Into Your Sanctuary activity in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, and there will be proclamations from elected officials, and a cleanup will be conducted at Cowell Beach immediately after.
“Celebrants will be able to lovingly say what J always did — ‘I wish you water,’”
“Celebrants will be able to lovingly say what J always did — ‘I wish you water,’” said Dana Nichols, J’s partner of almost thirty years. “J published the groundbreaking book Blue Mind: The Surprising Science That Shows How Being Near, In, On, or Under Water Can Make You Happier, Healthier, More Connected, and Better at What You Do in 2014. His daring, innovative work became a New York Times Best Seller, and Blue Mind sparked a revolution, with J as its evangelist. J transformed the way we view the ocean’s importance to our planet and to us. After working alongside J for two decades, our family will continue J’s vital work, including the promotion of World Blue Mind Day.”
Wallace J. Nichols (1967 –2024) was born in New York and graduated from Barrington, Illinois High School in 1985. He studied biology and Spanish at DePauw University and in 1992 obtained a master's degree in economics at Duke University. In 1993 and 1994 he studied marine biology at Northeastern University then became a Fulbright Fellow and received a Marshall Fellowship while studying at the University of Arizona, Tucson where he received his PhD specializing in turtle genetics, migration, and conservation. He and his colleagues tagged a loggerhead turtle named Adelita, then tracked her movement by satellite as she swam from California to Japan. This was the first animal to be recorded crossing an entire ocean basin, and Nichols’ thesis that resulted from this famous work was entitled "Biology and conservation of sea turtles in Baja California, Mexico." In 2025, J appeared in the feature documentary The Definition of Happiness, which explores the human connection to water and emotional well-being. The film was completed shortly after his passing and was dedicated to his memory. Nichols lived on the Santa Cruz North Coast (which he and Dana nicknamed The Slow Coast) until the CZU Lightning Complex Fires in 2020. After the fire, J and his eldest daughter Grayce wrote the children’s book Dear Wild Child, which is a letter from a father to his daughters, filled with memories and observations about the ocean. J is survived by Dana and his daughters, Grayce and Julia.
World Blue Mind Day is celebrated every July 23 to raise awareness about the benefits of spending time near, in, on, or under water. More about the event: https://lu.ma/okeaz4v9
Press logistics: There will be excellent viewing from the Santa Cruz Wharf, and a PA system will project sound from the boat. To make other specific arrangements, please contact Dan Haifley at (831) 234-8148.
