Deep Dive: Brook and Zane Silvester

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What if one of the most effective ways to prevent drowning is not a new rescue technique, but helping people reconnect with culture, community, and the ocean?

In this episode of Deep Dive Into Water Safety, Bundjalung Saltwater People Brook Silvester and his son Zane join the program to discuss the work they are doing to create new pathways into water safety for Indigenous youth on Australia's Gold Coast.

Among many coastal First Nations communities in Australia, Saltwater People are those whose identity, culture, stories, food sources, travel routes, and responsibilities are closely tied to the sea and waterways. Knowledge of currents, tides, weather, fishing grounds, and safe movement through the water has traditionally been passed from one generation to the next.

Brook is the founder of First Nations Lifeguards and Bombora Surf School. He brings more than four decades of experience in and around the ocean as a surfer, water cinematographer, surf coach, and lifeguard.

Many people will also recognize Brook's work behind the camera on Bondi Rescue, where he spent more than 11 years filming rescues and working alongside some of Australia's most experienced lifeguards, including Bruce "Hoppo" Hopkins. Brook credits those experiences, and Hoppo's mentorship, with helping shape his approach to water safety one that focuses not only on rescue, but on prevention, education, trust, and community connection.

Zane is a professional sponsored surfer, surf coach, lifeguard, and proud Bundjalung man who is helping carry that work forward. He understands the importance of being visible to young Indigenous people who may never have seen someone from their community working in those roles.

The conversation centers on the First Nations Lifeguards Academy, the Eyes for Lives pathway, and Bombora Surf School. While these programs teach swimming, surfing, ocean awareness, hazard recognition, and lifesaving skills, they are really about something much bigger. They are about confidence, identity, leadership, and connection.

For Saltwater People, the ocean is not simply a place for recreation. It is connected to culture, family, story, responsibility, and knowledge that has been passed from one generation to the next for thousands of years. Brook and Zane explain how reconnecting young people to that knowledge can also help create safer relationships with the water.

At the center of that work is Eyes for Lives, a pathway that helps young people develop water confidence, environmental awareness, leadership skills, and a sense of belonging before moving toward lifeguard qualifications and employment opportunities. The goal is not simply to create lifeguards. It is to create future leaders.

Brook also shares the story behind the name Bombora Surf School. A bombora is an offshore reef or submerged rock formation that can create powerful breaking waves. Like the ocean environments that inspired its name, the school emphasizes awareness, respect, and learning how to read the water safely.

While Bombora Surf School has only been operating for about a year, the knowledge, values, and connection to the water that guide its programs have been passed from generation to generation for thousands of years.

The discussion also explores Bombora Surf School's commitment to inclusion through adaptive and all-abilities surfing programs. Participants living with disabilities are supported through adaptive equipment, beach wheelchairs, and trained instructors. For Brook and Zane, inclusion is not a separate initiative. It is simply part of ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to experience the ocean safely and confidently.

A recurring theme throughout the conversation is the importance of representation. When young people see someone who looks like them, shares their culture, and understands their experiences working as a lifeguard, surf coach, or ocean leader, it helps them believe those opportunities are available to them as well.

For listeners in Hawaiʻi, there is a great deal to consider. Many conversations about water safety focus on hazards, warnings, and risk. Brook and Zane challenge us to think about connection, belonging, culture, and community as important parts of keeping people safe around the water.

Both Brook and Zane expressed enthusiasm for future collaboration between First Nations communities in Australia and Indigenous communities in Hawaiʻi. The discussion explored how lifeguards, educators, and community leaders from both regions can learn from one another while strengthening water safety through shared knowledge, cultural understanding, and ocean stewardship.

Throughout the conversation, Brook and Zane make the case that water safety starts long before a rescue ever happens. It starts with helping people build a relationship with the ocean, understand the environment, and feel like they belong there.

Their message is simple: when people feel connected to the water, their culture, and their community, they are more likely to develop the knowledge, confidence, and respect needed to stay safe.

First Nations Lifeguards Australia

Bombora Surf School

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