These Sunscreen Stations Are Protecting You From Harmful Rays For Free
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Forget your sunscreen on a spontaneous day trip to your local park or beach? No problem. It’s likely that your favorite sunny spot now has a sunscreen station waiting for you — and it’s free to use.
BrightGuard, a company co-founded by entrepreneurs Alex Beck and Ryan Warren in 2014, recently installed more than 2,000 free sunscreen dispensers in high-traffic public spaces across the country, reaching all 50 states. We’ve noticed them popping up all over the boroughs of New York City in places like Randall’s Island and Rockaway Beach this summer, providing the public with a service they can most definitely use.
They’re pretty economical, too. Each dispenser is stocked with SPF 30, which is strong enough to protect the majority of consumers and follows the guidelines outlined in the annual sunscreen guide from the Environmental Working Group. The station itself costs around $70, and the refill packets of sunscreen cost around $20, holding enough sunscreen to cover 150 people. Not too shabby.
BrightGuard also seems to pick up where the EWG leaves off: they use the intel we have on the importance of sun protection and partner with nonprofits nationwide to share application information and protection strategies with consumers as these stations are installed in local communities and public spaces. The dispensers are able to turn messages into actions, which can be a very challenging thing to accomplish when it comes to matters of public health.
The goal driving BrightGuard’s work is to reduce national skin cancer rates by 20 percent by 2025. That is a lofty goal, but hopefully, these free sunscreen stations are only the beginning of helping them — and us, who need to be wearing said sunscreen — get there.
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