Are you passionate about ocean conservation? Do you want to actively contribute to protecting our marine environment? Look no further than PADI Dive Centers and Resorts, your gateway to meaningful conservation efforts.
The PADI AWARE Foundation™, a dedicated nonprofit organization, is driving global change through local action. Over a million individuals have already taken AWARE conservation courses. Join them to understand the challenges our oceans face and how you can make a positive impact.
With opportunities to get involved with conservation activities in nearly every corner of the globe thanks to the PADI® dive shops working alongside PADI AWARE, there’s something for every ocean enthusiast who wants to become a change maker for the ocean.
Create Change with PADI
- Dive with Purpose at PADI Eco Centers
- Enrol in AWARE Conservation Courses
- Dive into ADOPT THE BLUE ®
- Support 100% AWARE
- Dive into the PADI AWARE Foundation’s Mission Hub Community Grant Program
- Become an Ocean Torchbearer
1. Dive with Purpose at PADI Eco Centers
PADI Eco Centers are leading the charge in ocean conservation. These centers are recognized by PADI for their dedication to marine biodiversity, community resilience and dive industry sustainability.
Thanks to the Adopt the Blue program, PADI Eco Centers actively promote conservation through citizen science, policy advocacy, and education.
Furthermore, by working with PADI’s partner, The Reef-World Foundation’s Green Fins Initiative, PADI Eco Centers operate with world-leading environmental best-practice. They have reduced their environmental footprints by embedding sustainability throughout their businesses.
By diving with a PADI Eco Center, you can enjoy your dive vacation safe in the knowledge that your marine adventure is safeguarding the ocean and supporting local communities.
Create Change Today: Talk to your local dive center about making a plan to become a PADI Eco Center.
2. Enroll in AWARE Conservation Courses
PADI and the PADI AWARE Foundation are collaborating to turn the tide on issues impacting ocean health. More than one million people over the past three decades have taken an AWARE conservation course. Because of the ocean advocates created through such courses, there are more people aware of the threats facing the ocean and how they can make a positive difference. Whether you’re a diver or non-diver, you can enroll in the PADI AWARE Specialty course to learn the top 10 ways to save the ocean. This and the other PADI AWARE courses empower you to become a more effective ocean advocate.
By taking an AWARE conservation course, you also contribute to the PADI Blueprint for Ocean Action. This initiative supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030.
Create Change Today: Sign up for the eLearning portion of a PADI AWARE specialty course.
3. Dive into Adopt the Blue
PADI’s global network of 6,600 Dive Centers and Resorts and more than 128,000 Professional Members worldwide provide the backbone for the Adopt The Blue program. This initiative aims to accelerate the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) for protection and conservation.
When a dive center adopts their local sites, the PADI AWARE Foundation and their partners receive regular reports about the conservation issues facing the site. They can then connect that data to local and global projects, campaigns and grant opportunities.
Create Change Today: Ask your dive shop to adopt the underwater places you love OR choose to participate in underwater citizen science at an Adopt the Blue site.
4. Support 100% AWARE Partners
The PADI 100% AWARE exclusive partner giving program allows PADI Dive Centers, Resorts, and Professionals to contribute to marine conservation effortlessly through the PADI certification card process. By participating in this exclusive partner giving program, these dive shops and individuals directly support the protection of the underwater world and combat the ocean’s greatest challenges. That’s because to become 100% AWARE, dive shops must commit to donating to PADI AWARE for each certification completed. As an added bonus, divers who get certified at 100% AWARE dive shops will receive the an AWARE certification card. Encourage your local dive shop to participate, and together, you can make a significant impact.
Create Change Today: Ask your dive shop to participate in the 100% AWARE program
5. Defend the Deep with PADI AWARE Foundation’s Mission Hub Community Grant Program
Dive into the PADI AWARE Foundation’s Mission Hub Community Grant Program, where you can witness firsthand how PADI Dive Centers and AWARE collaborate. This cornerstone initiative provides financial resources to PADI Mission Hubs and community-based non-profits who are on the frontline of ocean conservation. By supporting ocean protection projects, including coral restoration, marine protected area development, marine debris removal, climate change mitigation, and protection of threatened species, like sharks and turtles, the program creates waves of change for the PADI Blueprint for Ocean Action as part of the United Nations Decade of Science for Sustainable Development.
6. Become an Ocean Torchbearer
Your voice matters. As an Ocean Torchbearer, you have the power to create change and inspire others to become ocean advocates. Connect with a PADI Dive Shop in your local community or on your next dive adventure to be part of the solution for a healthier ocean. Together, let’s work towards a brighter, more sustainable future for our oceans.
So, what are you waiting for? By diving with PADI Dive Centers and Resorts, you can make a positive difference to the ocean. However you decide to protect the big blue, there is something for everyone to do their bit for our blue planet. Why not start by signing PADI’s Save the Ocean Pledge?
