Random Acts of Kindness Day is celebrated annually on February 17. This year, why not celebrate scuba-diving-style? You know, celebrate by being kind and near the sea, in a wetsuit and breathing through a regulator.

Kindness — together with diversity and inclusion — is central to the PADI Blueprint for Ocean Action. It’s what drives our mission of protecting the oceans we love through sustainable exploration and conservation initiatives.

It costs nothing to be nice. And you don’t have to do anything big either to make someone’s day and create a better diving community. It’s a fact that scuba diving has many physical and mental health benefits. Being extra nice only adds to the list.

If you want to take part, here are a few random acts of kindness for divers.

Dive Buddy Check. An Experienced Rescue Diver Checks Their Buddy

Be Kind to Divers

  1. Find something nice to say. For example, compliment someone’s air consumption, gear or ability to spot camouflaged sea critters. Don’t hold back on your praises.
  2. Make everyone in the group feel included and part of the conversation. This includes the staff, crew and anyone else involved in the diving operations. Learn their names and smile at strangers.
  3. Talk to the solo diver. Unfortunately, not everyone has a dive buddy, and surface intervals can feel lonely. It’s easier for you, as part of a couple or group, to approach a solo traveler than it is for them.
  4. Encourage new divers. Help the beginner diver feel less awkward, nervous and self-critical by supporting them and helping them if and when needed.
  5. Be courteous. If you’re doing a boat dive, let the other person use the ladder first. Keep your scuba gear tidy, throw away your rubbish and if you see dive weights or other equipment out of place, put them away. (Note: Don’t clean someone else’s gear without asking them first, as many have their preferred way of doing it.)
  6. Know someone who needs a break from work/life stress? Invite them to learn how to scuba dive. As far as random acts of kindness for divers go, this is the most personal one. When you refer a friend, they get 20% Open Water Diver eLearning and you get 20% continuing education eLearning courses.
  7. Tip your dive guide. Whether you believe in tipping or not, Random Acts of Kindness Day feels like a good day to tip your dive guide.
  8. Leave a review. You know reviews are important, but you don’t always have the time or energy to write one. Writing a review for a dive shop you love is one of the best things you can do on Random Acts of Kindness Day.
  9. Send a message to a dive buddy you haven’t spoken to in a while. Whether you’re friends or have been buddied up during a dive trip abroad, it’s good to reach out to share happy memories. 
  10. Send a thank you message to your instructor. Perhaps you didn’t realize it at the time, but looking back now, you appreciate how great your instructor was. Contact them to let them know how grateful you are for their guidance and support.
Random Acts of Kindness for divers: caring for the ocean.

Be Kind to the Ocean

  1. Do a beach and/or an underwater clean-up. Big or small, you can do your part in keeping our coastal areas clear of debris. Here are a few tips on how to organize a clean-up.
  2. Use reef-safe sunscreen. Protect your skin without damaging corals by using natural or reef-safe sunscreens.
  3. Become a PADI Torchbearer. Protect our oceans from plastics, free entangled animals and safeguard endangered species. It’s not much as a random act of kindness for divers, but a commitment to ocean conservation. Take the pledge.
A scuba diver hovers near a rich coral head

Be Kind to Sea Life

  1. Help save sharks and rays.Save them from extinction by collecting important census data, enrolling in PADI Specialty courses and diving with responsible dive operators. Support PADI AWARE.
  2. Learn the do’s and don’ts of suitable marine interaction. Are your marine life encounters respectful and sustainable? For divers, Random Acts of Kindness Day also means checking in with yourself to see if you’re unintentionally harming marine life.

Spread Kindness

This year, take a moment to be good and do good – for you, for your fellow divers and for the planet. One random act of kindness in scuba diving does more than you realize.

Have a wonderful day!

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