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Marine Life & Conservation

Reef-World completes first ever Green Fins “Train the Trainer” pilot

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Green Fins Capacity building in Malaysia and Thailand will help enable further global expansion

The Reef-World Foundation – the international coordinators of Green Fins – has completed the successful pilot of its Green Fins “Train the Trainer” programme; the first of its kind in the world in the 11 years Green Fins has been adopted as a management approach by participating governments.

As part of the programme, Reef-World has successfully certified three new Green Fins trainers in Malaysia and three in Thailand. These six champions of the Green Fins network are now qualified to train new Green Fins assessors in country; building capacity for the initiative’s continued expansion in each country.

The new trainers are:

  • Alvin Chelliah, Reef Check Malaysia
  • Sue Yee Chelliah, Reef Check Malaysia
  • Nadhirah Mohammed Rifai, Reef Check Malaysia
  • Sathika Phaokanta, Phuket Marine Biological Center
  • Ornanong Pengchumrus, Phuket Marine Biological Center
  • Petchrung Sukpong, Phuket consultant

Diving related damage to sensitive marine ecosystems, including coral reefs, is becoming an increasingly significant issue. This damage makes them less likely to survive other local and wider stressors, such as over fishing or run-off from land containing pollutants and plastic debris as well the effects of climate change, such as rising sea temperatures.

Green Fins is a UN Environment initiative, internationally coordinated by The Reef-World Foundation, which aims to protect and conserve coral reefs through environmentally-friendly guidelines that promote a sustainable diving and snorkelling tourism industry. It provides the only internationally recognised environmental standards for the diving and snorkelling industry and has a robust assessment system to measure compliance.

The newly qualified Green Fins assessors, who are now certified to conduct assessments of Green Fins dive centres in their region, are:

  • Lau Chai Ming (Edmund), Reef Check Malaysia
  • Mohammed Shahir Yaman, Reef Check Malaysia
  • Laddawan Sangsawang, Marine and Coastal Resources Research and Development Center The Eastern Gulf of Thailand
  • Kanokwan Thansamai, Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (Bangkok)
  • Amornrat Saiseing, Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (Bangkok)
  • Warangkana Pasasuk, Thailand Responsible Tourism Association
  • Theeraya Indraraksa, North Andaman Network Foundation

JJ Harvey, Director at The Reef-World Foundation, said: “The proven Green Fins conservation approach offers dive and snorkel companies practical, low-cost alternatives to harmful practices – such as anchoring, fish feeding and chemical pollution from everyday cleaning products, for example. The feedback, training and support provided to dive shops is based on robust onsite assessments which allows for identifying areas of risk to negative impacts to coral reefs and the marine environment. There are currently 44 active (assessed within the last 18 months) Green Fins members in Malaysia and 8 in Thailand, with 198 businesses that have been involved with Green Fins since its inception. So, the increased capacity created by establishing autonomous teams in Thailand and Malaysia – through the certification of six new assessor trainers – will enable the Green Fins initiative to support even more members in reducing their negative environmental impacts on coral reefs.”

Alvin Chelliah, Reef Check Malaysia, said: “The course was very interesting. It really taught us how to share the knowledge we’ve gained over the years with the new and upcoming assessors. I think it is an important part of building the Green Fins network in the country and hopefully now we will be able to spread the programme with more dive locations, get more dive centres involved and take care of our reefs better.

Khun Niphon Phongsuwan, Green Fins Thailand Network Leader and coral reef expert, said: “When we recruit people as Green Fins members, we don’t know if that person is following the code of conduct or not so the assessment is needed to see how effective Green Fins can be.”

Lau Chai Ming , Reef Check Malaysia, said: “Through the course, I’ve found out very simple things we can do to ensure dive operations can be more environmentally friendly. Things like reducing chemical usage in the cleaning of kit and imposing no touch policies is something that is very simple but do-able for dive centres.”

Petchrung Sukpong said: “I think the course was very useful because, on the national level, we have built capacity of people to be trainers; it’s like planting one tree which then grows fruit to spread. We now have three assessor trainers in Thailand who can train more people to be assessors. This will help the government do the assessments in the future and help fill capacity gaps in Thailand.

For more information, please visit www.reef-world.org or www.greenfins.net.

Marine Life & Conservation

Shark Trust launches Oceanic 31 Shark Art Auction

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After a two-year tour of UK art galleries, community spaces and aquariums, the Shark Trust’s acclaimed Oceanic31 exhibition takes its final bow at the Royal Geographical Society later this month. And the unique collection of artwork, depicting 31 species of oceanic sharks and rays, donated by 31 artists, is now open for bids from art lovers and shark enthusiasts. The online auction, launched today, will close on the 7th December at 8pm (BST). The money raised will support the Shark Trust Oceanics Programme.

People can now bid on 27 of the artworks by visiting this website:

https://superstars-auctions.com/sharktrustauction

It is a chance to own a beautiful piece of original art and to support the Shark Trust. The timing of the auction also means that these would make a very special Christmas gift for any shark-lover.

The diversity of pieces mirrors that of the sharks and rays they represent. You can bid on paintings, digital creations, sculptures, mixed media and more. You can pick your favourite artist or species of shark. Or you can select the perfect artwork to make a statement in your home or office. Whichever you choose, you will be supporting the work to protect these amazing animals.

One of the pieces of art has been selected to be auctioned live by Steve Backshall at the For the Love of Sharks event at the Royal Geographical Society in London on the 29th November. In addition to this, two further pieces will be raffled at this event, giving people a chance to win an incredible piece of shark art. For the Love of Sharks is the Shark Trust’s flagship evening. A night to celebrate sharks. Steve Backshall is the headline speaker at this event that will see other prominent shark advocates join him on stage.

Tickets for the event can be snapped up here:

https://thesharktrust.org.uk/Event/flos24

Those that would like to see the Oceanic 31 exhibition have one final chance. It is being displayed at the Pavilion at the Royal Geographic Society from 26th November until the 7th December. Entry is free.

Find out more here:

https://www.rgs.org/events/upcoming-events/oceanic-31

 Paul Cox, Shark Trust CEO, Said “This exhibition has given us the opportunity to reach out to a new audience. And inspire more people with the wonderful sharks and rays on which our Big Shark Pledge campaign is based. We are immensely grateful to the 31 artists who have worked so hard to create these works.”

Bid for your favourite Oceanic 31 artwork here:
https://superstars-auctions.com/sharktrustauction


Banner Image: Smooth Hammerhead by Alicia Hayden

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Marine Life & Conservation

Meet Steve Backshall in the Bite-Back Prize Draw

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steve backshall

Until 28 November, prizes worth a massive £10,000 – including experiences, products and tuition – feature in a line-up of items that can be won for £5 in an online prize draw to celebrate Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation’s 20th anniversary and help generate crucial funds for the future.

Top of the list of prizes is the chance to spend time with adventurer and wildlife expert Steve Backshall, a workout session with Nat Geo star Aldo Kane, a kayaking trip alongside white-water expert and diver Sal Montgomery and a Zoom call with ‘shark whisperer’ Cristina Zenato.

On top of that, some of the most admired companies in the diving and scuba industry have been quick to support the charity with fabulous prizes that make the £5 ticket price worth more than just a flutter.

Master Liveaboards, BSAC, Midlands Diving Chamber, Go Freediving and Blue Shark Snorkel have all generously donated experience prizes, while celebrated photographer Alex Mustard has donated a print and artists Scott Gleed and Olivier Leger have donated a sculpture and illustration to help boost the fundraising pot.

Fourth Element has donated Ocean Positive gear and LA watch company Nodus has gifted the charity a stunning dive watch. For land lovers, the charity has included a five star London hotel stay at Bankside Hotel plus a family visit to Longleat Safari Park in the roster of prizes.

Campaign director for Bite-Back, Graham Buckingham, said: “We’ve been overwhelmed with support from companies and individuals that we truly admire and who have supported us on our 20 year journey and we’re truly grateful to them all. While we feel incredibly proud of our achievements over the past two decades – and we are super excited about the next chapter – this prize draw isn’t a vanity project. It represents a real lifeline to our work and important advancements in the global protection of sharks. So we hope divers, dive clubs and even bargain hunters grab some tickets to make this a massive success.”

The charity hopes that the prize draw will generate crucial funds to launch a brand new, ground-breaking, campaign to enrol the public and increase support for the protection of sharks around the world.

To enter the competition visit www.bite-back.com/prizedraw. The prize winners will be announced on 1 December 2024.

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