Three Decades of Ocean Conservation

PADI® creates an environmental ethic called Project A.W.A.R.E. to teach the world about the importance and responsibility of preserving the aquatic environment.

The first PADI® Limited Edition card allows small donations from dedicated divers to become a lifeline of support for conservation with Project AWARE Foundation.

The world’s first and only global underwater marine debris survey launches. – Created by divers, for divers - yielding data including the types and quantities of more than 1.5 Million items found and removed from underwater environments to date.

One of the key outcomes during the Fifth International Marine Debris Conference (5IMDC), Project AWARE collaborated with key stakeholders around the globe to create The Honolulu Strategy – a global framework for prevention and management of marine debris.

As Project AWARE launches the Dive Against Debris Distinctive Specialty, and goes on to expand engagement offering the course in 12 languages. Dive Against Debris efforts around the globe are also visualized on a new interactive online map, shining a light on the growing problem of waste found beneath the surface and adding our unique, underwater perspective to the problem.

In celebration of the ocean, the first AWARE Week launches in September 2018! This global event includes activities focused on tackling ocean pollution, creating awareness for vulnerable shark and ray species, and empowering local communities to take positive actions for the protection of fragile aquatic environments. Participants in 41 countries respond to the call to take local action, fins on and fins off, for a clean and healthy ocean. Dive Against Debris survey participants increase by 26%.

A world record is broken. 633 divers. 3200lbs of fishing gear. Over 9,000 pieces of marine debris reported to Project AWARE. Divers unite to highlight the urgent need to stop the Ugly Journey of Trash and set a new Guinness World Record

Two new ISO Standards provide a unified formal framework for what the Project AWARE and PADI Dive community has been saying, doing and encouraging for some time. Scuba divers completing the revised Project AWARE Specialty have covered everything ISO 21417 stipulates.

In celebration of Life Below Water, AWARE Week 2019 - 14-22 September - saw a record number of conservation actions taking place across the globe. Over 140 registered events and 38,832 pieces of debris removed and reported to #DiveAgainstDebris take us a step closer to reaching #NextMillion2020

For 30 years, PADI and Project AWARE have worked together to address critical issues impacting ocean health. Today, this relationship is made stronger with the launch of the PADI AWARE Foundation, a public charity enabling global ocean conservation through local action. The Foundation will expand and build new conservation programs, activist movements, public outreach, courses, and partnerships that address key ocean threats such as marine debris, climate change, marine habitat loss and vulnerable species protection across the planet.