Divers are especially lucky to have the opportunity and skillset to see sharks in person, in the ocean. Unfortunately, many non-divers will never see a shark in the wild and a majority of people would claim sharks scare them. Yet, sharks are some of the most threatened animals in our ocean.
These graceful creatures are impacted by overfishing, human disturbance and climate change, which alters prey availability and suitable habitat. So much so that 75% of shark species are currently facing extinction. But, what can we do to protect sharks and ensure they’ll remain in the ocean for future divers to visit? As dive shops and PADI Pros, we’re in a unique position to help save the sharks. Supporting, teaching about, and becoming involved in shark conservation is key, and there’s no one in a better position to do so than scuba divers.
Shark conservation, aka the protection or preservation of sharks, is vital to saving sharks themselves, but also important in order to protect the health of the ocean and the dive industry. As a professional diver or dive shop owner, you are in a unique position and have amazing opportunities to reach a wide audience of new and experienced divers in order to share the importance of sharks and get involved directly in shark conservation, thanks to the many PADI initiatives available to you. Read on to learn about how to support shark conservation as a professional diver or dive shop owner.
Why is Shark Conservation Important?
Sharks play a valuable role in maintaining the health of the ecosystem they call home, from reefs to open oceans. They keep other fish populations balanced as a top predator, which helps the rest of the food web remain in check. This, in turn, results in an the ecosystem that’s healthy and beautiful, which is important as everything is tied to the ocean- including the dive industry. Divers love to go shark diving or travel to the beautiful dive sites that sharks help maintain.
Regrettably, shark populations are threatened by overfishing, caught as bycatch at a rate too fast for them to repopulate and replenish their numbers. The addition of more pressures, like climate change and marine debris, may prove to be too much for sharks in the future. Obviously, shark conservation is important to keep sharks and the ocean healthy, and to ensure a profitable and successful dive industry.
How Can Dive Shops and PADI Pros Support Shark Conservation?
As we mentioned above, PADI Professionals and dive shops around the globe are in a unique position to make a huge impact on shark conservation. Here are just a few of the things you can do to help.
Teach the AWARE Shark Conservation Course
Offering and teaching the AWARE Shark Conservation course through your dive shop is one way to spread awareness and give students the knowledge to empower them to participate in shark conservation, too. The course curriculum expands on the importance of sharks in the ocean, threats to sharks, and what everyone can do to help protect them. This PADI Specialty Course is also a great way to keep divers learning and improving their skills. Furthermore, we’ll shortly be creating an eLearning version of this course in order to make it more accessible. Stay tuned!
Sell the 30th Anniversary PADI AWARE Certification Card
You can support shark conservation by spreading awareness to your customers and contributing to shark conservation funding. A cool and simple way to do both is by telling your students about and selling the 30th Anniversary PADI AWARE Certification Card, which features an amazing Great Hammerhead shark image by Jay Clue. This special card has several benefits – a $10 donation to PADI AWARE Foundation for ocean conservation and marine animal protection funding is included with every purchase of this card, and the card calls attention to photographers, like Jay Clue, who do amazing work supporting shark conservation. Photography is a powerful tool to connect people with sharks. It could be someone’s inspiration for shark conservation. Take a look at this interview with Jay Clue to hear about his experience and how a photo of a shark inspired him.
Support Environmental Conservation Groups
Another actionable item is to get involved in environmental nonprofits, campaigns, petitions, and government actions affecting sharks. Keeping track of environmental government initiatives is a full-time job in itself, so ocean-focused nonprofits can help keep you informed of local and international shark conservation issues you care about, and then pass on your messages about the issues to decision-makers.
For example, PADI AWARE has grown to become the collective voice of the diving community in order to advocate for responsible shark tourism and the protection of many shark and ray species. PADI AWARE has consistently advocated for sharks and rays at CITES Conventions (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora). The last convention, held in November 2022, resulted in an agreement that “around 90 percent of all internationally traded [shark] species can now only be traded if their stocks are not endangered as a result, compared to only 20 percent before the start of the conference, ” as reported in this WWF article.
Similarly, an international agreement was finally reached to create a UN High Seas Treaty in the first week of March 2023. This treaty will provide legal framework to establish and manage marine protected areas in international waters. The agreement came after more than a decade of negotiations and after advocacy for the protection of the ocean persisted. While it can’t be said definitively that PADI’s and SeaLegacy’s joint 30×30 campaign to protect 30% of the world’s oceans finally convinced the UN negotiators to come to an agreement, it did add to the collective voice supporting the ocean.
Adopt the Blue
Another avenue of conservation action is participating in the PADI AWARE program, Adopt the Blue . This is an additional way to join forces with the PADI community and use your dive shop and dive network to participate in local and global conservation action. PADI dive centers, resorts, or instructors can join this network and provide valuable information about vulnerable species like sharks at their adopted dive site through the Adopt the Blue Program. This information feeds into larger bodies of work used to encourage the creation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) worldwide. Learn more about how to participate here.
Share Shark Conservation Information
Lastly, share shark conservation facts and efforts on your social media and email lists. These are great channels for spreading awareness of shark conservation and information about how to participate to your students. You may already be using social media to market your dive shop, so adding in some shark conservation content could be an easy addition, and could increase engagement with your audience. Take a look at this blog post, 5 Ideas for Social Media Content – PADI Pros, for more social media content.
As a PADI Professional, you have the opportunity to help sharks and the ocean. Shark conservation benefits sharks, the ocean, the livelihood of diving professionals, and your students and future divers.
