It’s been sixty years since John Cronin and Ralph Erickson sparked a vision in a small Illinois apartment that would change the sport of diving forever. Cronin and Erickson forged PADI’s humble beginnings with only USD $30 and a glass of Jonny Walker Black; now, PADI has a global membership of 128,000 professionals and 6,600 dive centers and resorts in more than 180 countries, who together have issued over 30 million diver certifications.
“Sixty years ago, a torch was lit and a movement was born beneath the sea,” says Dr. Drew Richardson, President and CEO for PADI Worldwide.
“Since then, we have built upon that legacy with the same spirit of adventure, friendship and purpose that began the dream of bringing the world closer to the ocean, one diver at a time. This year, we celebrate the progress that we have made towards our mission to create a billion Torchbearers to explore and protect the ocean together.”
60 Years of Leadership and Impact
In 2003, the leadership torch for PADI was passed to Dr. Richardson, who marks his own 40th anniversary of dedicated service to the organization this year. Under his guidance, PADI has evolved into a purpose-driven, global lifestyle brand that continually advances diver education, safety, ocean access and marine protection, ensuring that the underwater world remains accessible to all.
To commemorate PADI’s deeper purpose, the organization evolved its mission and tagline for its 50th anniversary, from The Way the World Learns to Dive℠ to Seek Adventure. Save the Ocean℠, with the defined mission to create a billion Torchbearers to explore and protect the ocean.
With that, PADI also rolled out the Pillars of Ocean Change, which are designed to unite the global dive community in working together to achieve balance between humanity and the ocean.
Since then, and with the support of global non-profits PADI AWARE™ and the PADI Foundation, PADI has:
- Provided more than USD $6M in grants for marine research, science and education
- Fueled over 350,000 local initiatives that create positive ocean change
- Protected over 100 vulnerable shark and ray species
- Untangled over 41,000 marine animals
- Removed over 2.5 million pieces of debris
- Adopted and monitored over 3,300 dive sites with 28,000 surveys
60 Years of Milestones
The last six decades for PADI have been defined by giant strides in diver innovation, education, safety and impact, which have led the organization to be the leader of the diving industry.
“Founded by divers for divers, PADI is an organization that has long been obsessed with transforming lives and creating positive ocean change by making the underwater world accessible to all,” continues Dr. Richardson. “Since the very beginning, the global PADI membership has inspired millions to dive with confidence and purpose, teach others, elevate diver safety and carry the torch. And with each new diver we certify, we add to our ability to lift the seas and each other.”
Key milestones throughout the organization’s deep history include:
- 1960s: PADI was founded and issued its first certification (1966), developed the PADI Continuing Education system, coined The Undersea Journal (1967) and created the PADI Positive ID Card – the first diver certification to include diver photos (1968).
- 1970s: Created the Master Scuba Diver ranking (1973), launched the modular scuba program (1978) and issued 100,000 certifications annually (1979).
- 1980s: Published the Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving, introduced the Recreational Dive Planner (1988) and established the PADI AWARE Foundation (formerly Project AWARE) to formalize its commitment to saving the ocean (1989).
- 1990s: Released the first VHS for PADI Open Water Diver courses, issued over 500,000 certifications annually (1991) and introduced enriched air (EANx) as an industry staple (1995).
- 2000s: Introduced the PADI TecRec program (2000), instituted the PADI Seal Team program for young divers (2001) and revolutionized the industry with the first eLearning™ diving courses (2007).
- 2010s: Organized the first annual PADI Women’s Dive Day (2015), reaffirmed its mission with the Pillars of Ocean Change (2016), introduced the Adaptive Diving program (2017), established PADI Travel, acquired Scuba Diving® magazine and reached a pivotal milestone of issuing one million certifications annually (2018).
- 2020s: Launched Dive Guides and PADI Adventures (2020), announced the PADI Blueprint for Ocean Action (2021), partnered with like-minded brands on conservation programs and helped get requiem sharks CITES protection (2022), established PADI Eco Centers and Adaptive Service Facilities (2023), named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies and Conde Nast Traveler’s Bright Ideas in Travel (2024), developed the PADI App and PADI Conservation Action Portal to track diver’s education, adventures and impact (2025) and launched the Global Shark and Ray Census to save these vulnerable marine species (2026).
60 Years of Heroics, Firsts and Records
Since the organization’s inception, PADI divers have continued to break barriers in the sport, many achieving feats once thought impossible. Over the last decade, tremendous feats from PADI divers and members include:
- Thai Cave Rescue (2018): Rick Stanton, John Volanthen, Dr. Richard Harris, Dr. Craig Challen, Jason Mallinson, Jim Warny and Chris Jewell helped lead the rescue diving mission for the “Wild Boars” youth soccer team, who were trapped in the Tham Luang cave system in Thailand for 18 days. The successful rescue was one of the most dangerous dive rescues of all time and earned this group the first PADI Medal of Valor for representing “diving’s finest hour.”
- Largest Underwater Cleanup (2019): PADI Dive Center Dixie Divers in Deerfield Beach, Florida, united their diving community on June 15, 2019 to bring 633 scuba divers together at the Deerfield Beach International Fishing Pier to successfully remove 1,450 kilograms (3,200 pounds) of fishing gear and over 9,000 pieces of marine debris in 24 hours. This data was logged in the world’s largest underwater marine debris database, Dive Against Debris, and earned a place in the Guinness World Book of Records.
- Largest Underwater Mermaid Show (2021): 110 PADI Mermaids in Hainan, China set a Guinness World Book of Records for the largest underwater mermaid show on April 28, 2021 at the Atlantis Sanya. The mega-pod’s colorful tails and graceful skills during the viral synchronized performance catapulted mermaiding’s popularity worldwide, solidifying PADI Mermaids as true voices for the ocean and all life that calls it home.
- Deepest Diving Pool in the World (2021): PADI Dive Center Deep Dive Dubai built the world’s deepest pool for diving at 60 meters (196 feet). The pool was built specifically for scuba divers, mermaids and freedivers to explore. Designed to resemble an abandoned sunken city and filled with 14 million liters (3.7 million gallons) of water, there are depths to be explored for all skill levels.
- Fastest to Dive All Seven Continents (2024): PADI AmbassaDiver Barrington Scott successfully dove all seven continents in a record-breaking 19 days, seeking adventure in Australia, Thailand, Egypt, Malta, the United States, Argentina and Antarctica – a feat he accomplished not even ten years after first earning his PADI Open Water Diver certification.
- Most Celebrated Day of Diving (2025): PADI Women’s Dive Day celebrated its 11th anniversary on June 19, 2025. For the past 11 years, the dive community has rallied together annually to encourage those of all genders, ages, races, backgrounds and abilities to dive together. The annual event has now even encouraged tourism trends, with destinations like the Maldives creating special resort packages for guests to come and celebrate.
- Most Certifications Issued by a Dive Center (2025): Two PADI Dive Centers, Ban’s Diving Resort (Thailand) and Quicksilver Dive (Australia) have surpassed an incredible PADI certification milestone, each introducing over 300,000 people to scuba diving and the underwater world. That is equivalent to certifying three sold-out Super Bowl crowds or an entire island nation like Vanuatu or Barbados.
60 More Years of a Future Fueled by Purpose
Now planning for the next sixty years, the organization looks to welcome millions more as certified PADI divers who are trained to both seek adventure and save the ocean.
“I’m excited about the future of PADI, because we’re on the brink of something big,” explains Dr. Richardson. “I see a future of optimism, one that includes all of us working together to inspire the next generations of ocean advocates.”
PADI Members all over the world are invited to join the PADI regional teams as they celebrate this milestone year and the shared legacy of inspiring millions of divers, opening the door to underwater adventure and protecting our shared ocean planet.
