Pillars of Change A force for good Learn More PADI PILLARS OF CHANGE℠ Throughout its deep history, PADI has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to environmental conservation through its course offerings and alignment with organizations, such as the Project AWARE® Foundation, to protect and preserve our ocean planet. Committed to safety through leading-edge diver education, PADI changes lives in deep and meaningful ways, uniting diver voices to speak for those that cannot – the fragile, threatened inhabitants of our oceans. Over time, this commitment has become an integral part of the PADI corporate ethos. To be the best in the world, we all must be the best for the world by protecting the ocean planet we love. OCEAN HEALTH • MARINE ANIMAL PROTECTION • PEOPLE + COMMUNITY • HEALING + WELLNESS Read about current initiatives and diver’s actions > Ocean Health Marine Animal Protection People + Community Healing + Wellness Taking Action to Ensure Healthy Oceans Partners for Hope Partners for Hope PADI has forged an alliance with Mission Blue, led by legendary oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle, with the goal to increase the level of protection of the ocean. At the heart of this effort is a global campaign to build public support for the protection of Hope Spots — special places that are vital to the health of the ocean. Learn more at mission-blue.org 25 Years of Conservation 25 Years of Conservation For more than 25 years, PADI has partnered with Project AWARE to mobilize divers across the globe to protect underwater environments. PADI helps Project AWARE empower thousands of divers in more than 182 countries to work together for a clean, healthy and abundant ocean planet. Learn more at projectaware.org The Green Standard The Green Standard PADI and Reef-World joined forces to promote sustainable diving practices for the protection of the marine environment. This partnership will raise awareness and deliver tools to implement the Green Fins standard of best practice at PADI Dive Centers and Resorts, helping to ensure the long-term sustainability of coral reefs, recreational scuba diving and local livelihoods. Learn More A Commitment to Protecting Marine Life Biodiversity Shark and Ray Conservation Shark and Ray Conservation For more than 25 years, PADI has partnered with Project AWARE to mobilize divers across the globe to protect underwater environments. Focusing on the critical issues of shark and ray protection and marine debris. Become an informed and passionate shark defender. Take the AWARE Shark Conservation Diver Distinctive Specialty course. Ghost Gear Removal Initiative Ghost Gear Removal Initiative PADI has joined the Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI), the first global alliance working to solve the worldwide problem of lost and abandoned fishing gear, known as ghost gear, which each year entangles and kills marine life including hundreds of thousands of whales, seals, turtles and birds. Learn more at ghostgear.org #PADI4Change #PADI4Change The PADI network is a force for good with tremendous human potential to make an impact on critical social and environmental issues. PADI is dedicated to bringing the conversation to the forefront, and inspire actions that lead to a healthier ocean planet. Are you making an impact? Share and tag your story with #padi4change. Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Learn More Supporting People and Communities Dive it Forward Dive it Forward The People and Community Pillar is the heart of PADI’s mission: to teach the world to dive. In addition to providing more educational opportunities for people around the world to become PADI® Professionals, PADI aims to support PADI Members and local groups who are dedicated to exposing more people to diving, sustainability efforts and helping to build dive infrastructure that fosters local growth and prosperity. Making Waves Making Waves With 6,400 PADI Dive Centers and Resorts, 133,000 PADI Professionals and nearly 25 million divers around the world, the PADI network is a force for good with tremendous human potential to make an impact on critical social and environmental issues. Read about current initiatives and divers actions Ambassadors for Change Ambassadors for Change PADI AmbassaDivers are committed to changing the world as a PADI Diver or Professional by inspiring more people to pursue their passions or follow their dreams to explore, protect and experience the underwater world. Meet Our Ambassadors Learn More Transforming Lives Through Diving Healing Through Education Healing Through Education The PADI® Adaptive Support Diver course will increase your awareness of divers’ varying abilities and explores adaptive techniques to apply while diving or freediving with a buddy with a disability. Visit your local PADI Shop to enroll in the course. Living Life Dive-Abled Living Life Dive-Abled Leo Morales is a cancer survivor, a world record holder and a person who has transformed his life by diving. He shares his remarkable tale of triumph over adversity, and why he considers himself “dive-abled.” Watch Leo's My PADI Story #PADI4Change #PADI4Change The PADI organization aims to inspire people to find personal transformation and healing, both mentally and physically, and supports local organizations that are working to improve lives through diving. Share your story #padi4change Facebook | Instagram | Twitt Learn More Diving towards a healthier planet. Throughout its deep history, PADI has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to environmental conservation through its course offerings and alignment with organizations, such as the Project AWARE® Foundation. PADI's conservation focused courses are designed to foster a sustainability mindset in every diver, helping to increase the number of ocean stewards around the globe. Project AWARE Specialty This revised Project AWARE Specialty course, is an introduction to how to be a conservation-minded diver. It focuses and expands on the 10 Tips for Divers to Protect the Ocean Planet. Through interactive discussions, you’ll learn how you can make a difference for ocean protection every time you dive or travel. A dry, "fins off" course, this specialty is ideal for divers and nondivers alike to gain insight into how decisions above and below the surface impact our water planet. Dive Against Debris Specialty Do you want to make a difference on every dive but are not sure where to begin? Gain the knowledge and skills to activate your inner citizen scientist by taking the Dive Against Debris® Specialty. You’ll learn to complete Dive Against Debris surveys under the guidance of a PADI Professional and help keep you your local dive sites healthier by removing trash. Coral Reef Conservation Diver Coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse and productive communities on earth and critical to maintaining a healthy ocean. The PADI Coral Reef Conservation Specialty course educates divers on the complexity of these critical marine ecosystems and teaches you how you can help conserve these vital habitats. Enroll Now View All Courses Every week is shark week. One month after he lost his right leg to a tiger shark, while bodyboarding in Hawai’i, Mike Coots was back in the water. And now, 18 years later, shark advocacy has become Mike’s life mission. A professional photographer and influential force in the surf community, Mike is committed to changing people’s perceptions about sharks and lobbying for their protection. Although a certified diver before he lost his leg, it’s only been in the last year that Mike realized the best way to save sharks was to get face to face with the same species that took his leg and share that story with others. Through the power of storytelling and his photography, Mike hopes to show people that sharks aren’t the mindless killers portrayed in the media. You can’t comprehend the real beauty of sharks until you can look into their eyes and witness them in their natural environment. Mike Coots, Shark-Bite Survivor, Professional Photographer, PADI Open Water Diver Watch Video We Are Conservation. Improving the health of our ocean planet. PADI empowers divers to become ocean stewards by supporting critical social and environmental efforts.