How can raising funds and awareness to support scuba training in disadvantaged countries prevent the exclusion of girls from education and the workforce, often being married off to foreigners before the age of 15?
Daughters of the Deep partner with scuba and ocean conservation organisations globally to support solutions for a more equitable future.
‘For too long, our daughters have been left deep in the darkness. DOTD helps the next generation of seafaring women in disadvantaged countries to achieve the basic level of education required to reach their own goals in life, to open their eyes to rewarding careers within marine industries.’
Daughters of the Deep (DOTD) is a registered, notfor-profit international charity determined to counter socioeconomic barriers that restrict women’s access to marine careers.
Since launching on World Oceans Day, 8 June 2021, the charity has proactively supported programmes in Madagascar, Melanesia, Thailand, Indonesia and the South Pacific island of Niue.
According to DOTD, ‘For the young women of these regions, deeply rooted traditions regarding masculinity and femininity can present many obstacles and hardships.
Women are often viewed as inferior, with many expected to fulfil reproductive and household obligations, losing their right to make decisions about careers, sexual activity, finances, marriage and children.’
‘In some areas, young women are viewed as their family’s saviour, their main responsibility being to find a wealthy older man (usually a foreigner) to marry so they can provide for the entire family.
Such expectations are often imposed from a very early age, driving gender-based violence, the early departure of girls from school and under-age marriage. In Madagascar, 13% of girls are married before the age of 15.’
DOTD’s vision is to give young women with a passion for the ocean the confidence and opportunity to try scuba diving, master the sciences, captain ships, and become lead voices in the fight to save our seas.
Their mission is to provide women with education, vocational training, and opportunity to pursue careers in maritime and marine sciences.’
DOTD are primarily concerned with fundraising to support established organisations that they know and trust within in local communities to deliver programs on the ground.
These programs not only dramatically influence the trajectories of young women’s individual lives, but pave foundations for cultural revolution within their countries and local communities.
How DOTD was founded
UK-born Kate Parker (a qualified Divemaster and paediatric speech pathologist now based in Melbourne) recalls how the vision for DOTD unfolded. In 2012, she took a five-day boat trip from Panama to Columbia, meeting and becoming friends with George Bevan: ‘Social media kept us connected.
I watched his progression from a strategy consultant in London to dive shop owner. He now has 15 dive schools around the world, teaching diving and conservation.’ Likewise, George followed Kate’s involvement in ocean conservation and her volunteer activism with Sea Shepherd.
While working in Nicaragua, George noted that many young women in the area seemed interested in employment in the scuba sphere, but lacked the resources needed to become divers.
Kate recalls: ‘George proposed working together to get some funding, to train girls keen for environmentally-focussed dive careers.’
George also invited Perth-based Elle Haskin (a Master Dive Instructor with a Masters in Marine Biology and a long history with conservation projects) onboard: ‘Elle’s the powerhouse of research behind everything we do.’
Rounding out the backbone of DOTD is Gigi Torres, a female dive shop owner in Spain’s male-dominated industry.
Together this international quartet of visionaries birthed a charity to tackle gender inequality as a way of supporting disadvantaged women and marine conservation.
The big picture problem being addressed
DOTD point to reports, studies and other current literature to define the nature and scope of the issues they endeavour to address. A UNESCO report published in January 2023 states there are currently 130 million girls denied access to education.
UNESCO detailed how educating women and forging career pathways for them is a key component to a more sustainable global future.
Another paper titled ‹Un-gendering the ocean: Why women matter in ocean governance for sustainability› (published Aug 2018) emphasises the pressing need for change.
Kate elaborates: ‘Gender bias is not just a human rights issue; it’s a huge waste of the world’s human potential.
Where DOTD position ourselves is trying to tackle issues around women accessing education in the first place, then accessing marine industries.’
DOTD initiatives
Addressing the audience at DOTD’s first major sold-out fundraising dinner in Melbourne, Kate explains: ‘Through our fundraising efforts and the sales of our merchandise, we use 100% of profits to develop initiatives which remove financial barriers to training, create employment opportunities, and help evolve social structures to include more seafaring women.’
DOTD’s support is channelled into a diverse range of initiatives which include funding vocational training, and working with employers to create apprenticeships and jobs.
PADI and SSI provide free scuba e-learning modules and experience for all the girls in the DOTD programme.
Social outreach and seminars give women the support where they need it. Role models are made accessible via DOTD’s ‘Sisters of the Sea’ website pages, while further industry awareness is raised through stories shared in their ‘Daughter Diaries’.
Female marine scientists receive practical experience with DOTD’s sister-organisation, Conservation Diver.
Kate says: ‘The projects we fund are either equally matched in terms of funding by our partners on the ground, or provided at a heavily subsidised cost.
In most circumstances, the trainers donate their time to the project. Some of our projects offer free accommodation and food stipends for any girls we fund in their programme.’
Supporting global impact
Madagascar -DOTD’s flagship initiative was run in Madagascar. They joined forces with the Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute (MRCI) to provide education and security for girls in the local region who would otherwise lack financial means to attend school.
Abandoned by her parents as a baby and now living with her grandfather, Marie-Jeanne (MJ) became DOTD’s ‘First Daughter’. MJ started college through a DOTD scholarship.
She regularly visits the Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute, and has just completed her Open Water certification.
DOTD supports Olivian through an internship, preparing her for future employment at the Madagascar Research and Conservation Institute on their Sea Turtle monitoring programme.
Floria required assistance with tuition fees and is now in her second year of university. She’s training to become a Dive Master and hopes to eventually work with the Madagascar Whale Shark Project. Others are also being supported.
Melanesia -Daughters of the Deep have partnered with Sea Women of Melanesia (run by Coral Sea Foundation) based in Kimbe, PNG and the Solomon Islands. They’re currently working with approximately 40 local women from coastal communities.
The women are provided with swimming and snorkel training, plus equipment to take pictures to monitor and assess coral reef health and resilience. Taking on this role within their society encourages community support for better conservation and marine protected areas.
This programme embraces the use of indigenous knowledge regarding marine life in advocating for local marine conservation.
The Sea Women project was expanded into Australia in 2023 as Sea Women of The Great Barrier Reef.
This was launched with a seven-week program for five first nations women representing PNG, Torres Strait Islands and North Queensland. The women were scuba trained and learned to carry out coral reef monitoring.
DOTD are keen to keep a percentage of the funds raised in each country within that country. They are now looking to support the Sea Women of The Great Barrier Reef to help them to develop further skills for marine conservation.
South Pacific Island, Niue -Daughters of the Deep has partnered since 2022 with Niue Blue to provide financial and educational support to young women living on the small, self-governed island of Niue.
Participants are taught snorkelling and boat skippering skills. They learn about whale identification and documentation, alongside best practice for human/whale interaction.
Initially, six girls were equipped with expertise to gain employment in the whale research and observation industry on the island.
Training has since been funded for another five girls. All eleven girls are now preparing to undertake their Open Water certificates. DOTD plan to support replication of this program in Fiji soon.
Thailand -In conjunction with ATMEC (a diving conservation school), DOTD are funding research and conservation internships for female Thai citizens with a passion for marine science.
They’ll be given support to develop skills to carry out indepth research projects on coral biodiversity, recruitment and restoration. They’ll also be provided with a support network to help them through their career planning.
Training as Conservation Diver instructors will give them greater employment possibilities. In Thailand, one of the young women sponsored was unable to complete the second of two semesters funded by DOTD. This was due to significant pressure from her family to withdraw from the course and return home.
Kate reflects: ‘Obviously in some ways that’s disappointing. But it’s a reflection of the complexity and reality of the issues facing women.’
How to support DOTD
DOTD calls on potential supporters within the dive and broader communities to ‘Be a voice for equality: Spread our message, stand up for what is right and be the change’. DOTD host fundraiser events and presentations at dive clubs, schools and conferences. Representatives are available to be interviewed by podcasts, radio shows and media publications. You can also purchase and wear their bold, high-quality, ethical merchandise to help raise awareness, with all profits going directly to DOTD’s initiatives. Find out more about DOTD by visiting their website and online store at: daughtersofthedeep.org
Indonesia -Several dive schools in Indonesia operate as part of ‘the DOTD family’. They support fundraising by running movie and quiz nights, and selling merchandise in their dive shops.
They’re invested in education, going into local schools and talking to young women about careers with a maritime focus. Some centres run women-only Open Water swim lessons for the local ladies.
Kate shares: ‘We’re excited to be in talks with two more organisations in Indonesia. There’s a young girl in Nusa Penida who’s going to be funded up to Dive Instructor. We also plan to support a project in the Banda Islands.’
This article was originally published in Scuba Diver ANZ #63
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