UK charity the Reef-World Foundation, which administers the UN Environment Programme’s Green Fins initiative to boost environmental responsibility among professional diving operations, has set up an incentive scheme with insurer DiveAssure and an existing collaborator, dive-travel agency ZuBlu.
Also read: Caribbean dive-resort chain goes Green Fins
According to the foundation there is strong demand among dive tourists for sustainability education, and it says that the new arrangement will assist in promoting sustainable diving practices by encouraging more divers to take its Green Fins Diver e-course.
The US $25 course (free for those in exempt developing countries) is designed to help recreational divers conduct environmentally friendly diving trips and use their consumer power to demand more sustainable practices.
Under the new scheme, divers who have completed the course are promised 20% off worldwide diving accident and dive-travel insurance provided by US-based DiveAssure and 5% off Hong Kong-based ZuBlu’s international scuba holidays. DiveAssure and ZuBlu customers and members can in turn claim 10% off the e-course.
Also read: Bali dive-centre wins Green Fins award
“The Green Fins courses empower divers and operators with knowledge about marine conservation, sustainable diving practices and the importance of protecting the ocean and its ecosystems – knowledge we encourage all our members to have,” commented Dive Assure business development & community chief Tal Tamir, adding that the company is also open to backing dive operations’ projects.
“Green Fins members are welcome to apply for funding for their blue-green initiatives, which are considered quarterly,” he says. “Let’s do good together!” Find out more about the new partnerships from the Reef-World Foundation.
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