| Underwater Images
donates
competition proceeds to benefit non-profit marine conservation
and marine education programs. The following organizations have
received contributions made by Underwater Images.
Diveheart
The Diveheart Foundation
was founded in Early 2001 and is a non-profit tax exempt (
501-C3 ) national organization chartered in the state of
Illinois. The purpose of Diveheart is to provide and support
educational SCUBA diving and snorkeling experience programs that
are open to any physically impaired child or adult in the hope
of providing both physical and psychological therapeutic value
to that person. In cooperation with OCSSDI, Underwater Images
donated $1,000 in 2008 to sponsor dive training for a wounded
military veteran from Ohio.
 Pro
Peninsula
One of our beneficiaries for the competition is Pro Peninsula, a
conservation organization dedicated to empowering communities in
Baja California, Mexico to protect and preserve their
environment. Pro Peninsula is the coordinating body for the Grupo Tortuguero, or Sea Turtle Conservation Network, and
through this program works to identify local marine conservation
leaders and to support their conservation efforts on a local and
regional level. This organization has received over
$14,000 in donations from the
Underwater Images competition since 1998.
More information
here
 Mahonia Na Dari
"Guardians of the Sea"
http://www.mahonia.org/
Since 1996, Mahonia na Dari ("Guardians of the Sea" in the local Talasea
language) has been working to protect Papua New Guinea's abundant biodiversity
by promoting the sustainable development of its biological and cultural
resources. Mahonia Na Dara was established as a result of a cooperative venture
by the owners of Walindi Plantation Resort and several international
governmental and nongovernmental organizations, including the European Union and
The Nature Conservancy. This organization has received over
$14,000 in donations from the Underwater Images
competition. In 2008, Underwater Images donated $4,000 to this great cause.
Marine Conservation and Education
Barren seas make barren photos.
As threats increase to the teeming sea life that we love to photograph, we
recognize the importance of working for its preservation. That's why the
Underwater Images Photo/Video Competition donates proceeds from its entry fees
to organizations effective in promoting marine conservation and educating the
public about its importance.
Our beneficiary for the competition is WiLDCOAST,
a marine conservation organization dedicated to protecting coastal and marine
resources in the waters of Baja California, Mexico.
WiLDCOAST's efforts start where they count the most: with the human
residents of the Baja coasts. WiLDCOAST works to
identify local marine conservation leaders and to support their conservation
efforts on a local and regional level.
 WiLDCOAST
is also an integral part of the effort to protect the sea turtle population that
ranges from the Baja coast throughout the Pacific Ocean.
WiLDCOAST monitors sea turtle populations and, through satellite
tracking, plots the movement of individual turtles to nesting areas as far a
field as Japan.
Since 1998, Underwater Images has been able to donate over $9000 to
WiLDCOAST's scholarship programs. Almost a dozen
Mexican fishermen have benefited from these scholarships to national and
international sea turtle symposiums. They include Adan Hernandez, who has been
nominated as Time magazine's conservationist of the year.
Without these scholarships, local conservationists are unable to attend
important seminars like this. At a sea turtle seminar, they meet others like
themselves, see the latest data on sea turtle declines, make connections with
biologists and conservationists from around the world, and learn conservation
techniques. They come back to their communities inspired to continue their work.
Returned fishermen have been able to save hundreds of turtles and-more
important-to begin to change local attitudes to support turtle conservation.
We urge you to join our efforts to support marine conservation and education.
For more information about WiLDCOAST,
please visit these sites:
- The WiLDCOAST web page
- The Sea Turtle Conservation
Network of the California's web page
- The seaturtle.org web page
 OCSSDI Memorial Scholarship Fund
The Underwater Images Competition also donates to the
OCSSDI Memorial Scholarship Fund. This scholarship is awarded to a
member of the OCSSDI who is pursuing a career in Marine Sciences, Marine
Archeology, or related field. One recent OCSSDI Scholarship winner (Ohioan Joe Hoyt) also became the
prestigious Our World Underwater
Scholarship winner in 2004.
M.A.S.T (Marine Archaeological Survey Team)
Underwater Images is proud to provide support to
MAST, an organization that sponsors
education in Marine Archaeology. MAST also helps buoy shipwrecks in Lake Erie
for preservation from anchor damage, as well as document and preserve the
history of Great Lakes shipwrecks.
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