Greening The Dive Business: One Woman's Quest To Take On The World

Marine biologist and professional diver, chloë harvey, introduces us to ginette bariteau, a dive centre owner in who is about to embark on an adventure to green her diving business.

- Chloë Harvey

THIS BLUE WORLD is changing. In the last century the global sea level has risen almost 20 centimeters, we have lost half of our wildlife in the past four decades, and this year, our oceans are facing one of the worst coral bleaching events in history. Our marine ecosystem is delicately balancing on an uncertain edge, and there is no group better placed for attempting to rescue it than the dive industry. Heading this industry are the myriad dive centres that stand on the beaches of far-flung islands, and dive-tourism hotspots – these are the ones who can help kick-start change.

In this first of a three-part series to be released over the next six months, we introduce Ginette Bariteau, a dive centre owner in Panama, who we will be following through the ups and downs of her groundbreaking journey to improve the way her business deals with the environment. Situated in Bocas del Toro, Panama, Ginette’s dive centre is located in one of the most biodiverse regions in the world. Seeing the diving industry as the frontline for protecting the marine environment, and how the industry directly relies on the health of the marine environment, she is looking to inspire change within her local community as to how they think and act towards the environment.

After stumbling upon the guidance provided by the Green Fins initiative aimed at building environmental best practice into dive and snorkel operations – Ginette decided to plunge in feet first using the e-Handbook for Dive and Snorkel Centres to do a review on the way she does business, setting her beliefs in a project that will hopefully help improve her customers’ diving experiences, alongside boosting the resident ecosystem.