Reef Life—the Beautiful Oceans newsletter
Added to website: 06 March 2006
ISSUE 002
M A R C H 2 0 0 6
Welcome to Reef Life—the Beautiful Oceans newsletter. Reef Life will keep you up-to-date on the latest news, announcements, appointments, awards and special offers from Beautiful Oceans. Enjoy all your underwater adventures, and please dive and snorkel responsibly,
The Beautiful Oceans Team
N E W S
Science Instructor Development Centers are now operational in both Grenada and Barbados. Aquanauts in Grenada, which became the first Beautiful Oceans Science Dive & Snorkel Centre in January, gained the Science Instructor Development Center rating last month. Paul Ward, an Aquanauts dive professional with a decade of teaching experience, was trained as the center’s first Science Instructor Trainer. Visit Aquanauts at www.aquanautsgrenada.com.
Hightide Watersports, situated on the idyllic west coast of Barbados, gained the Science Instructor Development Center rating after an intensive three week training course conducted at the Bellairs Research Institute of McGill University. In total five Science Instructors were certified and a further four qualified as Science Instructor Trainers. Visit Hightide Watersports at www.divehightide.com.
The establishment of Science Instructor Development Centers and Science Instructor Trainers is a major step in the continued expansion of Beautiful Oceans in the Caribbean. “Both Aquanauts Grenada and Hightide Watersports have strong international reputations for professionalism and environmental awareness and are now well-positioned to facilitate the training of Beautiful Oceans Science Instructors across the region so that other dive centers will benefit from the ability to offer coral reef biology courses to their clients,” said Stephan Becker, President of Beautiful Oceans.
Ian Popple (VP Science & Education) explaining the concept of reef zonation during a dive briefing in Grenada, W.I.
World Wetlands Day was celebrated at the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary in Barbados on February 2nd. Beautiful Oceans marked the occasion by providing free access to online coral reef science courses at the Beautiful Oceans eAcademy to all 52 schools on the island. In her speech to the assembly, Staci Lewis—spokesperson for the US Embassy in Barbados—praised the work that Beautiful Oceans is doing to raise awareness of coral reef biology. “In the private sector, companies like Beautiful Oceans help people learn the value of their environment,” she said. “Through education of divers about precious underwater ecosystems and promoting school and adult education, this company is giving back to the community and helping tourism work in harmony with everyday local life.” Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary is an area of outstanding natural beauty in Barbados. The Sanctuary is home to red and white mangrove trees and many rare species of birds, fishes and plants.
Ian Popple talks to CBC Radio. Beautiful Oceans and its coral reef biology courses for scuba divers and snorkelers took center stage on CBC Radio last month as Anna Asimakopulos interviewed Ian Popple, VP Science & Education, on the show “All In A Weekend”. Live by phone from Grenada Ian discussed the successful launch of Beautiful Oceans in the Caribbean and some of the many interesting behaviours that scuba divers and snorkelers discover by taking a Beautiful Oceans coral reef biology course.
Beautiful Oceans at St. Georges University. Beautiful Oceans attended the annual Trade Fair at St. Georges University in Grenada last month. The students in attendance discovered how Beautiful Oceans courses link their theoretical class knowledge to actual ‘reef life’. The Beautiful Oceans team met with Dr. Claire Morrell, Chair of Life Sciences at the university, and offered free access to online coral reef biology courses at the Beautiful Oceans eAcademy for all students in the marine biology program at St. Georges. Students also receive discounts on the in-class and in-water components of Beautiful Oceans courses at Aquanauts Grenada—a Beautiful Oceans Science Instructor Development Center.
The Beautiful Oceans crew at the St. Georges University Trade Fair in Grenada, W.I.
New underwater video footage for the ‘Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms’ course and the soon-to-be-released ‘Coral Reef Ecosystem & Food Web’ course was completed in Grenada last month by Beautiful Oceans Videographer Mark Sharman. Over a three-week period of intensive diving Mark worked his way through a wish-list of over 50 coral reef organisms and behaviours described in Beautiful Oceans’ first two courses. ”The list was as long as my arm,” joked Mark. “But with hard work and some incredible luck we were able to shoot all the desired footage and more.” Marks footage of a half-dozen nurse sharks exiting the San Juan wreck on Grenada’s west coast will surely be one of his more memorable underwater moments. All the new footage will be uploaded to the eAcademy for divers and snorkelers enrolled in the ‘Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms’ online course over the coming month.
Mark Sharman (Beautiful Oceans Videographer) shooting extensive underwater video footage for Beautiful Oceans’ first two courses in Grenada, W.I.
Beautiful Oceans now ships to all countries. Following the high demand for coal reef biology courses from divers and snorkelers around the world, Beautiful Oceans is pleased to announce that the SciencePAK Gold is now available for comprehensive international shipping. “We’ve had enquires from Australia to Iraq,” said Stephan Becker, President of Beautiful Oceans. The price of the SciencePAK Gold (including postage and packaging) to North America is now only $64.99 and $77.99 to all other locations around the world.
e- A C A D E M Y
New functions have been added to the online environment of the eAcademy. Enrolled students now can initiate multiple chat sessions among peers and can invite other students enrolled in the same course to join the chat. Students can participate in online forums and leave messages for other students that are not currently online. Chat messages and new forum posts are now also sent to individual student e-mail addresses, allowing everyone to keep updated even when they are not logged into the eAcademy. All communication features can be activated or deactivated to suit the individual preferences and needs of each student.
I N T H E C O M M U N I T Y
Beautiful Oceans offers free online access to local schools. Beautiful Oceans plans to provide all 52 schools in Barbados with free online access to its coral reef biology courses. Beautiful Oceans management met with the Caribbean Conservation Association (CCA) and the Government of Barbados Coastal Zone Management Unit (CZMU) on February 7th to initiate a plan that will bring free online access to the Beautiful Oceans eAcademy to all the island’s schools. “Our courses will assist the government in two important initiatives—broadening the school curriculum to include marine science, and improving computer literacy within the island’s schools,” said Ian Popple, VP Science & Education. A pilot project with Ellerslie Secondary School is currently under way and will be expanded to 6 more schools in the coming month.
S P E C I A L O F F E R S
Beautiful Oceans’ course ‘Coral Reef Architecture & Organisms’ is still available online at www.beautifuloceans.com for our special low introductory price. The SciencePAK Gold, which contains full online access to our first course, the full-colour course manual, underwater dive slates and a computer headset for online communication in the Beautiful Oceans eAcademy, starts at only $64.99. The SciencePAK Silver, which contains full online access, is still available at the incredibly low price of $29.99. These promotional offers end on March 31st, 2006.
Online courses are complete and independent packages, conducted in the Beautiful Oceans eAcademy—our state-of-the-art e-learning platform—which allows students to learn about the fascinating world of coral reef biology without ever leaving the comfort of their own home. Our online courses contain easy to read, scientifically validated text, captivating images, video footage and interactive quizzes, as well as access to online discussion forums and live Skype (free internet phone) communication with other students. Where else can you get gain access to this kind of environment for such an unbeatable price?
For more information and to enroll, please visit the E-ACADEMY - COURSE SHOP at www.beautifuloceans.com
D I D Y O U K N O W ?
The plural of fish is ‘fishes’ when referring to a group that comprises more than one species, but ‘fish’ when referring to a group that comprises just one species.
S P R E A D T H E W O R D
Beautiful Oceans needs your help! The future of Beautiful Oceans relies largely on you—fellow scuba divers, snorkelers and friends of the coral reef ecosystem—to spread the word. Please visit our website at www.beautifuloceans.com, click on SPREAD THE WORD and contact friends that may be interested in hearing about Beautiful Oceans.
About Beautiful Oceans
Beautiful Oceans offers the finest coral reef biology courses for recreational scuba divers and snorkelers. Our exciting courses, which take place online, in-class and are designed to be applied in-water, provide a unique and comprehensive understanding of coral reef organisms, their behaviour and the environment in which they live.
If you wish to learn more about Beautiful Oceans, please visit our website at: www.beautifuloceans.com. If you have any questions or comments about Beautiful Oceans’ please contact us at media@beautifuloceans.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
If you wish to read previous issues of Reef Life, visit our MEDIA section at www.beautifuloceans.com.
