Conservation of Indonesian Ocean Paradise

To all ocean lovers! We're passionate research divers and marine conservationists from The Indo Ocean Project. Here in Bira, South Sulawesi, our goal is to protect and conserve the stunning marine life by establishing a Marine Protected Area. For that, we're committed to empower the local community in becoming guardians of their own underwater paradise for generations to come.

Bira's marine ecosystem is teeming with impressive megafauna and macro life. But it's also facing significant challenges: pollution, ghost nets, and destructive fishing practices threaten to degrade this precious environment. Many of the residents never had the opportunity to experience the incredible marine life from below the surface, making it almost impossible to be fully aware of their own impacts and dependencies on the marine ecosystem and its delicate vulnerability.

With your support, we launch a comprehensive initiative to further involve locals in every step of the conservation process. From educational workshops led by local dive masters and marine biologists to hands-on training in scuba diving and reef/beach clean-ups, our aim is to enable Bira's residents to take ownership of their magnificant marine heritage.

With your donation, we aim to fund:

Community Exchange: We aim to organize community exchanges where we bring together the experience of our marine biologists with the thoughts from Bira’s local people to develop potential location-specific conservation measures.

Discovery Scuba Trainings: There is no better way to experience the underwater world than to go for a dive. A selected group of locals will receive the opportunity to do a certified SCUBA discovery dive led by IOP and Blue Planet Dive Resort’s passionate instructors and researchers.

Dive Certifications for Locals: We sponsor dedicated locals (f/m/d) to become certified (advanced) open water divers. Thereby, we provide them with valuable skills in marine conservation as well as the opportunity to qualify for IOP’s research dive master scholarship.

Community Clean-Up: Following “the more, the merrier” motto, we want to organize a big community clean-up to free Bira’s beautiful beaches from debris together. Next to trash bags, the funds will also be used to provide a free, nutritious lunch and a reusable water bottle to all helpers of the clean-up.

Ghost Net Retrieval: Our team will remove dangerous ghost nets that got stuck in local reefs to protect marine life from getting entangled and preserving our precious coral reefs and sea grass areas.

Your donation will enable us to take significant steps towards protecting this biodiversity-rich marine hotspot and create a safe haven where marine life, including sharks, rays, turtles, and many others, can thrive alongside local communities.

In return, we’ll roll up our sleeves and continue to clean our beaches & reefs. In the past month only, we have collected more than 400kg of debris next to our research & conservation activities – let's see how high we can further push this number!

Thank you for joining us on this crucial journey, and please share our campaign with your network and fellow ocean lovers.

Happy bubbles from Ben, Jess, Qinthan, Kholil, Jan, Jack, Marian, Laura, Hannah, Jasper, Maylin, Anthea, Laurianne, Nathalie & Tobias - together with Indo Ocean Project & Blue Planet Dive Resort