During the lockdown I had the opportunity to apply for a scholarship, through the ‘Girls that Scuba’ women’s scuba diving community for a ‘Project AWARE’ shark speciality course. Project AWARE is an internationally known charity which is a global force of divers working across the world to protect the underwater environment through education and conservation.
Jess has previously dived with sharks at the Cozumel Marine Park in Mexico
Through the Girls that Scuba online community, I wrote an essay which was sent to numerous dive tech companies, through this process, Apeks dive equipment (a world- class production facility for scuba gear) chose me first hand and payed for this course.
Over the next week, I joined an online webinar with a marine biologist based in Los Cabos, Mexico. After, I completed a knowledge review and received the knowledge certification.
In the future, I hope to complete the practical element of this course by participating in two open water shark dives in order to receive the full certification. Also, I hope to use this opportunity to further promote shark conservation and protect the marine environment, which I am also looking at for my EPQ. In the future, I am planning to become a marine biologist and specialise in this area, becoming a shark scientist.
~ Jess Hibbert, Year 12
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