DREAM – GUE Launches a Project Portal Designed to Organize and Promote Diving Projects

PRESS RELEASE

High Springs, FL—Project diving has always been one of the core principles of Global Underwater Explorers. Defined as: a goal-orientated scientific, educational, explorational and/or conservation endeavor, utilizing dive teams with unique skill sets and appropriate technologies; project diving and its needs in demanding global endeavors, ultimately led to the formation of GUE. Now, the agency is expanding its efforts to protect the underwater environments we explore by launching a suite of support tools for a diverse set of community-led projects in the form of a Project Portal, which can be found here.

DREAM Initiative

The newly established Project Portal intends to inspire the GUE dive community to develop a broad range of projects using a standardized set of planning tools. It is designed for divers and instructors alike who seek to establish their own projects from the very beginning whilst still guided by excellence in exploration, conservation, and education. Our ultimate vision is to establish a GUE presence in every form of sub-aquatic project across the planet. The Project Portal will help us do this by leveraging the capacity of projects across multiple disciplines, environmental objectives, and communities using our DREAM initiative. 

It will help divers to:

• Define their project’s objective
• Research properties that illuminate that objective
• Explore their environment and record relevant observations
• Analyze and assemble observations in a publicly accessible manner
• Motivate other divers and laypersons in support of the underwater environment

What is it?

The Project Portal is split into three main sections: 

1. Project Reports Portfolio
2. Access to project registration and database
3. Project Guidance and Resources Library

Users will find a catalog of project reports showcasing the exploits of GUE divers over the years, as well as easy-access buttons to register and browse for active projects. In addition, for those who request access, aspiring project managers will be given access to a veritable library of project materials designed to walk divers through the process of developing all manner of projects (from the inception and planning process to checklists for project design, templates for report writing, and outreach). Materials have been collated together via GUE’s Project Coordinator, resources from DAN and other organizations, and existing tools from project-focused GUE communities around the world. This is a truly collaborative effort in project development and highlights its importance for the mission of GUE. 

Next Generation

Following its success over the past 25 years, GUE is actively committed to expanding its inclusive GUE community of young, recreational, and/or scientific divers working alongside their technical counterparts. Hence, the GUE Project Portal is the latest announcement in a suite of initiatives catered towards the next generation of divers. This comes together with the GUE NextGen Legacy Project, which aims to connect GUE communities with project leaders, established scientists, and aspiring scientists – all helping each other.

For more information, see GUE’s Project Portal here.

For any questions, contact GUE’s Global Project Coordinator and 2022-23 NextGen Scholar, Jennifer Thomson, at  [email protected]