DiveBar awarded for its environmental efforts
DiveBar awarded for its environmental efforts
The DiveBar was honored by Friends of Gumbo Limbo with the CRESTT Award — Conservation, Research, Education and Stewardship for Today and Tomorrow — at Gumbo Limbo’s Sixth Annual Sea Coast Toast.
Friends of Gumbo Limbo selected DiveBar among the other candidates for its continuing efforts to educate others on the wonders of the sea and assist in conservation and research efforts at various universities and organizations, including Nova Southeastern University and the University of Miami.
DiveBar board member and former president, David Black, accepted the award for DiveBar. While accepting the award, Black provided the audience insight into one of DiveBar’s most recent philanthropic achievements — the success of DiveBar Reef off Ft. Lauderdale Beach.
“Staghorn coral is the James Dean of coral — it lives fast and dies young,” Black said. “But that is necessary for the foundation of a reef system, since fertilized coral eggs can only live if they descend onto dead coral pieces.”
Black noted that only a month after outplanting the first corals into DiveBar Reef, a previously barren stretch of substrate, juvenile fish were already seen taking shelter among the web of corals that had been planted by DiveBar members.
In addition to the DiveBar Reef project and other coral conservation efforts, when considering DiveBar’s accomplishments for the CRESTT award, one program in particular stood out. DiveBar’s up and coming “Restore Our Oceans Together” (ROOT) project is the organization’s newest philanthropy program geared to enhance the lives of Purple Heart recipients by giving them opportunities to learn how to scuba dive and become stewards of the ocean. DiveBar, along with scientists from NSU’s Oceanographic Center, are working with Diveheart to train military veterans not only to learn to scuba dive, but also help build and restore coral reefs in local waters.
DiveBar is a bar association composed of legal professionals that promotes education and awareness about coral reefs and the marine environment through scuba diving, philanthropic activities, and learning experiences. For additional information, visit www.thedivebar.org.
Gumbo Limbo Nature Center’s mission is to increase public awareness of coastal and marine ecosystems through research, education, preservation, and conservation. For additional information, visit www.gumbolimbo.org
