Conservation Efforts
Learn Scuba Chicago is proud to promote the conservation of foreign and domestic underwater ecosystems through educational and volunteer opportunities. To this end, Learn Scuba Chicago incorporates conservation education and practice into its week-long trips and actively seeks opportunities to contribute to local conservation efforts on a more sustainable level.
Some conservation organizations that Learn Scuba Chicago has or is working with include the following:
The Coral Restoration Foundation Inc. (CRF) is a 501 c (3) non-profit conservation organization created to develop offshore coral nurseries and reef restoration programs for critically endangered coral reefs at local, national, and international levels. Learn Scuba Chicago has been trained on nursery and restoration techniques, as well as transplanting coral from the nursery to the restoration site!
The Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) is a grass-roots organization that seeks to conserve marine ecosystems by educating, enlisting, and enabling divers and other marine enthusiasts to become active ocean stewards and citizen scientists. Learn Scuba Chicago staff has been trained to count fish, enabling them to add scientific data to REEF’s impressive and free-to-access database of marine fish populations and those of selected invertebrate and algae species.
The mission of The Caribbean Oceanic Restoration and Education (CORE) Foundation is to advance the profession of marine stewardship to ensure the longevity, preservation, and benefits of our Caribbean Sea. When in Saint Thomas, Learn Scuba Chicago and friends volunteered with CORE to address the problem of the invasive Lionfish through their Caribbean Lionfish Response Program.