Green Fins, 1-3 Gloucester Road, Orlando, FL (2026)

09/03/2026

In the past weeks, we’ve been sharing findings from the PADI Eco Center & Green Fins Impact Report. Today, we want to show what those results actually look like on the ground.

Between 2023 and 2026, 254 PADI operators reached Eco Centre eligibility. During that time, they improved across all 15 areas of the Green Fins Code of Conduct. Every operational practice covered by the programme moved in the right direction.

These changes reflect operators reworking how they run their businesses, from the systems on the boat to the briefings they give guests to the products they purchase. Together, they show what continuous improvement actually looks like when it’s supported by structure and accountability.

In the coming weeks, we’ll share more from the report. Follow along if you don’t want to miss our posts!

Photo 1 Fast Manta Diving Krabi
Photo 6 Shaun Wolfe

09/01/2026

In our Green Fins Icons series we share practical tips to help divers, snorkellers, and marine tourism operators protect coral reefs. If you’ve missed the earlier posts, scroll back through our feed to catch up. Today’s tip is one of the most important and most preventable sources of reef damage in the diving industry.

💡 Tip 9: Don’t anchor on coral reefs.
Anchoring might seem like a routine part of dive boat operations, but the damage it causes can be devastating and long-lasting. Here’s what happens when anchors drop on reefs:

⚓️ Immediate physical damage. Anchors are heavy (often weighing tens of kilograms) and they hit the reef with significant force. A single anchor drop can shatter coral colonies that took decades or even centuries to grow.

⚓️ Chain damage is often even worse. The chain attached to the anchor scrapes across the reef as the boat shifts with wind, currents, or tides. Over the course of a single dive, one anchor and chain can flatten large areas of reef structure.

⚓️ The damage keeps compounding. Anchoring at the same site repeatedly – day after day, boat after boat – creates cumulative damage that reefs can’t recover from. Popular dive sites without proper mooring systems often show clear “anchor scars” that persist for years.

⚓️ Recovery is slow. Coral grows incredibly slowly, some species just a few millimetres per year. Damage caused in a single moment can take a lifetime to recover, if recovery is even possible.

➡️ What can you do?
✅ Use mooring buoys wherever they’re available. Mooring systems are designed to hold boats securely without any contact with the reef.
✅ If no mooring is available, anchor in sand. Sand and other soft substrates well away from coral cause minimal damage.
✅ Advocate for mooring buoy installation. In areas without moorings, dive operators, local communities, and marine parks can work together to install and maintain them.
✅ For divers: Ask your dive operator about their anchoring practices. Choose operators who use mooring buoys or anchor responsibly. Green Fins Members commit to using mooring buoys or anchoring in sand, never on the reef.

Find a Green Fins Member at greenfins.net

08/28/2026

Green Fins membership comes with more than a framework for improving your environmental performance. It also comes with access to a growing list of partner discounts designed to make sustainable dive centre management easier and more affordable.

Right now, members can access discounts from various partners. More partners are being added regularly, so it's worth checking the Community Forum from time to time to see what's new.

For existing Members, all the current discount codes and instructions on how to claim them are available in the Community Forum. Log in and have a look, you might find something useful.

Not a member yet? These perks are one of the smaller reasons to join, but they add up over time. Visit greenfins.net/join to learn more about becoming a Green Fins Member and joining a global network of operators who are protecting the reefs they depend on.

08/26/2026

Last week we shared some numbers from the PADI Eco Center & Green Fins Impact Report, including that Eco Centers are 24% more effective at reducing environmental threats than other operators. If you missed it, scroll back through our feed to catch up. This week, we want to dig into the why.

The performance gap doesn't come down to individual operators being more motivated or better resourced. It comes down to the system they're part of. Green Fins membership is built as a development programme, not a compliance exercise. Members are given the tools, support, and accountability structures to actually improve over time.

That includes a tiered membership system for certified members, with Bronze, Silver, and Gold status reviewed annually based on assessment scores, and an annual self-evaluation process for digital members. It includes:
- An Action Plan Tracker that turns commitments into measurable outcomes
- A Solutions Library filled with real-world guidance, much of it contributed by other members
- A Community Forum where operators share what's working
- Direct access to Reef-World's Programmes Officers for personalised support

The Eco Center designation itself is earned through demonstrated (and in the case of Certified Membership, independently verified) progress. It's why the designation carries credibility, and it's why the numbers back it up.

And it's what operators say they value most. In our 2026 membership survey, 24% of members who cited the Eco Center designation as their reason for joining named credibility as their primary benefit. Global recognition and environmental education followed.

Next week, we'll get into the specific environmental threats Eco Centers are reducing on the ground.

Photo credit
1 Albatros Diving Mallorca
2 Gozo Azul Diving
3 The Submersibles
8 Green Divers Barbados

08/25/2026

One of the most powerful tools for reef protection is a well-delivered briefing. Research shows that environmental briefings genuinely work: divers who receive clear, engaging information about reef protection cause significantly less damage underwater. It's a small change with a big impact, and it's one of the easiest ways for dive operators to shift behaviour at scale.

Boat and dive briefings are a chance to do more than cover the basics. They're an opportunity to introduce guests to Green Fins, explain what responsible diving looks like, and set expectations before anyone gets in the water. Divers who understand the why behind the rules are far more likely to follow them, and often become advocates themselves.

We offer a free briefing checklist that outlines the environmental content to include in your standard boat and dive briefings on every tour. Combined with our Green Fins icons and the Guidelines to the Code of Conduct, it gives operators everything they need to build briefings that actually change behaviour. Every diver who leaves your boat as a Green Fins champion is one more voice for the ocean!

Download the checklist and other free resources at greenfins.net/action-centre

Photo 3 by Naja Bertolt Jensen
Photo 5 by A Cotton Photo

08/22/2026

We're continuing our Green Fins Icons series: practical tips to help divers, snorkellers, and marine tourism operators protect coral reefs. If you've missed the earlier posts, scroll back through our feed to catch up. Today's tip focuses on a practice that's often overlooked in conversations about reef protection.

💡 Tip 8: Don't spearfish (for sport or as a holiday activity).
To be clear: this isn't about small-scale subsistence spearfishing, which is one of the most sustainable and low-impact ways to fish and has been practised by coastal communities for generations. This tip is specifically about recreational and sport spearfishing on holiday, which comes with a very different set of ecological consequences.

Here's why it matters:
🐟 It targets the wrong fish. Recreational spearfishers naturally go for the biggest, most visible fish on the reef. But large fish are usually older, slower-growing, and more reproductively valuable than smaller ones. Removing them disproportionately affects population recovery and long-term ecosystem balance.

🐟 It disrupts the food chain. Many spearfishing targets are apex or mid-level predators. When these species are removed at scale, prey populations grow unchecked, algae-grazing fish decline, and the entire reef system loses balance. The effects ripple far beyond the fish that was speared.

🐟 It's often inhumane. Even skilled spearfishers don't always get a clean shot. Injured fish that escape may die slowly from wounds, infection, or predation. This isn't a rare outcome – it's a well-documented consequence of the practice.

🐟 It damages coral and other marine life. Spears can hit or scrape coral, and spearfishers often stir up sediment or make contact with the reef whilst hunting. Non-target species can also be injured or killed in the process.

🐟 It's often unregulated in tourism contexts. In many marine tourism destinations, sport spearfishing happens in the same waters where snorkellers and divers come to enjoy healthy reefs, with predictable consequences.

➡️ What can you do?
✅ Don't spearfish for sport on coral reefs. If you eat fish while travelling, choose sustainably sourced options from responsible fisheries instead.
✅ Speak up. If you see sport spearfishing happening in protected areas or on damaged reefs, report it to local authorities.
✅ For dive operators: Include information about spearfishing impacts in your reef education briefings.

08/19/2026

Happy World Photography Day to the underwater photographers out there!

Underwater photography is one of the most powerful storytelling tools we have for marine conservation. It's how people who've never dived get to fall in love with reefs, and how divers who have already get to bring the ocean back home with them. But like any powerful tool, it comes with responsibility.

The best underwater photographers we know don't just have great cameras or great composition. They have great habits and spend years working on their buoyancy before they ever bring a camera underwater. They approach animals calmly and give them space, and know when to put the camera down and just watch. And they use their images to tell stories, not just to collect them.

The tips in this carousel aren't about limiting creativity. They're about the kind of respect that separates good photographers from great ones. Reef-friendly photography takes patience, awareness, and a bit of restraint. But the results speak for themselves. Calm animals behave naturally, and undisturbed reefs stay photogenic. Your images become part of a bigger story about what's worth protecting.

To every underwater photographer marking World Photography Day today, thank you for showing the world what we're fighting to protect. For more tips on how to be an environmentally aware underwater photographer, download the Best Practice for Underwater Photographers pdf on our website under 'free materials'.

Photo 4 by A Cotton Photo

08/17/2026

Every year, millions of divers and snorkellers enter the world’s coral reef ecosystems. The tourism industry has an important role to play in whether those ecosystems thrive or decline. The Reef-World Foundation and PADI share a conviction that the dive industry can be one of the ocean’s most powerful allies, but only if environmental standards are treated with the same seriousness as health and safety standards.

That shared belief is the foundation of an eight-year partnership, and the driving force behind the launch of PADI Eco Center – PADI’s designation for dive operations that demonstrate exemplary environmental performance. At the heart of Eco Center sits Green Fins membership. Green Fins Members demonstrate adherence to the Green Fins Code of Conduct.

We’ve spent the past three years tracking how these operators perform compared to other Green Fins Members, and the results speak for themselves. What the data shows is that when a designation is backed by verified standards, ongoing assessments, and a supportive framework, it drives measurable change.

In the coming weeks, we’ll share more from the report, including what makes Eco Centers perform better and the transformation that happens after becoming a PADI Eco Center. Follow along if you don’t want to miss our posts!

Photo 2 Fast Manta Diving Krabi
Photo 5 Scuba Ju**ie Penida
Photo 6 Shaun wolfe Shaun Wolfe
Photo 7 Vincent Kneefel Vincent Kneefel

08/14/2026

Turns out looking out for the ocean is kinda chic. Who knew? 💅

Photo 1 by Albatros Diving

08/12/2026

So far in our Green Fins Icons series, we’ve covered six tips you can follow to help protect the ocean and the marine animals that call it home. Today’s tip is heavier, but it matters.

💡 Tip 7: Don’t support shark finning.
An estimated 100 million sharks are killed every year by the shark fin trade. That’s a scale most people struggle to picture. But it’s happening, and the demand comes from consumer choices.

Here’s what you need to know:
🦈 Sharks are killed primarily for their fins. In many cases, fins are removed and the rest of the shark is discarded. The fins are used for shark fin soup, considered a delicacy in some cultures and often served at weddings, banquets, and business events. Shark liver oil is also sold in some countries as a health supplement or remedy, despite little scientific evidence supporting these claims.

🦈 Sharks can’t recover quickly. Unlike many fish, sharks grow slowly, mature late, and produce few offspring. This makes them uniquely vulnerable to overfishing. Populations that are wiped out don’t bounce back within a human lifetime.

🦈 Ecosystems suffer without them. Sharks are apex predators. Removing them causes cascading effects throughout marine ecosystems: prey populations grow unchecked, other species decline, and the entire food web becomes unbalanced. Healthy shark populations are a sign of a healthy ocean.

🦈 Sharks are worth more alive. Shark tourism generates significantly more long-term economic value than the fin trade. Countries that protect their sharks benefit from divers travelling to see them, often for decades.

➡️ What can you do?
✅ Don’t eat shark fin soup or any shark products, including supplements, meat, or cartilage-based remedies.
✅ Avoid restaurants and shops that sell shark products. If you see them on a menu, speak up or take your business elsewhere.
✅ Support shark conservation organisations working to protect populations globally.

Consumer demand drives this trade. When the buying stops, so does the killing.

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