Sunday 24 November 2013

Dive Against Destruction

By: Felix Suen

As people, we are connected to water whether it is your local pond, the lake that your cottage is on, or even the ocean that surrounds your country. The fact of the matter is, the health of the ocean is essential to human survival.

Pitch

This project was designed to raise awareness about the importance of our oceans. If you assist in our efforts, you will be helping us raise awareness, monitor and clean the ocean, and save many animals. Research dictates that 86% of the water we drink comes from the ocean and surprisingly, more oxygen is produced from the ocean rather than the rain forests. Fish from the ocean are also so important to humans, as one in six people rely on fish as their source of protein. It is vital that people realize the importance of our oceans. 

To me, this project means that the human race will be allowed to live just another generation- unless we continue and expand the project to a global level. This project will raise awareness to people all around the world and hopefully inspire them and their children and all the future generations to make a difference. 

Unsustainable Fishing
With this project, I have two main goals. The first goal is to raise awareness about this desperate issue. The pollution of oceans are not only eliminating animals, but humans as well. The second goal of this project is to teach people not only how to help clean the ocean, but how to use the ocean in a sustainable way. It is so important that we take resources from the oceans in a sustainable manner. 

Location 



This project is located on the coast of the gorgeous Andaman sea in Thailand. The Andaman sea is located in the small town of Ao Nang in Krabi, Thailand. It is a very small town, with a population of about 8,000 people. Its gorgeous scenery has brought in many tourists. Unfortunately with more people, there is more pollution. Thailand, is a newly industrialized country as well as gorgeous place with many available explorations. It is located in South East Asia, and bordered by Burma and Laos. Although some towns and cities such as Krabi, have a very small population, it is generally a very populated country with approximately 64 million people. The main language is Thai. 


Critical Need- Why Protect Our Oceans?

As humans, we have needs like food, water, recreation, suitable climate, the list goes on and on. People need to understand that we belong to something bigger than ourselves. Year after year, the pollution rates increase and more animals from the ocean become extinct. The ocean has so many unique resources that humans can benefit from. For example, a sea plant called the sea cucumber contains compounds that are used to fight cancer. Not only can protecting oceans save your health, it can improve your wealth as well. Research in the United States show that a whopping million people have jobs that depend on the health of the ocean. The industries that rely on the ocean add a ridiculous 12 BILLION dollars to the GDP of the United States. The oceans are slowly dying at our fingertips. Studies state that there are close to 500 dead zones in the water (areas in which no life exists because of over pollution). These dead zones cover more than 245 000 km. Not only are animals losing places to live, they are also dying at a fast pace. More than 1 million sea birds die per year. The seabirds are slowly becoming extinct. Joining the seabirds are whales, dolphins, sharks, turtles, salmon and those are just the most popular species on the road to extinction.  At one point in time, the oceans were a harmless beautiful place for wildlife to go about their own business. Over time, humans have gotten greedy and we have managed to create a disaster only we can fix. 

Impact

By participating in this project, not only are you raising awareness, but you are also helping to purify the ocean. For too many years, we have not payed enough attention to the importance of the ocean. By preserving the ocean, we can restore the population of many different species, create jobs and more. My hope is that this project originates in Thailand and expands all around the world. This project has so much potential to make a big difference, all it needs is people who care.

Feasibility

This course does not require any previous experience or qualifications. All the training needed will be provided for you to do research, cleanup and more. Volunteers can participate in the project during school breaks, gap years, career breaks, or even just a well earned vacation. Projects are available for people who are interested in volunteering for less than a month, along with people who are interested for volunteering for more than a month. The main time frame for this project is mid June- late August from 2013- 2019. Volunteers that are interested in staying for less than a month, should arrive in Krabi on a Saturday or Sunday. 
Downtown Krabi
During your visit, you will stay in basic wooden bungalows just off the beach. The bungalows are shared with a maximum of 3 different volunteers all of the same sex. The rooms are cleaned regularly and there are private bathrooms. Rooms include electricity and hot water. Meals are provided in a communal resturant area. If your work is out in the forest or out in the ocean, meals will be provided on the boat or a packed lunch will be provided for you. Transportation is provided to go from your bungalow to your work site. If you wish to go to the centre of the city in your spare time, there are many taxis or public busses you can take. 

 For this project, we have decided to team up with Project Abroad because they have the same views as we do. Project Abroad was generous enough to supply us a majority of the testing equipment. We also reached out to Honda and told them our story and our goals. Honda wanted to help so they decided to donate two boats towards our cause and give us a 50% discount for the other boats. 

Project expenses

Start up expenses( plane tickets, transportation) = $15,000
Boats with discount (15) = $37,500
Full scuba diving gear (40 sets)  = $ 40,000
Underwater monitoring and cleaning gear = $ 500
Total expenses= $93,000

About the author


My name is Felix Suen and I am 14 years old. I currently attending Bill Crothers Secondary School as a grade 10 student. I was inspired to create a project like this after a trip I took last year to Thailand, where I had the opportunity to experience the most beautiful beaches in the world. I can still remember the clear water and the colorful fish. Many weeks after my trip, I heard about the troubles of the pollution in the oceans. I tried to imagine the beaches I had been to if they were covered in garbage- it was not a pretty sight. After my experience in Thailand, I decided to create a project to not only help preserve the beaches in Thailand, but to raise awareness to the entire world. 

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4 comments:

  1. Unknown24 November 2013 at 19:45

    This blog really reached out to me. I really enjoyed how you were clear and straight to the point. Your title was very eye catching and drew my attention. I also liked how you added lots of pictures to draw attention to your blog. Something I would consider for future blogs would be to add colour to your texts and a bigger font. Keep up the good work and good luck!

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  2. Val24 November 2013 at 20:30

    The layout and images used were very aesthetically pleasing and allowed me to maintain interest throughout reading your blog. I suggest to organize the fonts so that they all match and one is not larger or thicker than another. I really loved how detailed you were specifically in the pitch and feasibility paragraphs, the numbers made it very easy to understand and understand the impact and seriousness of the situation. Specifically the image you used in the paragraph of critical need was very relatable and extremely touching, great use of a metaphor. Good job!

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  3. Unknown24 November 2013 at 22:50

    Great project! I really like how you didn't use to much colour to make it look flashy but you kept it simple and still catchy to the eye. the blue subtitles look great because you are talking about water and it ties in. Its great how the pictures really relate to your project that is presented and I can understand what it is about just by looking at the pictures! The font sizes however were not all the same size.

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  4. Unknown25 November 2013 at 21:29

    I liked your project very much. The pictures that you used really stood out and you explained your topic very well. The color scheme also matches what your project was about.

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