Remember what lies beneath

Are you planning on going away on holiday soon? Perhaps to a idyllic location with beautiful white beaches and tropical waters? 

If you are, make sure you prepare fully before you go, and we are not just talking about packing sun-cream and your snazzy Hawaiian shirts. We want you to prepare mentally. 

Did you know, in 2014, over 80% of participants in our survey who visited Perhentian last year went snorkeling. That is a staggering proportion of people, and highlights the attraction the marine life has to us. I am also pretty sure that if you go on holiday to a beach location, you will be getting in the water for a swim or snorkel.

With this in mind, we would like you to take some time to consider just what lies beneath. In a coral reef ecosystem, you can find thousands of animals and species all hunkered together, working and living in balance. Some of these species, like corals, can take years to grow, living in colonies and working in symbiosis with algae, helping remove carbon from the atmosphere, and providing a home to thousands of important fish and marine species. 

Corals, although they look like rocks, are fragile and very susceptible to stress and change. You might notice broken corals lying on the floor, often broken by natural causes, but commonly by carefree tourist behaviour, those that are white are also at risk, either bleached or already dead they have expelled the algae that provides the majority of sustenance and are on the verge of (or are already) dead.

We ask simply that you remember what a coral is and when you head out into the sea to snorkel, you don't need to stop and stand up, even if you think you are standing safely, there are loads of different varieties of corals, and even some species of fish and invertebrate that camoflage themselves and can be painful for you. 

Yesterday we went snorkeling, our hearts died a little bit inside. Even after people were told of the impacts, they continued to do it. Don't be one of the crowd, look closely and in one square meter you will see so much life. Imagine a giant foot coming down on London or New York City, it might not kill everything, but the stress caused could be irreparable. 

 No

 No

or, alternatively...

Please think twice when you are out in the waters, so much damage can be avoided!

Spring Saving Extravaganza

There comes a time in everybody's life where you just need to get away from it all. Away from everyday life and monotony to experience something new and exotic.

We think that time is Spring. After the long winter (Northern Hemisphere) or coming to the end of a long summer (Southern Hemisphere), chase the dream and join us for our spring savings extravaganza!

If you book onto the project for the months May or June 2015, for a minimum of 2 weeks, you get 5% discount along with a free Blue Temple T-shirt. Not bad really.

For as little as £699 (pre-qualifed divers) you can experience all the joys of the Perhentian Islands with us and participate in all our activities! 

Accommodation, 3 meals a day, snorkeling, up to 8 dives a week, equipment rental, conservation and research training, local cuisine and engagement, awareness campaigns and a FREE Blue Temple T-Shirt.

Join up and get involved in our conservation research and management for the marine parks as well as working with the local and tourist communities to raise awareness on key environmental issue. Participate in survey dives and monitor tourist interactions, sedimentation levels and tourist perceptions towards behavior and environmental risks. Experience Perhentian like never before, join us and contribute to sustainable tourism and management for one of our beautiful but threatened ecosystems!

For information, booking and inquiries get in touch with us via E-mail

*Terms and Conditions: Price displayed for 2 weeks, per person without dive course. Divemaster courses only available for long stay volunteers, minimum 2 week stay. 

A brief guide to Responsible Tourism

There are a lot of blog posts out there talking about ecotourism and how to travel green, even we have published one such blog before. But today, I wanted to talk about something different, something that will relate to you, whether you have green goals or are just looking for a fun time holiday. You can still be a responsible tourist, even if you don't have the inclination to go 100% green for your adventures.

Being a responsible tourist is quite simple really, you don't have to go out and buy recycled products or buy 'ocean friendly' suncream (though it wouldn't hurt!), you just need to stop and think. Check out our list of ways to be responsible whilst travelling, follow these and you never know, you might just experience something new.

1. Litter

This one may seem pretty obvious, but it is amazing how careless people often become on holiday. If you go to the beach or park and take a picnic or containers with you, be smart and take a plastic bag so you can bag it all when you have finished and carry it to a bin, don't leave it in the hope someone picks it up.

2. Touching stuff

As a race, we humans have an uncanny ability to touch everything. Someone once said "look with your eyes, not your hands". Whilst you may not realise it, a lot of stuff is alive, we witness countless numbers of people touching and standing on corals in Perhentian, this is no good for either the corals or for you. Corals are sharp and can give quite a nasty cut, and they are fragile animals, easily stressed out. Think about how many tourists visit a location, if everyone touches the same thing, then chances are it won't last long

3. Interactions with Wildlife

It has been widely documented that feeding animals (fish, reindeer, hippos, lions whichever) changes the behaviour of the animal, it can upset the balance of the ecosystem, encouraging greater numbers of some species and increasing aggression in animal populations. It has also been suggested that human food (bread etc) is not a natural diet and can result in sickness or death in some species!

4. Stick to the Path

You have probably noticed in your local park that there are paths, put in place by the council for people to walk along, nice tarmacked paths which are easy to follow. This isn't always the case in developing countries or remote areas, there are usually designated pathways though, even if they are not so easily noticeable. They are there for a reason, stick to them, if people start meandering through the undergrowth and off the path it isn't just a danger to themselves, it starts erosion, wearing away the grass or undergrowth. Once it starts to wear away, more people will join in and get eroding as it looks like a path.

5. Respect the Culture

Whether you are visiting a country in Europe, America, Asia or Australia, you will meet people of different backgrounds and cultures. Just because they dress differently or have a different religion to you, doesn't mean they are wrong or to be avoided. Be friendly, get into the spirit of the locals, dress appropriately, if you are in a Muslim village or country, don't walk around in a bikini, be respectful and engage locals and kids in conversation. You'd be amazed at the amount of awesome people in the world.

6. Transport 

We spoke about this in our ecotourism blog, but it rings true here as well. If you want to experience a country properly, use public transport, don't rent a car. Not only will you contribute money directly to the wider economy, but you will see the country in a whole new light. Nothing beats zooming across the countryside on a rickety old train surrounded by local people and foods!

7. Think Local

I always get shocked when I see someone ordering Macaroni Cheese, or Burger and Chips when in Perhentian. Open your mind (and your taste buds) to the amazing food you find in different countries. Eating local foods benefits you and the locals. Ordering your home foods in a foreign country will result in two outcomes. (1) Food will likely be from frozen and unlocally sourced (2) Lower quality meal as locals are not expert chefs in foreign foods. So don't be afraid, try everything once.

We all travel thousands of miles just to watch TV and check in to somewhere with all the comforts of home, and you gotta ask yourself, what is the point of that?
(The Beach)

Seriously, what is the point in that?

There are obviously more things you can do, but follow these steps and your holidays will become something more. You will meet amazing people, taste fantastic food and feel so much better for it. Break the norm of human behaviour and experience life.

Sustainable Seafood

In 2015, our hope is to team up with local resorts to raise awareness within the tourist community through seminars and presentations, targeting different topics. One of the big topics will be Sustainable Seafood. A lot of people aren't aware of the negatives, or the benefits, in eating fish (not just saltwater, but freshwater too).

There are good reasons to make sure you get your (at least) two portions of fish a week, and it is so easy, it is amazing how many people don't do this. It is recommended that you have one oily fish and one white meat fish, though it is suggested that intake of oily fish is not overdone due to potential toxins, whilst white meat fish you can eat as much as you want (for the most part).
Oily fish are a fantastic source of Omega 3 fatty acids, a naturally occurring and important fatty acid that boosts your metabolism, can help reduce arthritis and join pain, reduce blood fats which will reduce the risk of heart disease, and some scientists consider them good for reducing depression. So there is plenty of reason to keep them in your diet.

Oily fish include: anchovies, mackerel, salmon, sardines, trout, tuna and whitebait. You want to ensure you get at least one portion of one of these fish every week, but remember not to overdo it!


Bioaccumulation

There are many toxins that can be found in the world, many of these are a result of industry and agriculture. Toxins such as mercury, PCB and pesticides find their way into the environment and waterways, which eventually lead to the sea. Unlike prehistoric ideas of the ocean being a giant never ending rubbish bin, these toxins find their way into the food web.

Bioaccumulation is a result of these toxins being ingested at the bottom of the food web in small quantities. However, a small fish will eat a lot of plankton or algae, which will multiply the amount of toxins in their body, then a bigger fish will eat several of these fish, and a bigger fish will eat several and a bigger fish will eat several until you get to the top of the food web, Tuna, Sharks etc have to eat a lot of fish to sustain themselves. This is called bioaccumulation.

Toxins like mercury have been shown to affect baby development, and can lay dormant in body fat. It is not healthy, so you want to avoid eating excess amounts of oily fish, but particularly careful for fish higher up the food chain. If in doubt, eat small fish, Sardines are small, full of oily goodness, quick to reproduce and have relatively low levels of toxins. Compared to Tuna, which is endangered, massive and full of toxins.


Sustainable Fisheries

Bioaccumulation is sustainable more to your health and lifestyle than the oceans. So what can we do to make sure our diets aren't harming the oceans. This is quite simple. Before you buy a piece of fish or shellfish, THINK. Ask yourself two questions:


1. Is this fish endangered or threatened?

2. Was it caught in a sustainable manner?



1. It has been well documented that unsustainable fishing practices have left our oceans devastated. The North Atlantic Cod was once a mainstream fish eaten readily across North America and the UK. Then because of the extent of our fishing, we ran them to near extinction. Tuna are an excellent example as well, years of eating Tuna has led to certain species being endangered and in decline.
Avoid endangered fish species for your next meal, consider these tasty alternatives instead

• Anchovies
• Haddock
• Flounder
• Herring
• Halibut
• Salmon
• Sole

2. This is simple, if you are not sure, ask your fishmonger or check the packaging for one of these logos

Take time next time you are in the supermarket to look for these or other identifying marks that signal the fish was caught sustainably. and remember, we want you to eat fish, just not too many, and in a sustainable way!


What do you call a Fish with no eyes?

Fsh.

(or a Cavefish, which are a bizarre species of fish that live in darkness and have evolved with no eyes)

What happens when you put two scuba divers in a field full of snow

They first test their skills at snow sculpting...

Perhaps not the best in the world.

The next day, after the head of the snowman diver had fallen off and new snow had half buried him. We tried again!

This time with more success

The Internship

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Much like Google, we are this year opening our doors for an intern program. Unlike Google, there isn’t a guaranteed job at the end, and it isn’t open to America’s brightest and best. So all you Havard, Stanford and MIT students can stop applying now.

Instead, we focus on people who are sensitive to human behaviour and impact on the environment, hard working and scientifically focused. This leads to our 2015 Intern Bio; David Richards, take a bow

David was born and raised in West Philadelphia, spending his time playing basketball or ‘shooting some hoops’ in the local playground. He used to enjoy relaxing and chilling with his friends in said playground, until one unfortunate day, he got into a little bit of trouble with a gang of older boys. They beat up on him, and his mother got a bit concerned for her sons safety, and sent him off to live with his Aunty and Uncle. His aunt and uncle were quite wealthy, and so David was soon able to flourish and quickly gained an education and, before he left, was nicknamed “the prince”.*

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David volunteered with us in 2014 for a month and completed both his Open Water and Advanced Open water courses with us, as well as contributed to turtle watch, dive surveys and brought knowledge from his environmental background. All in all, an excellent volunteer and we hope a perfectly suited intern. He will come back and complete his Rescue and Divemaster courses whilst helping to run the research and coordinate volunteers.

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Welcome (back) to the Team

*may or may not be true

Annual Report

For those of you who didn't want to read the massive long and potentially boring annual report. Check out our summary version. Only 24 slides of information. What do you think? Any other recommendations?

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Again, a big thank you to all involved. Including Reef Check Malaysia, Ecoteer, Samdhana Institute and all volunteers who participated!

We didn't listen!

”Global Warming is going to strike… two days before the day after tomorrow”

“Oh my God...That’s today!”

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What is your opinion of climate change? Do you ‘believe’ all the scientists? Or see the changes in the world as natural occurrence? Or blindly ignore everything and drink beer whilst shooting stuff?

I am two out of three. I believe scientists when they tell us our planet’s climate is changing, and that a lot of it is down to human action, but I also realise that a lot of things happen naturally. It is becoming nigh on impossible to deny climate change, but I bet you can still find people out there who think it isn't happening or even welcome change that might see a warmer climate for them

In fairness, I have been through years of school, college and university to have an education that allows me to understand the cause and effect situation we find ourselves in. A lot of people haven’t, they wouldn't see climate change as a big problem until it knocks on their door and pours water through their windows. Which I understand, why worry about something that seemingly doesn't affect you.

It seems to me that every few months new research is published stating different opinions on climate change, different causes or outcomes. Which would make it much more difficult believe what scientists say.If your old school teacher changed the answer to 1+1 every week, you might not believe them for long either, so we can understand the split opinion within the public.

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The impact of climate change on the oceans has been widely researched, and various factors considered, reconsidered and concluded. Recently, a group of scientists deemed that coral reefs will be sensitive to sea level change(Harris et al, 2015), but evidence has shown the ability to cope with small increases. They claim the connection between sea level and coral growth/survival is quite apart from other aspects such as ocean warming, acidification and pollution.

On the same day it was announced that the Great Barrier Reef could decline to less than 10% coral cover if ocean warming continues (Spencer, 2015).

Sea level rise will not occur only because of the potential melting of the ice caps, as the sea temperature increases, its volume will increase, resulting in a sea level rise. The warmer temperature itself will result in death of corals, but the increased depth will reduce light and cause extra stress, causing us to question whether corals will grow and adapt to sea level change, suggested by Harris et al.

You see, I have confused myself with all that, let’s just agree that we should all do what we can to help reduce our impacts:

Enjoy the Little Things

Go for a walk, marvel at nature and the wondrous connections and interactions within. Take an interest in the world and ask questions, what, how, why. You might just find value in something you have had all your life.

The Blame Game

Don’t blame other people, countries or the politicians for the state of the world. Sure, China may have high emissions, and Brazil may be chopping down loads of it’s rainforests whilst overfishing is destroying balance. Look at your own life first, be the change.

The Usual Suspects

If you have read this blog or any others out there, then I don’t need to list and explain them all separately; turn off lights/plugs, avoid plastic, don’t waste water, eat sustainably sourced food, don’t buy tropical hardwood furniture etc.

10 Steps to becoming an Eco-Tourist

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Travel and Tourism is an absolutely huge market that drives 2.9% of the global economy, contributing a whopping USD 6,630.4 Billion in 2013 (WTTC, 2013). Now, 2.9% doesn’t sound like a great deal, but if we consider that this is 2.9% of global economy dedicated to something that is purely for leisure purposes, not something we rely on to live, it is astounding.

When you consider that the UK alone in 2013 received 31.1 million visitors (Tourism Alliance, 2014), and is only ranked 8th in the world for popular destinations, we have to assume that the total number of people heading off on holiday is considerably larger. With so many people travelling the world, is it really possible to change the impact tourism has on the environment?

We think so, as long as people follow some simple steps when acting the tourist.

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10 Steps to becoming an Eco-Tourist

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1. Transportation

Be sure to research to find the most eco-friendly approach to where you are getting. Both Virgin and Airbus advertise eco-efficient planes now, so you can try to pick one that suits your needs.

Upon arrival, don’t take a taxi, and certainly don’t rent a car. Public transport, buses and trains are more environmentally friendly, cheaper and offer you a whole different view of the country you are visiting.

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2. Skin Care and Sun Cream

Coral reefs and ocean life is quite sensitive and if you are visiting a beach location, consider limiting the amount of sun cream you use. Even the most waterproof will end up in the sea to some extent when you go swimming. Choose an eco-sunscreen

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3. Eat Local

Other than the local food almost guaranteed to taste better, the ingredients for traditional foods can be easily sourced locally, whereas ordering a macaroni and cheese on an Island in Malaysia suggests some of the ingredients have to come some way to get there.

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4. Don’t be a Loner

Sharing is caring. If are travelling alone, or in a couple, don’t be afraid to make friends and share. If you insist on getting a taxi or renting a car, find some people doing the same and share it. The same goes for accommodation, don’t be afraid of dormitories, they offer a bed for cheap and reduced electricity.

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5. Life in Plastic

Is not fantastic. Plastic is an ocean and environment killer so try to limit how much you pick up and take with you on your trip. If you go shopping, take your backpack instead of taking plastic bags, reuse your plastic bottles, or better yet, take a reusable bottle with you!

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6. Wildlife

Often when you visit exotic countries, you may end up in a situation where you come across wild animals, or even captive animals where you have the chance to interact with them. Our advice...don’t.

Elephants, in Africa and Asia, are a major tourism attraction, but one that you should only consider if contact is kept to a minimum. Elephants you see out in the streets doing tricks or offering rides have been kept in cruel conditions and been put through a, quite frankly, horrible training ordeal to get them ready for tourists. Avoid at all costs

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7. Con Air

Or should we say Air con, is one of those luxury things people love in hot countries. The electricity they use is huge, they also pump even more heat outside. Stick to rooms with fans, they are effective and manageable for all circumstances.

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8. Laundry

Try to avoid using laundry services where you can. Save up your clothes and share with a fellow traveller if you do have to use them. But for a lot of clothes, you can hand-wash relatively easily with much less water consumption.

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9. Pack Light

Every extra KG you pack in your suitcase/backpack when heading out of the door is extra weight for the plane, which increases costs and decreases efficiency.

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10. Be an Eco Volunteer

There are loads of opportunities to join a project which not only runs sustainably, but also allows you to give something back and contribute to the positive impacts. You can learn, gain experience and be environmentally conscious, all whilst travelling and having the time of your life.