After spending 3 years as an ambassador of GVI, I spent 6 months in Puerto Morelos, a small town in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, doing the Divemaster Internship with GVI. I had the most amazing time developing my diving qualifications and learning about the coral reefs. I specialised in juvenile fish for the first three months then learnt adult fish, learning how to identify and monitor the fish. We monitor the recruitment of the fish in the reef alongside coral data on bleaching and diseases. I stayed in what we called our “ware-home”, a converted warehouse with 3 bedrooms of 8 beds, a communal area and a small study area. We also had an area to store both personal and GVI dive kit. GVI provided BCDs and regulators even though I did take my own set of regulators which I enjoyed using. Outside of diving I also had the opportunity to participate and run weekly beach cleans helping to remove ocean trash and report the data to the Ocean Conservancy. We also helped our partners at CRIAP with their goal of coral reef restoration. We worked with microfragments of coral and helped to keep them clean and healthy so that they could be replanted onto the reef. I really enjoyed travelling and living with new people from all four corners of the world, working towards the common goal of marine conservation. I also really liked being able to travel at the weekends to experience more Mexican culture and practice my Spanish. This experience has made me rethink what I would like to do as a career, and it has also opened my eyes into how easy day to day changes can make a huge impact into conservation. I have one more year studying Animal Science at Reading University, when I finish I am going to return to do a 3 month scholarship at GVI Puerto Morelos as I love the location, the different volunteer and of course the wonderful staff team.

Volunteering in Akumal was one of the best experiences in my life. Not only did I get my PADI Divemaster certification, I gained valuable experience, knowledge of the reef ecosystem and friends I am sure I will have for a lifetime. It was so great to help out with projects like coral restoration and community outreach so I could actually see the impact I was making to marine conservation efforts. I would recommend this program to anyone!

Volunteering in Akumal was one of the best experiences of my life. Not only did I get my PADI Divemaster certification, I gained valuable experience, knowledge of the reef ecosystem and friends I am sure I will have for a lifetime. It was so great to help out with projects like coral restoration and community outreach so I could actually see the impact I was making on marine conservation efforts. I would recommend this program to anyone!