Koror, Palau – The Friends of the Palau National Marine Sanctuary and the Palau Pledge team would like to extend its sincerest thanks to the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the Taiwan Embassy in Palau for their continued support in Palau Pledge events, most notably the Dive Camp and yearly school Challenges.
The first Palau Pledge Advanced Open Water Dive Camp was funded in part by the 2023 Republic of China (Taiwan) – Palau Small Grants Program on top of a generous donation from the Taiwan Embassy. Ten young Palauans aged 13-17 are currently getting Advanced Open Water certified at Sam’s Tours because of their contributions. Since the Dive Camp’s beginning in 2020, the Republic of China (Taiwan) has been instrumental in ensuring the certification of over 100 young Palauan divers.
The Dive Camp is designed to inspire Palau’s youth to deeply engage with their environment and culture in the context of building the next generation of Palau’s high value, high return tourism industry. The camp starts with an online e-learning course, where the students discover the importance of being a safe diver before getting into the water. During the week-long camp, dive masters at Sam’s Tours begin with a refresher course, including practicing in the water before the official three-tank dives. On the last day,, the youth participate in a fun dive day, where they experience their first advanced open water dive, learn about the importance of being an ocean caretaker and find out what it’s like to work in the tour industry. They also learn what they can do now to protect and care for Palau’s fragile marine environment. The Palau Pledge Dive Camp is from Sunday, June 25 to Friday, June 30.