You might have heard recently that Reef-World has struck up a partnership with underwater camera company Paralenz. As part of our symbiotic relationship, Paralenz is supporting Reef-World’s sustainable diving initiative Green Fins, which we coordinate internationally in partnership with UN Environment Programme.
When selecting our partners, Reef-World is careful to choose organisations with whom a mutually beneficial partnership will result in tangible marine conservation impact. Paralenz – a Danish tech company – is a great example of this. The business embodies its dedication to the ocean not only through the development of its camera – which enables divers to capture and share the state and life of the ocean as a seamless part of their dive – but also through its innovative app, TheOceanBase, which lets divers post their stories to serve as a baseline for conservation organisations to learn more about the ocean.
Kicking off our partnership, Paralenz made a generous contribution of £1,000 towards the Dive Guide e-Course Scholarship Fund, a fundraising campaign set up to help 50 deserving dive guides receive their environmental certification.
On announcement of the launch, Jacob Dalhoff, Partnership Manager at Paralenz, said: “To build meaningful and impactful partnerships is a big part of our ethos. As a company with a passion for the ocean, we need to do everything we can to raise awareness about how to preserve it - Our partnership with The Reef-World Foundation and the Green Fins Dive Guide e-Course initiative is contributing a lot to this mission.”
Jacob’s personal passion for the ocean and belief in the Green Fins initiative has shone through during our time working together. It’s been amazing to have a Green Fins cheerleader within the Paralenz team and we’re so grateful for his efforts in driving the success of this partnership.
Jacob (left) with Jim Standing (Fourth Element), Laura Greenland (Blue O Two), Chloe Harvey (Reef-World) and Rachel Huber (Explorer Ventures) at DEMA2019.
Fast forward just a few months from the start of our collaboration with Paralenz and, safe to say, we’ve been blown away by the results. Following on from the Scholarship Fund, Paralenz wanted to do more. How about, they said, we run a “Blue Friday” campaign? As an ocean-positive spin on Black Friday, they suggested offering the Paralenz Dive Camera+ to customers at a reduced price ($549 from $699) AND donating $50 to Reef-World for each camera sold. Who were we to say no to a deal that’s great for divers AND great for the ocean?!
At the end of the Blue Friday campaign, the Paralenz team rang us to let us know how much was raised. Let’s just say it was a good thing we were already sitting down when we took the call! We were staggered to hear the campaign had raised over $25,950 for the Green Fins initiative.
Even more amazingly, they weren’t content to stop there. Just a few days after the Blue Friday figures had come in, the company announced it would extend the campaign; offering the same amazing deal to customers until Christmas in a drive to boost donations to Reef-World even further. This boosted the amount raised to a final total of $32,400!
If you’re reading this, you may well be familiar with the Green Fins initiative: a unique conservation management approach – managed internationally by Reef-World – which unites governments, the diving and snorkelling industry and communities to protect coral reefs. You might also know, since its inception in 2004, Green Fins has had a visible impact on the protection of our precious coral reefs across 11 countries (and counting!). But did you know the programme has resulted in a 37% average reduction in direct tourism threats to coral reefs across 56 diving hotspots globally?
The funds raised by Paralenz will play a huge part in the expansion of the Green Fins initiative, helping more dive and snorkel operators around the world reduce their environmental impact and protect precious coral reefs.
Samantha Craven, our Programmes Manager, said: “We’re absolutely blown away by the staggering amount raised. Thank you so much to Paralenz and everyone who contributed. We’re proud to be partnered with a company that is going above and beyond for the environment – not only through their generous donations but also by designing a product with additional functions that help us learn more about the ocean during our dives. The vital funds raised will make a huge impact in our work to protect coral reefs around the world through the Green Fins initiative,”
On behalf of everyone at Reef-World, and the wider Green Fins network, we’d like to say a huge thank you to Paralenz. This is just the beginning of a special relationship which will have real, tangible impact on coral reef conservation around the world and we’re so excited to see where we go from here.
For more information about Paralenz, please visit www.paralenz.com.
If your company is interested in supporting The Reef-World Foundation, please get in touch to discuss partnership opportunities.