Expedition date: October 29 - November 5, 2009 (8 days / 7 nights)

Contribution:
Price per Reef Check California certified diver: $3,000 USD
Price per non-RCCA certified passenger: $3,200 USD.

Introduction:
Take your diving to the next level during this scientific, cross-cultural liveaboard expedition! Dive and snorkel in one of the best preserved kelp forest ecosystems in the California Current, witness the Natividad's fishers' progressive management techniques, and invest in preserving Baja’s natural capital.

You can join this trip of a lifetime as a trained Reef Check California (RCCA) Diver or a guest. As an RCCA diver, you will dive your way down the Baja Peninsula to Isla Natividad, conducting scientific monitoring and helping Mexican governmental agencies, fishing cooperatives, international academics and NGOs collect key data on rocky reef sites. Superb diving abounds around Natividad; RCCA divers and guests will have plenty of time to enjoy recreational dives in the amazing kelp forests and take in some of the many exciting species at sea and ashore, including rays, lobster, sheephead, bottom dwelling sharks, sea bass, whitefish, yellowtail, the endangered black vented sheerwater and the cutest mouse you will ever see!

Reef Check EcoExpedition: Puerto Galera, Philippines

Expedition date: October 11 - 18, 2009

Contribution: $999 USD per person (double occupancy); Single supplement fee: $300 USD

Introduction:
Coral reefs of the Philippine Islands exhibit some of the highest levels of marine biodiversity on earth. The entire archipelago defines the northern portion of the famed ‘Coral Triangle’. Over the past decades, however, destructive fishing, pollution, intense logging and poor management of resources have damaged many Philippine reefs.

You can help save Philippine reefs!

Reef Check is the world’s largest coral reef monitoring organization and our citizen scientists have been monitoring and helping to protect reefs in over 90 countries and territories since 1997. By engaging the public in reef monitoring, this helps to galvanize actions by government and the private sector to rehabilitate and better protect them. In the Philippines, hundreds of surveys have been conducted in over 35 areas thus far. As part of this expedition you will be trained in the same techniques used by marine biologists and will collect baseline data to monitor the health of Philippine reefs in a new focus area – Puerto Galera. This information will help Reef Check Philippines to develop community awareness about the value and importance of coral reefs. Further, our data will be provided to the Philippines government and will be used for both national and global assessments. Over the years, many communities that have used Reef Check as a means to monitor their reefs have, in combination with their attention to the environment, seen improvements in the health of their reefs and abundance of fish.

Reef Check/Earthwatch EcoExpedition: Thailand 

Expedition dates:
January 11 – 20, 2009
February 1 – 10, 2009
February 22 – March 3, 2009
March 15 – 24, 2009
June 1 – 10, 2009
November 15 – 24, 2009
December 6 – 15, 2009
10 days

Expedition cost: $2,750 USD

Introduction:
Snorkel and dive Thailand's amazing coral reefs to conserve biodiversity. Thailand's coral reefs are some of the most magnificent and diverse on Earth. Like many of the world's reef systems, Thailand's reefs are facing the pressures of overfishing and destructive fishing practices, like cyanide poisoning and explosives, as well as the threats posed by global warming and coral diseases. Reef Check, a non-profit organization, has been monitoring and surveying coral reefs around the world to provide baseline data to management organizations since 1996. Dr. Georg Heiss and Kim Obermeyer, both of Reef Check, are joining forces with Earthwatch to do baseline assessments of Thailand's resplendent coral reefs and to set up a long-term monitoring program. With this information, government agencies and local communities can effectively participate in managing and conserving these beautiful reefs and the biodiversity they support.

For more information about the Thailand EcoExpedition and how to sign up, please visit:  
Website: http://www.earthwatch.org/exped/heiss.html 

Reef Check/Biosphere Expeditions EcoExpedition: Musandam, Oman

Expedition Dates:
October 18 – 24, 2009
October 25 – 31, 2009
6 nights

Expedition cost: $1,590 USD

Introduction:
These SCUBA diving conservation volunteer holidays will take you to the United Arab Emirates and from there to the remote and mountainous Musandam peninsula of Oman. There you will study the diverse coral reefs fringing the areas where the mountains plunge into the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. This is a pioneering study to map this currently unprotected underwater environment. The reefs boast a rich mixture of beautiful corals and a multitude of fish and other animals. Data on the current biological status of the reefs and of population levels of key indicator species are therefore crucial for educational purposes and to be able to put forward ideas for future marine protection areas. Data collection follows an internationally recognised coral reef monitoring programme, called Reef Check, and will be used to make informed management and conservation decisions within the area. The expedition includes certification as a Reef Check EcoDiver. With this certification you are also eligible to apply for PADI or NAUI Reef Check Speciality Course certification. Please note that you need to be a fully qualified diver to take part in this expedition (minimum PADI Open Water or equivalent).

For more information about the Oman EcoExpedition and how to sign up, please visit:
Website: http://www.biosphere-expeditions.org:80/musandam

Click here to read Reef Check Executive Director Dr. Gregor Hodgson's trip report from October 2008.

Reef Check Maldives EcoExpedition with Marine Conservation Society & Maldives Scuba Tours 
 
Expedition date: June 13 – 26, 2009 
 
Expedition cost:  £2,372 (includes flights, transfers, accommodation with all meals, all diving and 1 year’s membership to MCS) 
 
Introduction: 
Join Marine Conservation Society on board the superb Sea Spirit and take part in theirr ongoing reef project studying the corals and fish stocks of the wonderful Maldives. You will get to dive at all their regular fantastic dive sites with mantas and, if you are lucky, whale sharks. With 3 dives a day visiting different sites, the trip will offer you superb diving and the added value of our guest marine biologist from the Marine Conservation Society, who will offer informal marine ecology fish and coral identification talks. 
 
Their annual reef survey trips offer not only great diving and a lot of fun, but also a relaxed way to take an active part in marine conservation and to learn more about the reef systems of the Maldives and the world.  The data is collected and added to the dataset of survey data going back to2005 - the year after the Indian Ocean tsunami. This information is used to assist with the overall protection of the Maldives reef systems and the MCS, as the regional coordinator of Reef Check, has other teams collecting data in the Maldives.

Please click here to download a flyer with more information.

Reef Check/Biosphere Expeditions EcoExpedition: Cayos Cochinos, Honduras

Expedition dates: 
March 1 – 13, 2009
March 15 – 27, 2009
12 nights

Expedition cost: $2,490 USD

Introduction:
Biosphere Expeditions promotes sustainable conservation of the planet’s wildlife by involving the public in real hands-on wildlife research and conservation expeditions alongside scientists who are at the forefront of conservation work. In Honduras, Biosphere Expeditions is surveying the coral reefs of the Cayos Cochinos marine protected area, in the Bay Island Archipelago in the Caribbean Sea, and will be employing the Reef Check survey protocols and adding the data to Reef Check’s global database.

Expedition members must be at least PADI Open Water (or equivalent) scuba certified to take part in this expedition but will be trained in diving and survey techniques. Additional training for Reef Check certification is available for those keen on seizing the opportunity in this great locale. The base is the well-equipped Honduras Coral Reef Foundation scientific station on a small coral cay island accessible only to research personnel; accommodation is in comfortable, spacious wooden bungalow cabins by the beach with a lounge, toilets and showers.

The Cayos Cochinos form part of the world’s second largest barrier reef system, known as the Meso-American Barrier Reef, and have been identified as one of the key sections of the barrier reef system to preserve. Data from this survey will be compared to that of other parts of the Meso-American Barrier Reef System and to reefs worldwide.

For more information contact Erin McCloskey at northamerica@biosphere-expeditions.org or call toll free (800) 407-5761

Website: www.biosphere-expeditions.org/honduras