Wil Webster
Marine Conservation Student - July 2011 |
My name is Wil, an undergraduate student from San Diego, CA. Eco Koh Tao offered an amazing hands on experience in marine and reef conservation. I could not have asked for a better internship! Nathan is an amazing teacher and helps give you the best understanding of the importance our global ocean has on our environment.
I worked on an array of projects from repairing mooring buoys, working with Bio-Rock artificial reef technology, and Eco Koh Tao managed coral nurseries. I also worked on larger diving community projects from beach clean-ups to Buoyancy World, an underwater playground for new divers to hone up on great diving techniques.
The diving was incredible and you are able to gain so much experience in no time. From your experience with Eco Koh Tao, you are able to bring all the things you learned on the beautiful island and become active in your own local environmental programs at home. |
Julia Stewart
Marine Conservation Student - April 2011 |
"I helped released baby turtles yesterday!!! Amazing!! I'm pretty sure I heard one say "rip it, roll it, and punch it!" Thanks Marine Conservation Koh Tao for such a special experience - watching Thai children place turtles into the water current gives hope for the future and a reminder that we are all caretakers of the Earth"
See Julia FULL STORY HERE!!! |
Ecodivers Petra Vasony & Julia Stewart
February - March 2011 |
If this was a bit of paper you would see the smudged writing on it, as I’m being such a girl and cry over my farewell from Koh Tao. No, actually, it is Eco Koh Tao to be more specific. It wasn’t the island that had made this past two months unforgettable. It’s just another island with beaches, palm trees, bungalows and too many backpackers. It is the conservation work carried out there that makes this place unique.
During my two months, I was able to participate in some kind of conservation work almost every single day (apart from the days of my dive course). I didn’t do this course for the diving, I did it for the marine conservation and I got what I was looking for. Nathan was always full of enthusiasm to show us and teach us something new every time we went underwater, and don’t worry if you cannot understand what he is constantly on about underwater, he will repeat it on the surface if you ask him kindly.
With this course I felt like I was able to give back a tiny bit to the environment in return for all the things it provides me and Eco Koh Tao definitely has the tools and knowledge to do just that. I enjoyed getting to know the fish, the corals, the sea cucumbers and all Life Aquatic. I enjoyed even more doing all sorts of unusual things underwater – like hammering, using pliers, screwdrivers, scissors – of course all for the benefit of the coral reefs. It was nice participating in research as well, which was looking at coral settlements or sedimentation or giant clam transplantations.
The beach and dive site clean ups were disgusting and very rewarding at the same time, which is a unique combination!
But I have to say, my most amazing experience involved an otherwise shy puffer fish, who decided to spend his spare afternoon with us while we were dragging anchors and concrete on the seafloor for Junkyard Reef. The puffer was curious, stayed with us for at least ten minutes, was so close I could have touched it. I felt privileged.
Now, I’m back home, not only my mind but my body is also full of memories in the form of cuts, bruises, stings. And all I want is to get more of those cuts, bruises and stings, because that would mean I’m back in action, back with Eco Koh Tao and back with the Coral Tree Hugging.
Don’t think twice, go and meet Jenny, Nathan and Simon, who are among the most inspirational people I’ve ever met. Thank You for everything!!! |
Natalie Ricks
Marine Conservation Student - March 2010
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My name’s Natalie and I learnt to dive at Crystal with Nathan last year.
I was nervous about learning to dive but enjoyed the Open Water course so much I stayed on to do the Advanced Open Water, Reef Check and Ecodiver courses. I carried out Reef Check surveys and got involved with some conservation projects with Eco Koh Tao e.g. relocating giant clams, dive site cleanups, reattaching broken coral etc. It was awesome! :)
The staff at Crystal are experienced, professional and knowledgeable. You'll learn a lot about the marine environment and conservation, and there are a number of ongoing projects which you could get involved with. This experience is invaluable when looking for employment within an environmental / conservation capacity, and you'll learn a lot of skills.
If you’re on Koh Tao in March I think you'll be there for the Koh Tao Festival too, which was good fun and a great opportunity to get involved with the community.
Another thing I noticed while I was at Crystal was that the divers are much more careful about preventing damage to the coral than some of the other schools. This consideration is passed on to the groups they teach and promotes a respect for the marine environment.
I think you'll find your time at Crystal very rewarding, and I wish I could be there myself! However, as a result of my amazing time on Koh Tao, I'm studying at college to become a marine biologist / environmental scientist! :) Considering I only wanted to learn to dive to conquer my fear of the ocean, the whole experience ended up being life-changing! |
Julie Jamieson