The NEWF Dive and Story Lab that we ran in early December last year has made it into this years first WIOMSA News Brief, as well as made the cover!
WIOMSA stands for the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association and was established in Zanzibar, Tanzania in 1993. The organization is dedicated to promoting the educational, scientific and technological development of all aspects of marine sciences throughout the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region (consisting of 10 countries: Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Comoros, Madagascar, Seychelles, Mauritius, Réunion (France)), with a view toward sustaining the use and conservation of its marine resources. WIOMSA has a particular interest in linking the knowledge that emerges from research to the management and governance issues that affect marine and coastal ecosystems in the region.
The article is based around two early career marine scientists, Susana Kihia and Joshua Oginda, who participated in the first Kenya Lab. It also touches on the Decade Divemaster Storytelling Lab that we mentored at in Sodwana. You can read the article and other interesting stories on the projects happening in the Western Indian Ocean here.
“This dynamic combination of dive training, together with learning the storytelling aspects of filmmaking, encouraged us to view the science that we interact with as stories that are waiting to be shared to drive ocean conservation.”
To complete the team for the Lab were Nora Rotich, a conservation photographer and Hassan Machafu, a KWS marine ranger. We look forward to getting an update from them soon, to find out how they have put what they learned in the Lab to use!
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