The Vancouver Aquarium®, an Ocean Wise® initiative, is making a splash for the 20th anniversary of Divers’ Weekend on January 26 and 27, 2019. From riveting dive shows to compelling exhibits to informative presentations, divers and non-divers alike will be further inspired to explore our vast oceans during this two-day celebration of scuba diving. This year, in honour of the 20-year milestone, industry experts will come together to offer insight into the evolution of diving safety during a special panel discussion.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to share our passion for our blue planet with the diving community for the past two decades,” says Jeremy Heywood, the Vancouver Aquarium’s diving and boating safety officer and organizer of Divers’ Weekend. “Diving is an incredible adventure and we’ve seen more and more people take interest in underwater exploration and in the phenomenal diving experiences that take place in our local waters.”
Special to the anniversary event, the Vancouver Aquarium has convened a panel of experts to present on trends in diving safety, a crucial element of this activity. Panelists include an alumnus of the inaugural Divers’ Weekend in 1999, Dan Orr, who is former president of Divers Alert Network, member of the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame, and author of more than a dozen books on diving safety. He’ll discuss the topic with Dr. Neil McLean (Vancouver General Hospital Hyperbaric Unit), Cameron Knight (Diving Safety Officer, Canadian Coast Guard), Bruce Partridge (CEO, Shearwater Research), Dr. Gary Ladd (sports psychologist, Project Abacus), Tom Beasley (Underwater Council of B.C.), along with others. The Trends in Diving Safety panel will take place on Saturday, Jan. 26 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Aquarium’s 4-D Theatre.
On Sunday, Jan. 27, there will be a seminar series featuring three presentations by experts, including Dan Orr and Jeremy Heywood, who will discuss Ocean Wise’s scientific scuba diving projects in Canada’s Arctic.
In addition to these special presentations, visitors will have the opportunity to investigate all things diving from more than 25 exhibitors, including public service dive teams, not-for-profit conservation organizations, dive stores, charter operators, underwater photographers as well as equipment manufacturers and distributors. The youngest aspiring scuba divers can enjoy fun and engaging activities, such as diving-inspired crafts and face painting.
Divers’ Weekend activities run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Jan. 26 and 27, 2019 and are included in the price of admission. Spaces are limited for the Trends in Diving Safety panel discussion; while this presentation is also included in admission, visitors must reserve tickets early to avoid disappointment. Special to this weekend, when visitors present a valid diving certification card, they receive a 50 per cent discount on admission and 10 per cent discount on Aquarium memberships. To learn more about Divers’ Weekend, visit vanaqua.org/diversweekend.
Vancouver Aquarium
Vancouver Aquarium®, an Ocean Wise® initiative, is one of the world’s leading accredited aquariums, dedicated to the conservation of aquatic life. vanaqua.org
Media release and images provided by April Penney, Ocean.org
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