Summer Marine Biology Programs for Young People and Educators

Be GREEN and BLUE because the Ocean Matters

Summer Marine Biology Programs for Young People and Educators

In the end

we will conserve

only what we love;

We will love only

what we understand;

And we will understand

only what we are taught.

--Baba Dioum (Senegal)

Ocean Matters mission is to support young people and educators in developing the skills, knowledge, and convictions to be stewards for the marine ecosystem.

"I got three credits, learned a lot, got SCUBA certifications. But it's the friendships, and the talks in the middle of the night, and the confidence I gained from learning, and the passion I built up that was the glue that held all the pieces together . . . I definitely think the whole was greater than the sum of its part."

-- Robyn, an Ocean Matters student

The Ocean Matters Summer Caribbean Marine Biology Program

Diver with a rich assortment of gorgonians, sponges and other forms of marine life. Barbareta Island, Bay Islands, Honduras. Depth 80 feet. Join our team of marine biologists, naturalists, and educators. Through SCUBA, find out what it feels like to inhabit the watery realm. Learn first hand about the ocean -- and the world you will inherit. Join other young people from around the world for a once in a lifetime experience. Bring science to life!

Ocean Matters is a college-level marine biology program for high school aged students. The program will be held on the beautiful island of Grand Cayman in the British West Indies, July 7-28, 2011.

The whole gang. Through Ocean Matters you will:

Become certified in SCUBA (earn PADI Open Water I, Advanced, and Marine Specialty certifications)
Dive daily on the beautiful coral reef -- whose diversity and abundance of life has earned the reef the title of "rainforests of the sea."
Design and execute a group monitoring marine biology research project undertaken on SCUBA.
Learn about the coral reef's biology and ecology through daily interactive classroom sessions.
Identify one hundred reef flora and fauna.
Contribute to the management of the reef, helping to save this important resource for future generations.
Have fun!

Ocean Matters is formerly the Northfield Mount Hermon Summer Marine Biology Program.

OCEAN MATTERS is featured in Schools with Spirit: Nurturing the Inner Lives of Children and Teachers, edited by Linda Lantieri, in the chapter "Lessons of the Wild," by Ocean Matters Executive Director Laura Parker Roerden.