She’d always had a keen sense of adventure. She loved to travel, explore and revel in nature’s beauty. During a backpacking trip through Costa Rica, Barbara Joon enrolled in a PADI Open Water Diver course – just for the fun of it. Little did she know, her experience exploring the underwater world that day would change her life forever.

Immediately hooked, Barbara returned home to Holland determined to make a career switch. She enrolled in a dive school and soon became an Open Water Scuba Diving Instructor. As she gained experience and progressed up the instructor ladder, she yearned to take her scuba diving career a step further. She opened her own dive shop and school, Dive Center Scubido in the Netherlands.

At Dive Center Scubido, Barbara teaches scuba diving courses, leads tourist dives and coordinates international dive trips for members and guests. Whether hosting a Dive Against Debris during Dive Center Scubido’s annual trip to Egypt or assisting with coral reef planting in Bonaire, she makes it a priority to give back and incorporate marine conservation into every opportunity she provides her guests. Passionate about sharks, rays and all ocean creatures, Barbara organized a Finathon fundraiser event in early 2015 to spread awareness and raise funds for sharks in peril.

Twenty seven participants, including dive team members and students, gathered for a special event in support of Project AWARE.  Participants recruited friends and family members to attend and support as they swam lap after lap in the Dive Center Scubido pool, all in the name of shark protection. Through their generosity, Barbara and the Dive Center Scubido Finathon participants raised funds to support Project AWARE’s shark protection efforts and, more importantly, generated much-needed awareness about the plight of many shark species.

Barbara emphasizes the importance of educating the public about endangered marine species issues, not only through Finathon, but in her everyday life. She consistently incorporates marine protection work into her everyday life by initiating discussions about ocean issues with dive center members and guests. She views each conversation and interaction as an opportunity to educate on the importance of caring for marine environments and wildlife.

“As a shop owner and lover of all underwater life, I am impacted by every ocean-related post and news item I read,” says Barbara. “As I become more aware of the issues affecting our marine environments and ocean wildlife, I feel more motivated to get all divers involved. We are all responsible for life underwater.”

Barbara’s words struck a chord with the Project AWARE team. As we reflect on last week’s Endangered Species Day celebrations, we’re reminded that we are all responsible for the protection of marine wildlife not only on Endangered Species Day, but year-round.

Are you up to the challenge? Start your own fundraiser through Project AWARE’s My Ocean Challenge to support the protection of sharks and other endangered marine species all year long.