Passions Of Paradise Catamaran Sailing the Great Barrier Reef

Three James Cook University students have been able to share their research into sharks at a national conference thanks to a grant by Passions of Paradise.

As part of its commitment to shark conservation, Passions of Paradise has donated $18,000 over the past four years as part of a sponsorship arrangement with the Oceania Chondricththyan Society (OCS) to help students researching sharks and rays.

Passions of Paradise Chief Executive Officer Scotty Garden said the Passions of Paradise Travel Award grants were given to five students throughout Australia to attend the 3rd Oceania Chondrichthyan Society Workshop and Conference on the Gold Coast in September.

Among the students who benefitted was James Cook University student Fernanda De Faria who was able to share her research which shows recreational fishers on the Great Barrier Reef have a strong record of shark conservation.

“We also sponsored awards for the poster presentations given by students at the conference.

“Students can now apply for the 2011 Passions of Paradise Student Research Grant with Passions providing $1000 in funding and the OCS an additional $1000 toward projects in the Oceania region.” 

Passions of Paradise has been running an onboard shark conservation awareness program for passengers to learn about sharks and rays, the issues facing them and their conservation.

Proceeds from t-shirt sales and other merchandise are donated to the OCS with every dollar donated by Passions used to directly fund student research grants and awards.

Conference organising committee chair Dr Susan Theiss said the 3rd OCS Workshop and Conference was a huge success with outstanding student participation this year.

“The quality of student presentations was particularly high and judges for the student awards, provided through sponsorship from Passions of Paradise, had a difficult task choosing the best oral and poster presentation winners,” she said.

“Through Passions of Paradise sponsorship, the OCS was also able to fund a number of student travel awards for conference attendance.

“The OCS looks forward to seeing how all of its student members progress with their research at future meetings and are continually grateful to the support provided by Passions of Paradise to chondrichthyan research in the Oceania region."

Sharks are big business for the Far Northern tourism industry, delivering an estimated $1375 tourism dollars for each sighting by a diver, according to studies conducted by James Cook University which found key Great Barrier Reef species have high economic value when left alive in their natural environment.

Mr Garden said Passions was drawing attention to the threats this valuable species faced with the two-pronged Save a Shark program which funded research and educated the public.

“The excitement our passengers experience when they see their first shark on the Great Barrier Reef is incredible and we want to make sure future generations have the opportunity to see these magnificent creatures up close in their natural environment.”

Shark facts from the Passions of Paradise Shark Awareness Program

Sharks are cool because:

• Sharks were around long before dinosaurs walked the earth 400 million years ago
• They have hardly changed in more than 150 million years
• There are more than 400 different types of sharks in the world’s oceans
• About 80 per cent of all shark species are less than 1m in length
• Shark skeletons are made out of cartilage instead of bone
• Most sharks live an average of 25 years, but some can live more than 100 years

The Passions of Paradise 25m high-performance catamaran sails to Michaelmas Cay and Paradise Reef daily. Log on to www.passions.com.au.

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