Summer is finally here and we’re excited to announce the start of our Ocean In Motion: Marine Science Day Camps! During the warm, summer months, SDOF provides community members an opportunity to sign their children up for educational snorkeling trips. These awesome outings consist of marine science instruction, snacks, a fun, take-home workbook and of course…SNORKELING (including the use of all equipment). Fun facts and entertaining stories keep kids pumped up and wanting to grow fins or their own!

• Ages 7-17; No previous swimming or snorkeling experience is necessary.
• Financial assistance is available to those who qualify.

Complete and return an OIM registration form and waiver to reserve your child’s spot today!
We promise it’ll be an experience they won’t forget!

Friday, July 10 | 12 PM – 5 PM
Friday, July 24 | 12 PM – 5 PM
Sunday, August 16 | 12 PM – 5 PM
Sunday, August 30 | 12 PM – 5 PM
Thursday, September | 12 PM – 5 PM
Thursday, September 26 | 12 PM – 5 PM

For more information, please click here. If you have a group of at least 10 kids who would like to participate in one of our camps, please contact zoe@sdoceans.org to request a date that fits with your schedule and receive our discounted group rate.

To get involved, please email volunteer@sdoceans.org!

AquaTalk - Paul K. Dayton, PhD

Tuesday, July 14th (6:30PM - 8:00PM)

Casa Machado
3750 John J Montgomery Drive
San Diego, CA 92123

The Loss of Nature and the Nature of the Loss:
How do we recover passion for nature?

Why is marine conservation such a hard sell? Our world is facing countless environmental crises (from climate change to the many forms of environmental degradation). Yet, as the problems become more acute, public apathy seems to grow.

Dr. Paul K. Dayton, from Scripps Institute of Oceanography, will discuss some of the problems related to shifting baselines and shifting values with regards to our oceans. He will offer his sense of why there has been a 'sea change' in public opinion, discuss the politics involved when designing marine protected areas and summarize patterns of fishing efforts in local waters. Dr. Dayton will articulate his idea that experiencing nature first-hand is the best possible solution to environmental indifference and the only way to rekindle a passion for nature.

For more information, please contact events@sdoceans.org

Reef Monitoring Project

Dive with a Purpose during ‘The Great Annual Fish Count’

The Great Annual Fish Count (GAFC) is an event coordinated locally by the San Diego Oceans Foundation in partnership with REEF (the Reef Environmental Education Foundation) every July.

SDOF holds this exciting event each year to offer local divers and snorkelers a great chance to get involved and make a difference by completing underwater surveys!

By participating, volunteer divers/snorkelers become ‘citizen scientists’ by learning to identify marine species, documenting biodiversity and recording population trends in their own backyard!

Want to get out and make your dive count for something?

GAFC 2009: Saturday, July 25 | 8AM – 11AM | La Jolla Cove

• We’ll have refreshments, survey kits (for purchase) and a raffle with awesome prizes for all who attend! We’ll also be bringing some of our OIM specimens and images from local photographers to share with the group.

Come, spend the morning in the water with us and help raise awareness about current conservation efforts with regards to the ocean! By diving and submitting an underwater survey, you will be doing your part to provide researchers, marine resource managers and policy makers with useful information that can be applied to fisheries management and even the development of marine protected areas!

San Diego Coastkeeper will be there to help us spread the word about the Marine Life Protection Act and what else you can do to promote healthy oceans.

Can’t make this event, but still want to get involved? Please check out our Reef Monitoring Project for more information.

Contact cheryl@sdoceans.org to RSVP today!

Storm Drain Stenciling

The Storm Drain Stenciling program is now back up and running! With a new stencil design and eco-friendly paint, we are ready to get volunteers back out into our community to help spread the mission of ocean stewardship!

For more information and to get involved email volunteer@sdoceans.org

For more information about the programs below, check out the Our Online Calendar. To RSVP for any of these awesome activities, email us at volunteer@sdoceans.org

White Seabass Restoration Project

Pen Cleaning (San Diego Bay)
Sunday, July 19th
9AM – 12PM

Are you a certified diver and want to try something new, but don’t mind getting a bit dirty? We’re always looking for dedicated volunteers who’ll help clean our white seabass pens!

As time goes by, these net pens become covered with a variety of organisms that have found the perfect place to settle and take up residency. Problem is that they block out the very vital water and oxygen circulation that are necessary to the health of our little fish! In order to keep them strong and ready for release into the wild, we need to perform regular maintenance on their containment nets. Amazingly, many of our ‘Pen Pals’ surface just to say ‘How fun it is to dive San Diego Bay’!

Contact volunteer@sdoceans.org to RSVP.

Volunteer Orientation (San Diego Bay)
Sunday, July 19th
12:30PM - 1:30PM

Come out, enjoy the sun and learn all there is to know about replenishing a depleted fish population! After this short orientation, you will be able to volunteer as a ‘White Seabass Mentor’ and really contribute to the betterment of our oceans! Spending time out on the bay is never as rewarding as when you’re seeing the difference you make first-hand.

Contact volunteer@sdoceans.org to RSVP.

Ocean In Motion: Summer Snorkeling

Spend an afternoon outside helping to open the eyes of local youth to the amazing world that lies below the ocean’s surface. That’s right – you can volunteer and snorkel at the same time! Community service has never been so much fun!

July 2009 Trip Schedule (please see our online calendar for updates)

Monday, July 6 | 12:45PM – 4:45PM
Wednesday, July 8 | 9:45AM – 1:15PM
Thursday, July 9 | 12:45PM – 4:45PM
Friday, July 10 | 11:45AM – 5:15PM
Friday, July 17 | 9:45AM – 2:15PM
Monday, July 20 | 12:45AM – 4:45PM
Thursday, July 23 | 12:45AM - 4:45PM
Friday, July 24 | 11:45AM – 5:15PM
Sunday, July 26 | 12:45PM - 4:45PM
Monday, July 27 | 12:45AM – 4:45PM
Wednesday, July 20 | 11:45AM – 5:15PM
Thursday, July 30 | 12:45PM – 4:45PM

To ensure safety, we keep our adult/child ratio very low (with no more than 3 youth per volunteer), which makes us in constant need of enthusiastic volunteers!

* No formal educational training is required, though volunteers must be strong swimmers, experienced snorkelers and be able to work well with kids. Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own snorkeling gear, though SDOF can provide the wetsuit, snorkel, mask and fins, if needed.

Please contact volunteer@sdoceans.org to attend!

Canyon Watch Program

We've got classic San Diego weather and it's a perfect time to get outside! Come out and spend the morning with fellow 'Canyon Watchers' on our next group hike:

Mission Gorge Canyon
Sunday, July 12th
8:30AM – 9:45AM

We'll be preventing the spread of pollution by walking this beautiful canyon (stopping every so often to inspect a manhole or pick up a bit of trash). This hike will be a great introduction to the program (or refresher) for anyone who wants it!

If you cannot make this hike, but still want to volunteer - please visit our 'Canyon Watch' tab for guides from canyons all over San Diego! Volunteers who go out on their own to monitor on a regular basis are those who make up the very backbone of this program!

E-mail volunteer@sdoceans.org foto RSVP!

Reef Monitoring Project

Summer is here and when better to learn about what we’ve got in our waters? SDOF’s Reef Monitoring Project offers free identification training courses every month to do just that! Once you’ve taken our class and become a ‘fish expert’, you can go out and complete surveys that help keep our oceans healthy.

Check out the marine diversity that the tourists travel from miles around to see and learn how YOU can help protect it!

Saturday, July 18 | 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM | Fish Identification (Levels 2 – 5) (Ocean Enterprises)
Saturday, July 25 | 8 AM – 11 AM | The Great Annual Fish Count (La Jolla Cove)

FYI: If you are competing for some of the awesome prizes with our Dive-A-Thon fundraiser, you'll get EXTRA points for all logged REEF surveys!!!

To RSVP, please contact volunteer@sdoceans.org. Space is limited!

Marine Specimens for our Ocean In Motion Marine Science Education Program

Thank for the donations we have received, however, we still need more specimens for our Ocean In Motion program such as: shark skin & skeletons, crustaceans molts, preserved fish or invertebrates, turtle shells, whale baleens or any marine taxoderms.

If you set your default search browser to GoodSearch.com and select the San Diego Oceans Foundation as your charity of choice, we will receive a penny for every click! Some nonprofits make over $5,000 a year. It is simple to use and helps support our programs.

Click here to start using GoodSearch.Com!

You can sell anything you would like on eBay and a portion of your choice will be donated to support the San Diego Oceans Foundation!

Click here to find out more information!

We Also Need...

Tool Kit
Organizing Supplies (tubs, bins, drawers)
Portable PA System
Docu-Cam
Projection Screen
Music Stand

Pro Bono Services Needed

Attorney, nonprofit focus
Professional Organizer
Flash Designer
Web Designer
Florist
Party Rental Services
Maintenance/Construction Expert
Submersible temporary holding unit for marine life
Saltwater Aquarium & Service

Contact us at sdoceans@sdoceans.org if you are able to help with any of these items!

Employment Opportunities

Internships available! Send an email to: volunteer@sdoceans.org