Florian Allgaeuer
Did you know this year marks PADI’s 60th anniversary? To mark the occasion, Scuba Diving magazine is featuring standout members of the PADI community in a new column: Torchbearer Spotlight.
The PADI Ocean Torchbearer Award program honors members of the global dive community at the Divemaster level and above who demonstrate exceptional leadership and commitment to ocean conservation, sustainable dive industry practices, and community engagement. These individuals represent the spirit of the PADI Torchbearer movement—they’re divers and professionals who are using their connection to the ocean to inspire action and create positive change.
By recognizing these leaders, the PADI Ocean Torchbearer Award highlights the unique role divers and dive professionals play in advancing ocean protection and building a more resilient, inclusive and sustainable global dive community. Check this space in future issues to read about the incredible changemakers honored this year.
Past Torchbearer Honorees
These Previous Torchbearer Awardees Exemplify the Passion and Dedication Driving Positive Change Across the Global Dive Community
Robin Philippo
Robin is the director of the Tropical Research and Conservation Centre (or TRACC), a marine conservation organization based in the Celebes Sea. TRACC is dedicated to protecting green and hawksbill sea turtles and restoring coral reefs destroyed by dynamite fishing and crown-of-thorns starfish predation.
Carsten Schultz
Carsten is a PADI IDC Staff Instructor at Aalborg Dykkerskole, a PADI Five Star Dive Resort in Denmark. A belief in the “art of possible” has driven Carsten to reach hundreds of individuals with mental and physical disabilities, prompting incredible tales of recovery and wellness through adaptive diving.
Zandile Ndhlovu
Zandile is South Africa’s first Black female freediving instructor and the founder of the Black Mermaid Foundation, an org that helps underrepresented communities explore and protect marine environments. A conservationist and avid storyteller, she advocates for diversely represented and inclusive oceans.
Michel Guerrero
Michel has dedicated his life to the study of oceanic manta rays in Ecuador and the Galapagos. He founded the Fundacion Megafauna Marina del Ecuador (FMME) and Proyecto Mantas Ecuador (PME), contributing scientific data that directly led to manta and mobula rays becoming internationally protected.
How Are Torchbearers Selected?
Ocean Torchbearer Award recipients are nominated and selected on a quarterly basis based on the following factors:
- Their demonstrated impact across the three pillars of change (ocean conservation, dive industry sustainability, and people and humanity)
- Their leadership within the dive community
- Their ability to create measurable or visible outcomes through their work
