Congratulations!

PADI Examiner Firas Jundi is recognised for excellent customer service – thank you Firas!

Firas with Training staff in the Bristol office

2012 Instructor Development Update Webinar Dates

The 2012 Instructor Development Updates will shortly be conducted by webinar in French, German, Italian and Spanish. An online update will also be available in English prior to 30 June.

This webinar program is open to all renewed and active status Course Directors and IDC Staff Instructors and will focus on:

• New and revised programs and products as well as an overview of any associated standards and curriculum changes as they relate to Instructor Development.
• State of the business and outlooks for the future
• Evaluation criteria discussions

Atten­dance at the 2012 Series Course Direc­tor Update is required for all Course Direc­tors with a CD Expiry date of 30 June 2012, and highly recommended for all IDC Staff Instructors. Down­load the registration form for the Course Director Update or IDC Staff Instructor Update webinars here, or contact the Instruc­tor Devel­op­ment depart­ment on id.emea@padi.com for more information.

Date	Time	Lan­guage
30 April 2012	10:00 CET	German
2 May 2012	10:00 CET	Italian
2 May 2012	14:00 CET	French
3 May 2012	10:00 CET	Spanish

Sign up now for the 2012 Instructor Development Updates!

Course Direc­tor Update 2012

This half-day pro­gram is open to all renewed and active sta­tus Course Direc­tors and will focus on:

• New and revised pro­grams and prod­ucts as well as an overview of any asso­ci­ated stan­dards and cur­ricu­lum changes as they relate to Instruc­tor Development.
• How to acquire the new Recre­ational Rebreather and Tec Rebreather Instruc­tor Trainer credentials.
• Up-to-date expla­na­tions of the Knowl­edge Devel­op­ment cri­te­ria being applied dur­ing Instruc­tor Exam­i­na­tions and the Course Direc­tor Train­ing Course.
• Dis­cus­sion of Instruc­tor Devel­op­ment protocols.

Atten­dance at the 2012 Series Course Direc­tor Update is required for all Course Direc­tors with a CD Expiry date of 30 June 2012 – online options will also be avail­able from the sec­ond quar­ter 2012 for those unable to attend in per­son. Down­load reg­is­tra­tion forms here or con­tact the Instruc­tor Devel­op­ment depart­ment on id.emea@padi.com for more information.

Date	Location	Lan­guage
12 Jan­u­ary 2012	Paris, France	French
18 Jan­u­ary 2012	Bris­tol, UK	Eng­lish
23 Jan­u­ary 2012	Dus­sel­dorf, Germany	Ger­man
1 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Gothen­burg, Sweden	Eng­lish
3 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Utrecht, Nether­lands	Eng­lish / Dutch
8 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt	Eng­lish
16 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Milan, Italy	Ital­ian
23 March 2012	Madrid, Spain	Span­ish
26 March 2012	Het­tlin­gen, Switzerland	Eng­lish

IDC Staff Instruc­tor Update 2012

This half-day pro­gram is open to all renewed IDC Staff Instruc­tors and will focus on:

• New and revised pro­grams and prod­ucts as well as an overview of any asso­ci­ated stan­dards and cur­ricu­lum changes as they relate to Instruc­tor Development.
• How to acquire the new Recre­ational Rebreather and Tec Rebreather Instruc­tor Trainer credentials.
• Up-to-date expla­na­tions of the Knowl­edge Devel­op­ment cri­te­ria being applied dur­ing Instruc­tor Exam­i­na­tion and the Course Direc­tor Train­ing Course.

Down­load reg­is­tra­tion forms here or con­tact the Instruc­tor Devel­op­ment depart­ment on id.emea@padi.com for more information.

Date	Location	Lan­guage
12 Jan­u­ary 2012	Paris, France	French
19 Jan­u­ary 2012	Bris­tol, UK	Eng­lish
23 Jan­u­ary 2012	Dus­sel­dorf, Germany	Ger­man
1 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Gothen­burg, Sweden	Eng­lish
3 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Utrecht, Nether­lands	English / Dutch
8 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt	Eng­lish
16 Feb­ru­ary 2012	Milan, Italy	Ital­ian
23 March 2012	Madrid, Spain,	Span­ish
26 March 2012	Het­tlin­gen, Switzerland	Eng­lish

BIG SHARK SHOUT OUT OCTOBER 15 – 23

It’s time to pull out all the stops for sharks! 

During Big Shark Shout Out week, Project AWARE Foundation, volunteer divers and shark supporters around the world will rally to protect sharks before it’s too late. PADI Pros and their student divers form a unique, collective voice that can help change the fate of vulnerable shark species.

Coinciding with Shark Alliance’s fifth annual European Shark Week and Project AWARE’s Give Sharks a Fighting Chance signature campaign – we’re calling on European Union (EU) fisheries ministers and parties to Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to protect sharks from overexploitation.

What will you do during the Big Shark Shout Out?

1. Collect signatures for two vital petition efforts: the UnFinished Business petition to close loopholes in the EU Finning Ban and the Give Sharks a Chance petition to protect vulnerable shark species worldwide.
2. Teach the new AWARE Shark Conservation Diver Distinctive Specialty course.
3. Fundraise for sharks and create a local wall of support. Be the first of 10 to raise 200 ($, €, £) for shark protection and receive an AWARE shirt!

Organizing for the Big Shark Shout Out is easy with the organizer kit  . It has everything you’ll need to make your shark support something to shout about

NO SHOUT TOO LOUD FOR SHARKS!

PADI Europe, Middle East & Africa Managers dive into Rebreathers

The managers from the Training department at the Europe, Middle East & Africa Regional Headquarters recently took the opportunity to try out the Poseidon Discovery and Ambient Pressure Evolution units under the expert guidance of PADI Instructor Trainer Martin Robson. It was great to see the excitement and enthusiasm generated by this experience!

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Congratulations!

The Instructor Development team are delighted to recognise PADI Course Director Michal Kosut for his contributions to diver education:

Michal receiving his award, with PADI Examiners Rich Somerset and Matt Norman

Congratulations new PADI Course Directors!

Congratulations to the Course Director candidates from the EMEA region who recently completed the Course Director Training Course in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia in March 2011.

EMEA Course Director candidates and translators, pictured with PADI staff

Witold Smilowski

On behalf of PADI, I’d like to share how deeply shocked and saddened we are by the death of Witold Smilowski last night. Witold has made an outstanding contribution to the dive industry over the years, not just in Southern Africa and Poland, but across the world as he touched the hearts of so many divers and dive professionals. He was the consummate professional, one of the most successful Course Directors, a friend to so many, always stepping forward to help, always a smile….The exemplary PADI ambassador, one of our team and one of our dearest friends. Our condolences go out to all his family and friends.

Suzanne Pleydell

Scholarship Scheme candidates celebrate

Please join us in congratulating the recent PADI Professional Scholarship Scheme candidates from Mozambique, whose journey towards becoming PADI Instructors was captured here:

Additional IE in Egypt

We’d like to extend a huge thank you to Course Directors Yahya Khiry, Firas Al-Jundi, and their candidates, who volunteered to defer their attendance at the Instructor Examination, allowing us to accomodate the remaining candidates for the scheduled IE in Sharm el Sheikh last week. Examiner Dave Griffiths conducted an additional IE in Sharm el Sheikh on the 27th – 28th February for these candidates, with logistical assistance from Yahya, Firas and the staff at Moon Divers.

Thank you all again for your ongoing support and assistance with these Instructor Development programmes – we’re already looking forward to more successful IEs in Egypt in April!