Fascinating opportunity with OceansWatch

by Chris Bone on 31 Jul 2014 Any skippers with a little time on their hands and wanting to make a positive difference for the Oceans they love might want to have a look at www.oceanswatch.org who are currently looking for a volunteer skipper in the South West Pacific.

[Sorry, this content could not be displayed]OceansWatch has been working with communities in Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea now for 7 years, since they were donated their first yacht Magic Roundabout. The organisation is a registered charity in New Zealand, the USA, the Solomon Islands and will soon be registered in the UK and Europe. During this time says CEO Chris Bone the organisation has 'honed it’s skills and can now deliver very effective services in the areas of marine conservation, climate change mitigation and adaptation and sustainable livelihoods development'.

OceansWatch, unlike many other Charities does not give anything to the people in the Island communities where it works. What it does instead is learn from them and share its scientific perspective and educational resources such as conservation films. Traditional ecosystem knowledge and culture are highly respected and the communities are therefore empowered to find their own solutions from an active and respectful partnership. The end result is usually an effective and robust sustainable management program for community marine resources.

This often includes marine reserves and fishing regulations. Climate change projects this year include developing low fuel and low smoke efficient stoves and assessments of the effect at village level of sea level rise and weather instability.

In the area of sustainable livelihoods OceansWatch has developed a very popular program that develops skills in the production of cold pressed virgin coconut oil, a product that’s becoming very popular amongst the health conscious.

The yacht that needs a skipper is Magic Roundabout, a well maintained Sweden 34. The yacht is prepared to NZ Cat 1 for Ocean passages and carries dive equipment and a very comprehensive First Aid kit, including Oxygen. OceansWatch founding director Chris Bone has sailed >15,000nm in the yacht and says 'She’s a beautiful yacht to sail, fast, very responsive yet feels very solid and safe, I love her'

Working for OceansWatch is not a holiday, it can be hard work and stressful on a small yacht, an opportunity for 'personal growth' but at the same time might be one of the most rewarding. It’s a 'job' best suited to people who are really want to make a difference, not take an exotic holiday. Those with dive qualifications or a background relevant to the work OceansWatch does are especially encouraged to apply. Suitable for couples.

Chris says that interested skippers should have a good read of the website then if seriously interested contact him by email to operations@oceanswatch.org attaching their sailing resume and a cover letter, open a skype conversation with 'skipperchrisbone' or text/call 006785452347.