Leading Dive Professionals Honoured for Contributions to Conservation, Science and Inclusion

Several prominent members of the international diving community are being recognised with some of the industry’s highest honours in 2026, celebrating careers spanning shark conservation, diving medicine, accessibility, youth education and sustainable dive tourism.

Among this year’s recipients are PADI Course Director and shark conservationist Cristina Zenato, who will receive the 2026 NOGI Award for Environment, and Professor Simon Mitchell, a diving physician, researcher and technical diver who will receive the 2026 NOGI Award for Science.

Thomas Koch, Syed Abd Rahman, and Jeff and Teri Leicher have meanwhile been named among the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

Cristina Zenato Recognised for Shark Conservation

Cristina Zenato has spent decades working with sharks and helping change public perceptions of species that have traditionally been misunderstood or feared.

A shark ecologist and behaviourist, cave explorer and educator, Zenato is particularly well known for her work with Caribbean reef sharks in The Bahamas. She is also the founder of the nonprofit People of the Water.

Her conservation work helped support the wider movement that resulted in full protection for sharks in The Bahamas in 2011.

Alongside her shark work, Zenato has explored and surveyed underwater cave systems and developed the PADI Caribbean Reef Shark Awareness Distinctive Specialty, using diver education as another tool for improving understanding of sharks and their importance to marine ecosystems.

Her NOGI Award for Environment recognises a career that has closely connected underwater exploration, education and conservation.

Professor Simon Mitchell Receives NOGI Science Award

Professor Simon Mitchell is being recognised for his extensive contribution to diving medicine and physiology.

A physician, researcher, educator and highly experienced technical diver, Mitchell has combined academic research with first-hand experience of demanding underwater environments.

His research has covered subjects including decompression physiology, decompression sickness and oxygen toxicity, while his diving career has included technical shipwreck and cave expeditions.

The NOGI Award for Science recognises Mitchell’s contribution to the scientific understanding that underpins modern diver safety and diving physiology.

Thomas Koch Breaks Barriers for Deaf Divers

PADI Course Director and PADI AmbassaDiver Thomas Koch is among the members of the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

Koch has focused much of his career on making scuba diving more accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing divers.

In 2015, he became PADI’s first deaf Course Director. Through Aqua Hands, which he founded in 2010, Koch has developed scuba instruction using American Sign Language both above and below the surface.

His work has helped build an international community of deaf divers and dive professionals, demonstrating how established approaches to communication can be adapted to make diver education more inclusive.

Syed Abd Rahman Recognised for Youth and Adaptive Diving

Malaysia’s Syed Abd Rahman is also being inducted into the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame.

The PADI IDC Staff Instructor has spent more than two decades introducing children and young people to scuba diving and the marine environment while working to expand opportunities for people with disabilities.

As founder and director of Kids Scuba Malaysia and a Diveheart Malaysia Ambassador, Rahman has been involved in developing youth and adaptive diving programmes across Malaysia.

His work has reached thousands of young people and families, using scuba diving as a platform for education, confidence and greater engagement with the ocean.

Rahman becomes only the second Malaysian to receive induction into the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame.

Jeff and Teri Leicher Recognised for Four Decades in Hawaiʻi

Jeff and Teri Leicher are being recognised for more than four decades of involvement in Kona’s diving community through Jack’s Diving Locker.

Their work has combined dive tourism with marine conservation and community involvement.

The couple supported the development of permanent mooring systems intended to reduce anchor damage to Hawaiʻi’s coral reefs, while Teri Leicher was a co-founder of the Malama Kai Foundation.

Jack’s Diving Locker has also been closely associated with diving experiences for which Kona has become internationally known, including manta ray night diving and blackwater diving.

Their Hall of Fame induction recognises their contribution to diver education, conservation, responsible tourism and the development of Kona as an international diving destination.

Recognition Across the Diving Community

PADI President and CEO Drew Richardson said the different achievements represented by this year’s recipients demonstrated the wider impact dive professionals can have beyond teaching people to scuba dive.

“Together, their achievements demonstrate the extraordinary influence PADI Professionals have not just in teaching people to dive, but also in advancing science, protecting vulnerable marine species and ecosystems, making diving more inclusive, creating sustainable dive communities and inspiring generations of people to become advocates for the ocean,” Richardson said.

The NOGI Awards are presented by the Academy of Underwater Arts & Sciences and recognise significant career contributions across Arts, Science, Environment, Sports/Education and Distinguished Service.

The International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame similarly recognises individuals whose careers have made significant contributions to the development of recreational scuba diving around the world.

Further information about PADI and its global diving programmes is available from PADI.