The 2026 NOGI Awards have been announced, recognising five individuals whose careers have shaped modern diving, underwater exploration and ocean stewardship. Presented annually by the Academy of Underwater Arts & Sciences, the NOGI Awards are among the most respected honours in the global diving community, celebrating lifetime achievement across distinct fields.
November 13, 2024, Downers Grove, IL — Diveheart proudly presents The Legend of the Statue, a moving documentary now available on YouTube. Award-winning filmmaker David Marsh, and other leaders in the dive industry explore the inspiring journey of Gabe Spataro, a Korean War veteran and adaptive diver whose life was profoundly connected to the iconic Christ of the Abyss statue.
By Larry Cohen & Olga Torrey
Eugenie Clark received many honors, including the Explorers Club Medal, Franklin L. Burr Award from the National Geographic Society, and the Medal of Excellence from the American Society of Oceanographers. In addition, in 2018, a newly discovered species of dogfish shark was named Squalus clarkae in her honor.
If you love scuba diving, deep dark waters, decompression procedures and mixed gas theory, you must have heard the name many times: Bret Gilliam, a revolutionary trailblazer in the dive world. Over the past few decades, he has changed the way scuba diving is practiced.
I don’t think a week ever went by where I didn’t hear Ron tell someone at his Bellingham dive store, “My motto in life follows the saying: growing old is mandatory, but growing up is optional.” If you ever had the pleasure of knowing or meeting Ron Akeson, you probably understood how he viewed life, because he truly believed in trying to squeeze in every little bit of living into each and every day!
