Her findings offer a powerful counter-narrative to sensational media portrayals and highlight the urgent need to rethink how we view—and protect—one of the ocean’s most imperilled predators.

The first article, in issue #132, focused on Mark Erdmann, Vice President of Asia Pacific Marine Programmes for Conservation International (CI) and architect of the innovative, broad-based, bottom-up strategy that underpins conservation efforts in the region. Central to Erdmann’s approach was the need to quantify Raja Ampat’s extraordinary biodiversity. The person who played a pivotal and sustained role in that critical undertaking was Gerry Allen, whose contributions have been instrumental in shaping the conservation narrative of this incredible area.

The Republic of Palau is a country consisting of a collection of islands spread over a large area of the western Pacific Ocean. It lies east of the Philippines and north of the huge island of New Guinea. Geographically, it is part of the Caroline Islands, which in turn form part of a region known as Micronesia.

In the 21st century, is it still possible to build a dive resort at the edge of the world in an area that very few people have heard of, more forgotten than the nearby region known as the Forgotten Islands, where the nearest airport is hours away, where almost no one has ever dived (and then only from passing boats), where there are no contacts, no facilities of any sort and you have to start from absolute zero?

Bill Acker is a member of the original class of SSI Platinum Pro Divers. As a PADI and SSI Instructor, he remains active in exploring new dive sites and teaching the sport to those interested in sharing his love of the marine environment. His accomplishments are recognized by the worldwide diving community. In 2014, Acker was inducted into the Scuba Diving Hall of Fame for pioneering diving in Yap. He celebrated 30 years in business that same year. In addition, his dive resort was recently recognized in 2024 as the best dive resort in the Pacific and Indian Ocean.

My introduction to this incredible region traces back to 1999 when I stumbled upon a post in an online underwater photography bulletin board (anybody remember them?). The author of the post was trying to assemble a group of like-minded divers for a trip to a newly established “eco beach camp” on Kri Island—providing an opportunity to explore the recently discovered dive sites in the Dampier Strait.

What do you find most rewarding about diving, and how has it enriched your life personally?

PT: Ok, sit down as this may take a while.

I am a diver first and a professional second. Diving not only allows me to share my passion with other divers, but it also allows me to do the one thing we all love the most: exploring. It doesn’t matter to me whether I’m on a 6m dive on a single tank or diving an ancient wreck at 130m with a rebreather; I always feel like I’m exploring.

Pronounced “Too-bah-taa-ha,” the name means “long reef exposed at low tide” in Sinama, the language of the nomadic Sama-Bajau sea gypsies, who are believed to have first discovered the area. Physically, the TRNP (Tubbataha Reefs National Park) consists of two atolls and one coral reef that are located in the middle of the Sulu Sea—effectively the core of the Philippine archipelago. Those “exposed reefs” are the highest tips of the many extinct underwater volcanoes and mountains that form the Cagayan Ridge, which rises up from the 3,000m depths of the Sulu Basin.

Recently, I had the opportunity to talk with Derrick to learn more about his history and that of the company. My takeaway, which he emphasized time and again, was that the success of DGX was only made possible due to his team of dedicated employees and their focus on satisfying the customer’s needs.