Op'eds and commentaries

Yet again, the world’s leaders convened, debated, produced lofty rhetoric—and left without the binding commitments, measurable targets, or decisive action that the science demands. The fact that several of the most influential leaders and governments did not attend speaks volumes. The US administration did not even bother to send delegates; however, over 100 state and local US leaders did show up. And even though China’s leadership was absent, it did send a large delegation.

To preface this tribute for newcomers to diving and the dive industry: Michael was the one who coined the term “technical diving” and founded AquaCorps Magazine in the 1990s, which was dedicated to what we now know as technical diving. He drove the development of the field, ultimately benefiting the whole dive industry, improving training methods, and driving innovation. He also organised a number of technical conferences, most notably, several Rebreather Forums.

We like to think of equality as a universal principle—that all human beings are created equal and should be afforded the same rights and opportunities. The idea has echoed through history, from Enlightenment thinkers to the ringing words of the American Declaration of Independence. They are noble ideals, ones we like to believe in, but when we look around us, reality tells another story. Where we are born, into which family and in which part of the world, still determines far more about our lives than any amount of effort, talent, or ambition.

Once upon a time, when we were drafting and tinkering with the design and editorial profile of this magazine before it was launched, I had already made the observation that American dive magazines focused predominantly on US dive sites, the Caribbean and some Pacific destinations, while European magazines were mainly centred on local dive sites, the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, with the occasional mention of the Maldives or Thailand.