The Reef-World Foundation – international coordinator of the UN Environment Programme’s Green Fins initiative – reveals the Green Fins rebrand today. This reflects the initiative’s global expansion, the evolution of its network, the creation of strong foundations for sustainable marine tourism, and the inclusivity of all its stakeholders.
Green Fins is the only internationally recognised environmental standard for dive and snorkel operators, established through a partnership between the UN Environment Programme and The Reef-World Foundation. Green Fins uses a unique and proven three-pronged approach; green certifications of dive centres, strengthening regulations and environmental education for dive staff, divers and government.
The rebrand comes as Green Fins’ are urgently ramping up their work due to climate change impacts. The initiative continues to grow and adapt from a simple code of conduct to an ever-expanding sustainable network. To date, the initiative has spread to 14 countries and connected with thousands of divers, dive professionals and operators worldwide.
The long-standing identifiable logo has been around for 18 years.
Juliana Corrales, Creative Consultant at The Reef-World Foundation, said: “It was essential for us to go through this process with our stakeholders involved. The logo is the most important element of a brand and it should accurately represent its purpose. Green Fins has evolved massively since its inception and the brand identity needed to catch up to current standards.”
The primary ecosystem that Green Fins aims to protect are coral reefs, and so the inclusion of coral, which is not a common element in marine tourism branding. To preserve the logo’s recognisability, the identifiable green colour and fins representing all types of marine tourism stakeholders’ close relationship with the ocean are kept in the new logo.
James Harvey, Director at The Reef-World Foundation, said: “Green Fins has come a long way since its roots back in 2004 with some incredible achievements. The approach has managed to connect governments and businesses in a way we never thought possible whilst helping communities at the heart of where we focus our work, coral reefs. Everyone in the Green Fins network has worked hard in the evolution of Green Fins and that has made Green Fins what it is today. Laying strong foundations for a healthier relationship between marine tourism and marine ecosystems on a global scale. We are really pleased with the outcome of the logo and we hope that this new and fresh looking logo will become even more recognisable than the last one, becoming a well-known brand amongst tourists.”
Chloe Harvey, Director at The Reef-World Foundation, said: “Reef-World recognises that to reach a global scale, we need a global identity that is inclusive of all our stakeholders. We’d also like to think of the rebranding as a celebration of Green Fins’ new milestone, the upcoming new membership structure and the digital platform developed to meet the growing demand for Green Fins launching later this year. The aim is to align the rebrand with the new changes and the charity’s value to be innovative. We will always continue to evolve and support the needs of the marine tourism industry and conservation effort worldwide.”
