World Travel Market Africa is in its second year. Gansbaai remained in the spotlight when Marine Dynamics won the People’s Choice award in the Responsible Tourism Awards. Past winners Marine Dynamics, Gansbaai and Chobe submitted videos for the award category which is based purely on votes by the public.
The headline sponsor of the awards is Wesgro and each category also sponsored - People’s Choice was sponsored by Ticket2Utopia. Judges reason for Marine Dynamics win: “Voted for entirely by the public, the People’s Choice in Responsible Tourism Award allows members of the public to vote for the most inspiring category winner from 2015. Winner Marine Dynamics provide very high quality shark cage diving experiences. They are Industry leaders, a commercial operation which operates to the highest conservation standards, where every trip has a marine biologist aboard to provide interpretation and collect data for scientific research. An operator that makes a significant contribution to conservation and the local economy.”
Owner of Marine Dynamics, Wilfred Chivell accepted the award to the delight of his marketing team present at WTM. Wilfred is glad that marine tourism and conservation is being recognised as many of the wildlife conservation awards go to terrestrial projects. “This is also a win for our great white sharks and our endangered African penguins. A big thank you to all those who support our company and conservation work and recognise that ‘Your Choice Makes a Difference’”, says Wilfred. “Ten years ago when I entered the shark cage diving industry it was not looked on so positively. Marine Dynamics has been instrumental in the shift of how this industry is viewed.” The African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary also featured with a supported sponsorship of the Wildlife Conservation category, the category Marine Dynamics won in 2015.
This category was jointly won by two Kenyan operators Mara Naboisha Conservancy and Ol Pejeta Conservancy. More information: www.responsibletravel.com/awards/africa/
Media release WTM
