My love of corals and the sea in general began early in my childhood. My great role model was the pioneer Jacques Cousteau. The older I got, the more aware I became of the extent to which the flora and fauna in the world's oceans are threatened by humans.

Together with my friends and partners, whose impressions were the same, we developed a concept to combine our love for the nature of the oceans and founded Oceanpure Solutions. In harmony with our families, we are passionately pursuing a path for the benefit of endangered nature.

I was born a nature lover. As a Swiss, I love hiking in the mountains and walking in the forest. I went diving for the first time in February 2012 - and was absolutely thrilled by the underwater world. This was followed by many more dives in Mexico, Malaysia and Indonesia. In addition to fantastic experiences in clean waters, there were also sad realisations. Plastic waste floating in the sea and dead coral reefs after dynamite fishing are just two examples.

With Oceanpure Solutions, I want to make a contribution to educating local people and finding solutions together to breathe life back into lifeless reefs.

known as Dirga, is a young and ambitious founder of AquaNest Archipelago, a company successfully operating in the marine and coral industry. In 2012, he started his small hobbies in marine aquaristics at home, and Dirga immediately fell in love with the industry. Dirga then completed a diving course to obtain a licence to enjoy the nature of the sea even more intensively. Over the course of a few months, Dirga developed a deep understanding of how to manage the ocean sustainably and conservatively, especially for coral reefs.

He began to expand his hobbies further by entering the industry as chairman of AKKII (Asosiasi Karang Koral dan Ikan Hias Indonesia - Association of Coral and Ornamental Fish Industry of Indonesia). Turning his ideas into reality, Dirga heads one of the Indonesian government's largest ocean projects known as ICRG (Indonesia Coral Reef Garden). The main aim of the programme is to raise awareness of a sustainable method of coral harvesting without damaging the marine ecosystem.

Prior to assuming the role as Chair of the ACCII in 2022, Dirga was the keynote speaker on coral conservation for coastal livelihoods at Ocean-20, part of the G-20 event in Bali, Indonesia. Previously, Dirga attended the Thirty-Second Meeting of the Animals Committee (AC-32) in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2023 as the Indonesian delegate.

Currently, Dirga is aiming to continue his next focus in line with his passions and dreams in the coral reef industry. Dirga wants to focus more on topics related to climate change, as it always has a close connection to the industry. In particular, it is about how we can achieve the Sustainable Development Goals at the same time. Under these conditions, carbon capture and storage technologies play an important role. It is also about how we can implement these in the marine and maritime industry.

I was born on 15 July 1970 in the village of Pemuteran. The first of three siblings in a poor family situation that forced me to work at a young age to support the family economy. I started working in the grouper and lobster business in 1998 and was appointed to manage a coral reef export company in 2006. With 28 years of experience in managing a coral reef export company and directly experiencing the changes in current marine conditions, I am very concerned. Therefore, I want to carry out activities that can improve the conditions of the sea, such as coral reintroduction and regular maintenance work to support coral survival.

Yusuf was born on 8 December 1986 in the village of Sumberkima. He came into contact with the world of coral reefs at the age of 19 and worked for 12 years for a company that exported coral reefs. Given the very poor current conditions of the sea, he wants to improve the ecosystem by replanting corals in the hope that marine conditions will improve and at the same time have an economic impact on the local population.

Alex Hadi was born into a family of ocean lovers in Jakarta, Indonesia, where he developed a love for the ocean at a young age. This connection led him to become involved in protecting the marine ecosystem. In 2010, he founded Bekael Eska Gemilang, a transplantation project company, and became active in the Indonesian Coral and Marine Fish Association.

He later founded CoreCoral, a company that not only carried out transplantation projects in East Java, but also championed innovative solutions in sustainable development. Today, he continues his mission as part of Oceanpure Solutions, an organisation dedicated to coral reef restoration. Using cutting-edge techniques such as coral propagation and reef mapping, he strives to protect marine biodiversity and secure the future of the oceans for generations to come.

Born in the Black Forest, I often spent my childhood by the sea, whether swimming, snorkelling or fishing. My interest in the underwater world and its inhabitants developed during this time. Protecting this complex and fragile ecosystem for future generations is therefore a matter close to my heart. As a passionate researcher, I am interested in the variation that results from sexual reproduction, as it also occurs in corals.

This variation forms the basis for breeding. I would like to use the knowledge I have gained to adapt corals to the consequences of climate change through breeding.

Born in Zurich, Switzerland, I have admired the big blue and its inhabitants since I was a child. After my first education, I was immediately drawn to the sea, to Oceania, where I also pursued my vocation on the Great Barrier Reef. In this region, the lifestyle includes surfing, snorkelling and diving. I was able to enjoy a few years Down Under with wonderful memories. For me, it was an important time that shaped me and made me who I am today. When I returned to Switzerland, I felt so strongly connected to the sea that I knew I wanted to do something to preserve this underwater world.

Together with Oceanpure Solutions, I can do that. For me, a coral reef in its living and harmonious state is a passion that never ceases to inspire me.

Born in Switzerland, the sea has been very important to me for some time due to my passion for diving. Whenever I get the chance, I go diving in the sea. Diving made me realise how important it is to recycle or dispose of our waste appropriately. The worst thing you can see as a diver is fish or coral dying in the sea because of our rubbish.

With Oceanpure Solutions, I want to give something back to the world so that we can continue to enjoy a good life on it for a long time to come.

I am Wangi Fitriani. Having grown up on a small island that has the beauty of the sea and many beautiful beaches, I love outdoor activities, especially by the sea. I realise that being underwater brings many benefits to people and the surrounding environment. I am very happy to join the Oceanpure Solutions team to carry out positive activities that have a positive impact on all of us. At this time, we need to pay more attention and realise that the health of underwater ecosystems is very important for all of us.

My name is Suar, I am 27 years old and I live in Indonesia. After graduating from Senior High School in Bali, I was immediately fascinated by marine animals. This interest led me to study Marine and Fisheries Science at the University of Udayana for 3.8 years. In my studies, I learnt a lot about the relationship between humans and nature, Indonesia's marine resources and the sustainability of Indonesia's marine resources. The sea makes me happy and healthy. At the beach, I can breathe in fresh sea air, restore balance, spend quality time and be active. However, Indonesia is currently facing various environmental problems due to unsustainable development, such as plastic waste pollution, climate change and habitat destruction. Therefore, we need non-profit organisations like Oceanpure Solutions to help solve the problems. With Oceanpure Solutions, we hope to protect and conserve marine resources.

‘Save the ocean, because without blue there is no green’

I didn't know what was happening to our ocean and reefs until I saw the short film ‘50 minutes to save the world’ on YouTube. It opened my eyes to what is happening to our ocean. That's the reason why I decided to study marine science. At that moment, I decided that my purpose in life is to restore our mother nature and the first step and priority is to restore our coral reef. Through my studies at university, I expanded my knowledge and found out that there are many things that are destroying our ocean, but there are many ways to restore it.

My fascination with corals began at a young age, fuelled by the complex beauty and vital importance of coral reefs. This led me to train as a marine biochemist so that I could help understand and protect corals. It's really important to me to work with NGOs like Oceanpure Solutions to translate our research into tangible conservation action: Together, I hope to contribute to the conservation of our oceans' most precious habitats!

My name is Michael Grigoriadis, I am 42 years old and was born in Neuss. As a half-Greek, I spent a lot of time underwater on holiday when I was young and was immediately fascinated by the animals that live there. As I grew older and more experienced, I became increasingly aware of the dangers associated with the sea. That's why we joined forces as the Oceanpure Solutions team to tackle the causes of these problems at their source. I am infinitely grateful not only to be able to make a contribution to sustainability, but also to be able to offer local people a perspective and hopefully a better future.

I am looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead of us as a team and I am aware that we can only overcome them with your support.