Diving professionals
Instructors, guides, dive leaders, captains, commercial divers, public-safety personnel, and professionals working throughout the operational diving sector.
Featured
Founding Membership Campaign Extended to 31 October 2027
IADP Update
The IADP has extended its Founding Membership campaign until 31 October 2027, giving supporters, serious divers, professionals, and industry stakeholders a full year of active outreach to join during the organisation’s founding phase.
The founding campaign continues
The campaign originally opened ahead of the summer period, with the intention of building the first visible membership base behind the IADP and beginning a sustained period of professional outreach and member recruitment. The months that followed, however, proved unusually disrupted for the organisation and its volunteer team.
Why the campaign has been extended
Several volunteers and key contributors were unavailable for extended periods, while international project commitments and other operational circumstances reduced the organisation’s ability to give the campaign the sustained communications, outreach, and development effort originally planned.
As a result, the Founding Membership campaign was launched, but it was never given the full active promotional period that had been intended.
A practical decision
Rather than close the founding phase before that work had properly taken place, the IADP has decided to extend the campaign until 31 October 2027.
The extension provides a full year for sustained communication, professional outreach, member recruitment, and continued development of the membership platform.
A full year of active membership development
From October 2026 through the campaign’s closing date of 31 October 2027, the IADP will work to give its founding phase the sustained attention and active promotion originally intended.
The focus will be on member recruitment, professional outreach, continued development of TheDiveProfessional.org, expansion of member services, and building the first visible membership base behind the organisation.
The extended period gives prospective members time to understand the association, follow its development, and choose how they wish to participate.
A defined founding window
Founding Membership will remain open until 31 October 2027.
During this period, eligible members can join under founding conditions and be recognised as part of the first active membership phase of the IADP.
The founding phase recognises those who choose to support the organisation while its membership structure, services, projects, and professional network are still being developed and expanded.
After 31 October 2027, the Founding Membership campaign will close to new enrolments and the organisation will move into the next stage of its membership development. The campaign closing date is separate from the membership duration attached to each founding route.
Choose your founding membership route
The founding campaign provides two principal membership routes. Both begin through the IADP Join Now page, where prospective members can review the available options before continuing to TheDiveProfessional.org to complete the appropriate membership.
Founding Associate Membership
Founding Associate Membership is intended for supporters, serious divers, students, early-stage professionals, and others who want to stand behind the wider diving profession and support the development of an independent professional association.
It provides a route for people who may not yet be participating as established industry professionals but who want to support the organisation, its objectives, and the wider professional community.
Founding Professional Membership
Founding Professional Membership is intended for working dive professionals and industry contributors who want to support the organisation during its founding phase and become part of the developing professional network.
It is aimed at those whose work, experience, business, technical role, services, or professional activities are connected to diving and the wider underwater sector.
Building the first active membership base
The IADP was created around a simple principle: the diving profession deserves independent, cross-sector representation.
That profession extends far beyond one training agency, one certification system, one commercial model, or one branch of diving.
Science and environment
Researchers, scientific divers, environmental workers, restoration specialists, medical and hyperbaric professionals, and others supporting underwater research and protection.
Industry and support
Manufacturers, technicians, equipment specialists, media professionals, compressor operators, support staff, and businesses whose work depends on the wider diving profession.
More than an organisational structure
Building a credible professional association requires more than a website, statutes, projects, or organisational structures.
It requires members.
The Founding Membership campaign is the first step toward building that member-supported base and establishing a stronger collective structure behind the wider diving profession.
The role of TheDiveProfessional.org
TheDiveProfessional.org is the operational membership platform connected to the IADP.
The IADP website remains the institutional and public-facing platform. It explains the association, its objectives, membership structure, projects, and professional role.
Prospective members begin through the IADP Join Now page. From there, they can select the appropriate membership route and continue to TheDiveProfessional.org to complete their membership.
Membership accounts, member services, future benefits, professional verification, gated resources, and other operational member functions will progressively be developed through TheDiveProfessional.org.
Why founding membership matters
Founding members are joining at a stage when the organisation is still actively building its operational capacity, membership services, project structure, professional network, and long-term representation model.
Their support helps the IADP move from organisational development into a member-supported professional structure.
Founding members become part of the first active membership base behind the association and its long-term objective of strengthening independent representation for the diving profession.
The campaign year ahead
Through 31 October 2027, the IADP will place greater emphasis on membership recruitment, professional communication, partner development, member services, and the further development of its project network.
The objective is clear: establish a credible first membership base and build a stronger operational foundation for the organisation’s next stage.
What happens after 31 October 2027
The Founding Membership campaign will close to new enrolments on 31 October 2027.
After the campaign closes, the IADP will continue developing professional participation, member services, verification, partnerships, projects, and its wider professional network.
Closing founding enrolment does not shorten memberships already taken out. Their duration remains governed by the conditions of the selected membership route.
The founding period is a defined stage in the organisation’s development, rather than an enrolment opportunity that will remain open indefinitely.
Join during the founding phase. The Founding Membership campaign remains open until 31 October 2027. Supporters, serious divers, professionals, and industry stakeholders can join during this founding period and become part of the IADP’s first active membership base.