| When you hear the name O'Neill you | | | | Even then, ideas are constantly changing, as |
| immediately think of surfer dude's with their | | | | is the environment. Marine habitat and the |
| surfer's hair, bronzed bodies and wetsuits. | | | | relationship between oceans and the |
| The name has come to be synonymous with surf | | | | environment are touched on during O'Neill's |
| clothing after Jack O'Neill set up the | | | | short course and this will be enough to tell |
| original surf shop in the Sixties. Up until | | | | these children whether or not they are |
| that point, all surf shops had stocked surf | | | | interested in it enough to take up a similar |
| boards but it was O'Neill that was supplying | | | | course on leaving school. |
| the only surf clothing. In fact, it is | | | | |
| believed he was responsible for the first wet | | | | Also studied on the Sea Odyssey Programme is |
| suit designs. | | | | Ecology. This is a very important subject for |
| | | | today's youngsters to understand. There is |
| However, Jack O'Neill is also responsible for | | | | much in the press about mankind's effects on |
| disadvantaged children learning about the | | | | the world around us and to see it with the |
| environment and marine life on his O'Neill | | | | clarity that a short burst of information can |
| Sea Odyssey Programme. This aims to teach | | | | provide, it will probably have a more |
| children all about the environment and the | | | | far-reaching impact. Ecology is a science all |
| effects people have on it. Producing children | | | | its own studying the distribution of |
| that are much more aware of the impact they | | | | organisms and the interactions between them |
| have on their surroundings and how they can | | | | and their environment, including the effects |
| help or hinder it can oly be a good thing. | | | | of climate and geology. |
| | | | |
| This course, in Santa Cruz, California takes | | | | The navigation part of the course involves |
| place on the Team O'Neill 65' catamaran over | | | | learning how to plan, read and control the |
| three hours. There is also on-line education | | | | movements of those who are moving around the |
| tools that schools can use in conjunction | | | | sea's, particularly while they are studying |
| with the course and, although it is | | | | the ecology. There is no point in |
| relatively short, it gives these kids a good | | | | understanding our impact on the environment |
| grounding in the understanding of ecology, | | | | if we have no way of controlling it while we |
| navigation and marine biology. | | | | study it. |
| | | | |
| So, what is the point of it? Well, the kids | | | | This course, as I said earlier, is |
| learn that while sports people are often | | | | predominantly for disadvantaged young people. |
| hailed as heroes, everyone still needs to be | | | | For those who get this opportunity, many |
| responsible for their place in the world and | | | | would otherwise have never known about the |
| the impact they have on it. They will learn | | | | possibilities and options open to them to |
| about marine biology. This is the study of | | | | study their environment and to be able to |
| living organisms that occupy our waterways, | | | | give something back. It means that this is |
| from fish to corals. They will learn how the | | | | just one more opening to get their minds |
| forces of nature change the marine habitat | | | | active and show them that, whatever their |
| and the effects that mankind also have on it. | | | | background, they can make a difference. Just |
| | | | as O'Neill has done when he could so easily |
| Marine biology is a science that can take | | | | have made a comfortable living simply from |
| many years of study to get to grips with. | | | | selling surf clothing. |