I came here in May as a rescue diver and marine biologist. I joined Project Laut, to improve my diving skills becoming Dive Master and at the same time study the critically endangered Hawksbill Turtles. Assess, monitor, and analyze their population abundance and distribution in the Nusa Penida Marine Protected Area.
another goal of the project is to help to rehabilitate the coral reefs in defined plots using scientifically guided and supportive methods in order to help preserve our beautiful marine environment.
My program finished a few weeks ago, but I am still here as a volunteer to help Sita and Joma with the new interns ;)

After finishing my masters in marine biology I wanted to get my divemaster. I could not have picked a better place to do it than with Project laut. Bali is a beautiful place to be but my experience was even better thanks to the amazing people that I met.

The dive sites are beautiful and I feel that I have learnt a lot as a diver from the different conditions you can get here. In addition doing the ecology classes gave me better knowledge for when we did hands on conservation work in the ocean. I would highly recommend this program as it has made me even more passionate about ocean conservation .

I had an incredible two months with project laut. I came to do my divemaster and felt supported the entire way. Everybody there made you feel so welcomed and really made the whole experience that much better.
It was so much more than just diving. We had ecology classes about turtles, corals, and Manta and rays. All of them run by Joma who was so passionate about what he does. When we did go out on dives, we’d be looking out for hawksbill turtles or helping out with the coral restoration. It was amazing to see the progress from the earlier spiders that had been there for a year and how much it was growing! On dry days we would be updating the turtle database from resent sightings.

Joma and Sita are amazing instructors who made me feel incredibly comfortable in the water. They really looked after every intern and helped us become better divers. At first I was nervous after the drift diving but I left feeling so much more confident in my diving skills and loving drift diving!

I would recommend project laut to anyone wanting to do their DM or even just get some hands on experience with some conservation projects. Not only are you in paradise with incredible dive sights, having that sense of community with everyone made it that much better. I can’t wait to go back!

First off, if you haven’t been to Bali before? Then Nomads is a great excuse to go. This little island is home to some of the best beaches and dive locations in Bali. Nomads is a place like no other, a dive shop on the beach? Life doesn’t get much better. The staff are amazing, super helpful and fun. And the program itself was life changing for me. I would highly recommend this experience to just about anyone who has a lot of love for our oceans, and even those who are wanting to learn more!!!!!

When you combine an incredible place with incredible people every misunderstanding fade away. If the emotions of diving in such a place aren't already enough, you got to know amazing people from all over the world sharing the same passions. Definetly worth all the troubles encountered during the trip, particularly thanks to the other interns in my period there and to joma who always did his best to make us feel at home and guided us in Bali as well during our trips at the main island (gotta work on his fear for monkeys, but I'm sure he's getting better😉)

I spent 3 months in Nusa Penida, diving with Joma and the other members of Project Laut almost every day - we worked together on coral restoration and sea turtles protection, between beautiful corals and tropical fishes. It was a wonderful and productive time. I learned a lot about myself, my limits and strenghts as a diver. Joma teached me how to be confident underwater, giving me the instruments to become an independent divemaster.
I'll never forget the time spent together, he was my best buddy, looking forward to share with him another crazy drift dive.

My experience with Project Laut was unforgettable. I spent five weeks doing the marine conservation internship (having already done my dive master) and learnt so much from the amazing staff there, as well as made lifelong friends.

Nusa Penida has such a large range of dive sites that you get to do something different every day, and I felt extremely supported in my first times experiencing strong drift, coming to love it afterwards.

Project Laut has inspired me and given me the experience needed to continue my career in marine biotechnology, and the amazing staff there made me want to do my dive instructors.

I stayed two months in Nusa Penida, diving every day with Nomads & assisting in the Project Laut internship. I honestly had the best time here and learned so much about marine conservation. Joma's passion for conservation and dedication to monitor the Hawksbill turtles are contagious & inspiring for any ocean advocate! I gained more knowledge in coral rehabilitation since we planted coral fragments on our spiders during shore dives. Also the ecology classes were very interesting. Can't recommend this internship enough!