Angger Asetiti | Scuba Instructor | Underwater Photographer | Marine Conservationist | Indonesia
Angger is a marine conservationist and scuba diver from Yogyakarta City, currently based in Bira, Indonesia.
She is currently leading the coral restoration project in Bira called @gaiaone.project in South Sulawesi where environmental issues need to be addressed as it has been neglected for way too long due to a lack of education and environmental awareness among the locals. Anggeru is also an @ocean_gardener instructor, dedicating her time to planting corals in Indonesia’s waters.
Her knowledge of marine life accompanied by her warmness as a person makes Angger an epic ocean storyteller and ocean advocate.
Image credit: @oceanspirit.photography
When did you first start your storytelling journey?
I have been travelling a lot since working as a tour guide in 2011, and in 2017 I started a job in the diving industry. My passion for the ocean grew as I see the beauty of it every single day. I have always been wanting to involve in ocean conservation/restoration projects, so to be involved with Ocean Gardener in 2020 during “covid times” gave me the opportunity to grow bigger and have my hands on direct action to something that I love and care a lot. In 2021, my dearest friend in Bira invited me over to build the Gaiaone Restoration Project, and here my journey started to create the community I have been dreaming about.
I spend a lot of my time in Bira, South Sulawesi where I set up a coral conservation project. But because I have been freelancing for most of the time I always went around to so many different places in Indonesia such as Raja Ampat, Komodo, and Wakatobi as an Instructor on a Live On Board (LOB) charter boat.
What are the fondest memories from your upbringing that you feel impacted your life choices and lifestyle today?
My fondest memory would be the time when my dad always take me to the ocean once a week since I was 6 years old to embrace some waves while he held my hand and my mum would be waiting for us on the beach.
What path did you choose after leaving school?
I started to travel once I finished school. I went around Asia, working a little bit in Europe before going back to Indonesia and making my hobby into my job which is SCUBA Diving. From there on, I knew that I didn’t want to confine myself to staying in one place because Indonesia had too many opportunities to offer for me to just stay and be comfortable in particular diving area. I had my passion fulfilled by doing the restoration work and I can be financially comfortable with little to no stress in my job.
What/who currently inspires you?
Each different conservation or restoration project has its way of always keeping me inspired with its passion, action, and vision. But one individual person who has been inspired me a lot has been Sylvia Earl with her work and energy to voice on what she cares.
Are there any books/documentaries that have guided your thinking, and that you'd like to recommend to other ocean lovers?
Documentary - Mission Blue by Sylvia Earle
What would you most like to change in the world/environment today?
I feel like one thing I would love to change is the way people think about a small conscious act. I would love to make people believe and have faith that we could make changes everyday.
What legacy do you hope to leave?
I’m hoping that building this community in Bira would be my legacy and to have it keep going and growing bigger!
What advice would you give to anyone looking to follow their dreams as an Ocean Storyteller?
Today is always a good day to start giving a contribution to mother nature. Whether it be small or big, being conscious about how we live every day DOES make a difference.
Current projects
At the moment I am managing Gaiaone Restoration Project, have trained over 20 youth and young children in different capacities. I teach coral restoration, marine life, and scuba diving in the local area.
We have been working on making this community acknowledged by the government and we are hoping that we can cover our mission for this year to work with the Phinisi boat builder community. It is the most well-known icon in Bira, which is their way of preserving the traditional building Phinisi boat and has been recognized as a UNESCO heritage.
We are planning to plant corals in front of the beach they are building the boat. They have a concern due to the current stage of the reef in the area where the coral reef has been damaged by fish bombing and poisoning, as this could cost them losing their plot. In the east wind season, we need to prevent the waves from going over the reef and hitting the coastline; coral reefs act as a natural barrier for coastal flooding, erosion, and natural disasters such as tsunamis. So, I am excited to work on this project and it is hopefully going to be started by the end of 2023.
INSTAGRAM: @the.brown.diver
