Less than a month from now Reef Environmental Education Foundation's REEF Fest 2016 will bring an exciting array of events to Key Largo, Florida, in the name of marine conservation.

The four-day festival begins Thursday, Sept. 29, and runs through Sunday, Oct. 2. Diving and eco-adventures will be offered each morning and a compelling marine-themed seminar series will take place in the afternoons, featuring renowned ocean experts like Dr. Ellen Prager. Guests can wind down at the end of each day with a variety of social events including an open-house at REEF's headquarters and an open-air dinner party featuring live music and a silent auction on Saturday.

Dives and Eco-Ventures
On Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings, guests are invited to dive alongside REEF members, fish surveyors and marine enthusiasts, or participate in snorkeling, kayaking, paddleboarding and glass-bottom boat tours in the Upper Keys. Tour operators have pledged to donate a percentage of proceeds from the weekend to REEF.

Seminar Series
Beginning on Thursday, seminars are scheduled in the afternoon at the Murray Nelson Government Center, mile marker 102 bayside. The talks will be led by ocean experts including author and marine scientist Dr. Ellen Prager, Ph.D., who will lead a talk on “Wacky Creature Stories and Other Tales From the Sea;” marine biologist and professional naturalist Jack Grove, discussing the marine environments of the Florida Keys and the Galapagos Islands; and Dan Orr, recently retired president of Divers Alert Network and 2014 International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame inductee, who will discuss the great white sharks of Guadalupe Island, Mexico.

Seminars are free, but pre-registration is recommended at www.REEF.org/REEFfest/registration.

Social Events
Guests are invited to socialize in the evenings with a different event scheduled each night, beginning with a welcome party at Bayside Grille, 99530 Overseas Hwy., on Thursday, from 6-9 p.m.

On Friday, REEF board members and staff invite guests to visit REEF Headquarters, 98300 Overseas Hwy., for a tour, appetizers, a lionfish tasting and an open bar with wine and beer from Florida Keys Brewing Company. The event will run from 6–9 p.m.

Saturday night's open-air celebration dinner party, sponsored by Divers Alert Network, is a ticket-only event featuring live music, appetizers, a three-course meal and full-service liquor bar. A silent auction will include dive vacation packages provided by Atlantis Philippines Dive Resorts, Quino El Guardian Liveaboard, and Eco Divers Resort Lembeh Strait. Tickets are $45 per person and can be purchased at www.REEF.org.

About Reef Environmental Education Foundation
Grass-roots organization Reef Environmental Education Foundation, or REEF, was founded in 1990 with support from the Nature Conservancy. Headquartered in Key Largo, REEF links the diving community with scientists, resource managers and conservationists through marine life data collection and related activities, and enlists recreational divers and marine enthusiasts to perform citizen science.

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