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September 16, 2026

Beneath the Surface with Steffi: Why Reef Health Matters

 

Our Sea, Our Stories (Part 1)

“To get a glimpse of the underwater world is something really, really magical,” Steffi Lopez.

Steffi has been diving Belize’s waters for over 20 years, long enough to remember how certain reef sites have changed over time.

The Belize Barrier Reef is the largest in the Western Hemisphere, and one of the reasons divers and snorkelers travel here from around the world. But Steffi’s relationship to it isn’t really about the accolades. It’s about all the hours spent underwater, teaching and sharing with visitors from all over the country and the world.

Ask Steffi what the reef looked like when she started diving professionally, and she doesn’t reach for statistics. She reaches for memory.

“I have seen major differences over time,” she said. “I have seen the fish population go down. I have seen the corals dying.”

Reef health isn’t just a diving industry concern. The Belize Barrier Reef acts as a buffer against storms, a nursery for commercially important fish species, and the foundation of a tourism economy that stretches well beyond dive operators — into hotels, restaurants, transport, and hundreds of other jobs that depend, directly or indirectly, on people wanting to see this reef in person.

For Steffi, the connection between reef health and her own livelihood is direct and personal.

Watch Steffi’s story in the video below.