On November 4, 2026, ocean advocate Cristina Zenato received one of the diving world’s most prestigious honors when she was presented with a NOGI Award during the DEMA Show in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Frequently celebrated as the “Oscar of Scuba Diving,” the NOGI Awards represent one of the highest achievements within the global underwater community. Zenato was recognized for her extensive lifetime contributions to marine conservation, technical cave exploration, and ocean education—including her pivotal advocacy that helped establish full protection for sharks in the Bahamas in 2011, as well as her work establishing the non-profit organization People of the Water.
The 2026 ceremony also celebrated several other distinguished figures in the diving community. Alongside Zenato, the Academy of Underwater Arts and Sciences honored Jonathan Bird for Arts, Dr. Simon Mitchell for Science, Richard Kohler for Sports/Education, and Howard Rosenstein for Distinguished Service.
Cristina Zenato
Cristina Zenato is a renowned Italian marine conservationist and expert diver widely recognized for her pioneering work with Caribbean reef sharks in the waters of the Bahamas.
Born in Italy in 1971, Zenato spent her childhood in the Congo before returning to her home country to finish high school, influenced by her father’s career as a military special forces diver. Her journey into marine life began during a 1993 trip to the Bahamas, where she discovered scuba diving. By 1995, she had joined the Underwater Explorer’s Society (UNEXSO) and launched her professional career as both a shark handler and dive instructor.
Over the years, Zenato earned elite technical credentials, becoming a PADI Course Director in 2016 and an NSS-CDS Cave Diving Instructor. Her contributions to speleology include extensive mapping of the submerged cavern systems within Lucayan National Park.
Widely dubbed the “shark whisperer” and “mother of sharks,” she gained international recognition for her hands-on conservation efforts off Grand Bahama Island—most notably her habit of manually removing hooks from the mouths of Caribbean reef sharks while swimming alongside them. Her work has been highlighted across global media, including documentaries like Against the Current and Save This Shark, as well as television events like Shark Week. In 2011, she was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame, and she later established the non-profit organization People of the Water to support oceanic preservation.
Zenato made her initial journey to the Bahamas in 1994, an experience that inspired her decision to relocate to the islands permanently. Decades later, in 2018, she met her partner, Kewin Lorenzen.