#SSIDanceChallenge Winner: My Journey from Ballet to the Blue

Eugenia de los Santos

When I first saw the call for the #SSIDanceChallenge, something inside me stirred. As a diver, the ocean is my sanctuary. As a former ballet dancer, movement has always been my language. The challenge was more than a creative opportunity - it was an invitation to unite two of the deepest parts of my soul through the shared mission of SSI: exploration, connection, and ocean conservation.

This is more than a contest entry. This is my story.

Where It All Began: A Gift That Changed Everything

In April 2023, a close friend gave me the greatest birthday gift of my life - my Open Water Diver certification. He had seen how at peace I was while snorkeling, how captivated I became by just a few colorful fish. He said, “The ocean feels like home to you. You need to explore it the right way.”

He was right.

From that very first dive, I knew something had shifted. It was not just about learning a new skill - it felt like I had been called. In the silence of the deep, I found a connection that made more sense than anything I had known on land. I was not looking for anything - and yet, I found everything: awe, truth, stillness, and a profound sense of belonging.

Fast forward to today – I am a Rescue Diver with 262 dives logged across the globe, each one deepening my reverence and responsibility for the sea.

Eugenia de los Santos

Why I Joined the #SSIDanceChallenge

Before I was a diver, I was a dancer. I trained in classical ballet throughout my childhood and university years. Dance taught me discipline, grace, and expression - how to speak through movement when words fall short. When I discovered diving, I realized the ocean spoke that same language.

So, when SSI launched the #SSIDanceChallenge, I saw more than a contest - I saw a bridge. A way to translate emotion, reverence, and conservation through a new underwater choreography.

In my competition video, everything had a purpose:

• White attire symbolized the sacredness and purity of the ocean.
• The glass sphere represented the soul of the sea and our fragile emotional connection to marine life.
• The music carried a spiritual message of resilience, reflecting how, even as the ocean endures harm, it continues to give, transform, and forgive.

Through every movement, I wanted to honor the spirit of the sea and remind others that the ocean is not just water – it is life.

GET INSPIRED: Watch @oceansouldiver’s winning entry here 

My Story: Two Cultures, One Purpose

I was born in the Dominican Republic, with strong Mexican roots from my mother’s side. I proudly carry both nationalities in my heart and live in the vibrant capital of my Caribbean island.

By profession, I am an architect and interior designer with over 15 years of experience creating spaces that heal and connect. But diving changed how I view the world.

It awakened in me a purpose I could not ignore: to protect what most people never see.

That is why I created @OceanSoulDiver, a digital platform dedicated to telling the ocean’s stories through imagery, education, and conservation. I use every post to share not just beauty, but truth - the fragility, resilience, and urgency that define the underwater world.

How I Use Art to Inspire Action

The #SSIDanceChallenge allowed me to blend my two greatest passions: dance and diving. But more importantly, it allowed me to communicate in a way that transcends language and borders.

Art, like the ocean, speaks to everyone.

Through this project, I have connected with a global community of divers who feel the same pull to protect the sea. It reminded me that storytelling is not just about sharing – it is about awakening. When people feel something, they begin to care. And when they care, they act.

Discover how you can express yourself underwater and connect with the ocean with the SSI Underwater Dance Specialty 

What is Next?

I am currently working toward my Divemaster certification, the next step in bringing my mission to life. I dream of curating ocean-centered experiences in the Dominican Republic and beyond - trips that fuse adventure with awareness, conservation with culture.

My goal is to show local fishing communities that protecting the ocean can be not just sustainable, but transformative.

With the right education and opportunities, we can turn survival into stewardship and shift entire economies toward respect for the reef.

SSI: A Global Force for Good

I am deeply grateful to SSI for providing a platform like the #SSIDanceChallenge - one that empowers divers to tell their stories through dance, express their passion, and advocate for the ocean through creativity.

It is initiatives like this that remind us: diving is not just about depth – it is about connection. Not only to nature but to each other.

Through programs like this, SSI is helping shape the next generation of divers - not just as explorers, but as ambassadors, artists, and protectors of the sea.

Let the Ocean Move You

If there is one thing I have learned in these two years of diving, it is this: once you truly see the ocean, you cannot look away. And you will not want to.

Whether it is through a regulator or a rhythm, through movement or mission, find your way to connect with the sea. Let it change you. Let it teach you how to breathe differently, to move with intention, and to live with greater purpose.

Because the tide is still ours to turn.

And maybe, we can be the generation that dances to protect it.

Dive With Purpose: Join SSI Blue Oceans

The ocean needs more ambassadors. Join the SSI Blue Oceans movement and gain the tools, knowledge, and community support to help protect the underwater world you love.

Learn more and join SSI Blue Oceans today 

Follow my journey: @OceanSoulDiver

#SSIDanceChallenge | #SSIInternational | #DiveWithPurpose