Expedition Overview
The Global Reef Expedition: Science Without Borders® is scheduled to take place from 2011-2016.
Countries are invited to submit Letters of Engagement to the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation to conduct collaborative coral reef research in waters throughout the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. The Expedition will provide the opportunity for coral reef researchers, in collaboration with local partners, to conduct management-driven coral reef research under the Living Oceans Foundation Science Without Borders® program. Together, the Foundation and local partners will explore, map and characterize coral reefs in remote locations and compare these to near shore reefs off populated coastlines.
Information obtained during the Expedition will assist in identifying sites of high priority for protection and in developing conservation strategies to mitigate human impacts and improve reef resiliency, in order to preserve and protect the biodiversity, health, heritage and social and economic value of these precious resources.
The Impetus
Protecting and conserving coral reef ecosystems is an urgent issue. Coral reefs are highly valued for their biological, cultural and economic resources, as well as their aesthetic qualities. They provide food, employment, building materials, recreation, coastal protection and medicines. They sustain livelihoods and economic development. According to one estimate, coral reef ecosystems provide approximately US$375 billion per year in goods and services.
Over the last two decades, competing demands on coral reef ecosystems and increasing pressure from natural and anthropogenic stressors have contributed to a significant decline in coral reef health across the globe.
The Caribbean has been hardest hit, with losses of 50-80% of living coral cover, including the near elimination of two of the most important reef building corals – elkhorn coral and staghorn coral. Global surveys have revealed significant levels of disease and disease outbreaks in Caribbean “hotspots” as well as sites throughout the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
In addition to the emergence of new and extremely virulent diseases, other environmental drivers such as sediments and nutrients from land-based pollution, elevated temperatures and bleaching as a result of climate change are accelerating losses of corals. Concurrently other key species critical to the maintenance of healthy coral reef ecosystems, such as high-valued predatory groupers and important herbivores such as the parrotfish are being depleted as a result of over fishing and destructive fishing practices. In many locations these changes can be translated into substantial losses to humankind, in terms of goods and services and critical genetic resources. If habitat degradation and global climate change continue at the rates witnessed over the last decade, countries will be faced with unprecedented challenges in managing coral reef communities.
We are awakening to an enlightened age of ocean appreciation. We are just beginning to understand how important ocean health is to human health and to the wellbeing of our entire planet. The challenge ahead is to muster the political will and harness international resources to stop and reverse the momentum of ocean degradation.
Fortunately, as recognition of the rapid changes being documented on coral reefs worldwide has increased, considerable progress is being made in halting reef degradation and restoring the health and vitality of these precious ecosystems. Through various management interventions, such as the establishment of reserves and areas protected from fishing, we have witnessed recovery of reef fish populations and considerable spillover of these fishes into surrounding areas that are open to fishing. Scientists are just beginning to understand the factors and processes that increase the resistance of corals to pathogens and improve the resilience of these ecosystems, making them more likely to withstand and recover from mass
bleaching events and other catastrophic events. However, we are only beginning to understand the functions and processes that are essential to the well - being of coral reefs.
Benefit to Host Countries
The Global Reef Expedition research will provide host countries with coral ecosystem habitat maps along with analyzed survey information. From this analysis, conservation recommendations will be provided to relevant government agencies and NGOs in the respective host country. This is expected to assist local managers in designing and implementing conservation strategies such as developing large-scale networks of marine protected areas whereby 1) risks of global climate change are minimized by protecting representative and replicated areas of major habitat types; 2) key sources of larvae are safeguarded; 3) ecological connectivity between habitats is maintained; and 4) other threats, such as water quality and over fishing are effectively managed to ensure the reefs are as healthy and naturally resilient as possible.
Principles of Collaboration
The Foundation will:
• Incur all costs for the research vessel, crew and equipment
• Provide the research platform to access remote coral reefs
• Mobilize the core scientific team
• Train local scientists who are selected to participate
Expectations of Host Country:
• Facilitate research permits
• Safeguard research ships and personnel within territorial waters
• Assist with in-country logistics
• Participate in research planning
• Identify local scientists that could participate
For more information:
CAPT Philip G. Renaud, USN (ret)
Executive Director
Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation
8181 Professional Place, Suite 215
Landover, MD 20785
(301) 577-1288
http://www.livingoceansfoundation.org/
