G20 CORDAP (Coral Research & Development Accelerator Platform)

We look forward to continuing working with Mirpuri Foundation on advancing the science and technology needed to secure a safe future for corals. Since January 2024, the Mirpuri Foundation has served as an advisory member of the Initiative Governing Committee (IGC) within CORDAP. Visit cordap.org to lear more about our structure, our IGC and its Advisory Members.

If you had the choice, would you stay one of a kind forever, or would you clone yourself? (Cloning might be tempting, especially for catching up on all those emails piling up during the season break!) Paige Strudwick, a dedicated #TeamCoral member and researcher at the Coral Nurture Program at the Great Barrier Reef, is here to provide the answers. Genetic diversity, resulting from the mixing of male and female gametes, is crucial for species maintenance and long-term survival. However, sexual reproduction isn’t always the best strategy. When corals are hit by storms or damaged by human activities, such as destructive fishing practices, asexual reproduction allows them to grow and recover more quickly. In just 90 seconds, we'll explain what’s at stake, genetically speaking, when corals reproduce sexually or asexually—and why one strategy may be better than the other under certain conditions. A deep understanding of corals' reproductive strategies is essential for designing restoration and conservation programs that are biologically informed, targeted, and ultimately more successful in sustaining coral populations. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) aims to protect and restore at least 30% of the ocean. These targets can’t be achieved without including corals and coral reefs in the plan. By protecting coral ecosystems we are not only protecting marine life, but also ensuring that at least half a billion people around the world are positively impacted by them. Visit www.cordap.org and coralnurtureprogram.org to learn how we are working to secure a safe future for corals.

In 2019, a study showed that ecosystem services provided by corals from three areas of the Dominican Republic were valued at $1.14 billion per year. In 2023, over 90% of those corals had bleached. Interviewed by Andrew Wight for Forbes Science, Rita Sellares, CEO of FUNDEMAR, discusses how her CORDAP-funded project is giving coral reefs in the Dominican Republic a better chance of survival against environmental stresses like diseases and bleaching events. Rita's team has received CORDAP funding to scale up coral larvae production and seed over 11,500 substrates with more than 500,000 larvae, benefiting local reefs across the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean island of Bonaire. Follow the link below to read the interview ⬇ and visit cordap.org to learn more about how CORDAP funded projects are helping secure a safe future for corals worldwide. https://lnkd.in/dSN_nd2e

Museums around the world have joined our partner Ocean us in the fight to save corals from extinction, under the #LastCallforBeauty campaign. Can you imagine if your favourite painting lost all their colours? In a effort to raise awareness on the large scale consequences of coral bleaching, museums are bleaching their master paintings. Find out more about the campaign by visiting https://oceanus.life/

We share Paige’s enthusiasm: corals are incredible organisms, known to exhibit fascinating traits. Their multiple reproductive strategies are but an example.   This August, CORDAP teams up with #TeamCoral member Paige Strudwick and the Coral Nurture Program at the Great Barrier Reef to bring you a short series on coral reproduction and restoration.   Scientists have only studied the seasonality, fecundity, and overall reproductive strategy of a very small amount of coral species. Despite the immense lack of information, one thing is clear: corals can reproduce both sexually and asexually. Some species use both methods, while others focus all their energy on one. What’s the difference between broadcast spawners and brooders? Have you ever heard of coral budding? In less than 90 seconds, we'll explain you how corals reproduce. Stay tuned until the end for a special surprise: a glimpse of Paige cloning herself! Understanding how corals reproduce is crucial for designing effective restoration and conservation programs, as it maximizes restoration efforts, maintains genetic diversity, informs targeted techniques, enhances adaptive potential, predicts population dynamics, and builds reef resilience. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) aims to protect and restore at least 30% of the ocean. These targets can’t be achieved without including corals and coral reefs in the plan. By protecting coral ecosystems, we ensure that at least half a billion people around the world are positively impacted by them.   Visit http://www.cordap.org and https://lnkd.in/dwrpdHje to learn how we are working to secure a safe future for corals.

Like humans, corals have a microbiome, mainly composed of bacteria and other microbes, which are key to keep corals healthy. What happens when scientists play around with corals microbiome in order to help them survive? Will this affect the surrounding environment too? Using probiotics in laboratory experiments has proven effective in protecting corals from pathogens and high water temperatures, improving corals health and survival. But what about wild coral populations? Can probiotics work in such an uncontrolled environment? Nathalia Delgadillo Ordoñez, a PhD graduate from the Marine Microbiomes Lab at KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology) , Saudi Arabia, shares what happened when the team left the lab and ventured to the Red Sea to test probiotics on wild corals. Watch the video to find out! If you want to learn more don’t miss the chance to read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/di-QqC_j Developing probiotics to help corals survive the warming and stressful ocean conditions is one of many ways science and technology can pair up to find solutions that buy corals some time. CORDAP is funding 14 research projects around the world that aim to secure a safe future for corals. Visit our website to discover what some of the greatest minds worldwide are doing in the lab and in the field: http://cordap.org

Today, August 1st, 2024, is Earth Overshoot Day. This is no good news. Earth Overshoot Day falling on August 1st means that humanity is currently using nature 1.75 times faster than our planet’s ecosystems can regenerate. In other words, we are using resources equivalent to 1.75 Earths to meet our natural resource demands, but we only have one Earth! There is no planet B. This overshoot is possible because people harvest more than is being renewed, thus depleting natural capital. The consequences of such ecological overconsumption are evident in marine and terrestrial biodiversity loss, habitat destruction, and the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which lead to stronger and more frequent extreme weather events and reduced food production. Thriving within the means of our planet is still possible. However, we must put nature at the core of our solutions. By restoring, conserving, and protecting nature, we can pave the way to a more sustainable life. One that does not compromise our future or the future of the next generations. By committing to restore and protect at least 30% of marine and land habitats, as aimed by the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, we are more likely to move the date later on the calendar, while ensuring the wiser and more sustainable use of resources. CORDAP is committed to scaling up the science and technology needed to secure the future of one of the most important marine ecosystems: coral reefs. We are redefining the boundaries of what’s possible for coral conservation and restoration worldwide but we need all hands on deck. Find out what we are doing and the projects we are funding across the globe by visiting http://cordap.org

Here’s a wave of GOOD NEWS for corals. Drones that monitor intertidal corals, an underwater sculpture gallery, the announcement of the largest marine protected area in Canada, and so much more! This monthly news wrap-up brings you an extra dose of excitement and hope #ForCoral Swipe to unveil the #happyheadlines and follow the links below to read the articles 🪸Stone et al. (2024) https://lnkd.in/dFbPi9pU 🪸High Seas Treaty: https://lnkd.in/dSVx7Q-t 🪸Raimundo et al. (2024) https://lnkd.in/dcA3Fb3H 🪸Underwater gallery: https://lnkd.in/dABgPE2R 🪸 MPA in Canada: https://lnkd.in/gjTcEZjb 🪸GFCR: https://lnkd.in/eTbc_kCd 🪸Muñoz-Maravilla et al. (2024) https://lnkd.in/dy8g54iw 🪸Sweetman et al. (2024) https://lnkd.in/d5M8b63h and https://lnkd.in/d7Y_mMcN What's your favourite news? Tell us in the comments! This month's wrap-up features the amazing research done by The University of Western Australia, Australian Institute of Marine Science, High Seas Alliance, KAUST (King Abdullah University of Science and Technology), Fisheries and Oceans Canada / Pêches et Océans Canada, Global Fund for Coral Reefs, California State University, Northridge, Scottish Association For Marine Science, Heriot-Watt University, GEOMAR Helmholtz-Zentrum für Ozeanforschung Kiel, University of Minnesota, University of Leeds.

If you are a graduate student or early career researcher struggling with grant or manuscript writing these writing workshops are just what you need Each online workshop consists of 2 half days (4 hours each day): Grant Writing: Sept 11-12, 16:00 UTC Manuscript Writing: Oct 29-30, 20:00 UTC Deadline: August 8 Check eligibility and apply here: ➡ https://lnkd.in/gXmpJMPa

Our #TeamCoral member Ana Belén Yánez Suárez and her research have been featured in National Geographic Kids UK, in a special ocean issue! Ana told us once "We as species have taken action to destroy the most beautiful places on Earth. It is our responsibility to take action to recover the affected areas and protect the remaining healthy reefs to conserve life in the oceans and our own.” Through education and research we can rewrite the future for corals. Thank you for doing both, Ana!