The MSC Foundation has signed agreements with the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and Nova Southeastern University (Florida) to finalize the terms of a graduate internship program that will support Super Coral Program research and development activities in 2021 using a blended approach (virtual and in situ at Ocean Cay in the Bahamas). This marks the beginning of the implementation phase of the innovative program that the MSC Foundation conceived with a panel of experts as its own urgent response to the coral reef emergency, which is increasingly facing extinction due to climate change and pollution.
Pierfrancesco Vago, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the MSC Group's MSC Foundation, commented: “This collaboration marks a significant step in our commitment to implementing a marine conservation program to reverse the sharp decline of coral reefs worldwide, which threatens a quarter of all marine life. The ocean is in our DNA, so the Super Coral program is more than just a local initiative to protect and restore coral reefs around Ocean Cay and Florida. It is designed to develop unique expertise in the study and practice of coral resilience, creating a model that can be successfully replicated globally.”
Coral reefs are among the most diverse ecosystems in the world, serving as a food source and economic resource for 500 million people and protecting coastal communities from storms and erosion. According to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, scientists predict that between 70% and 90% of coral reefs are at risk of disappearing in the next two decades (2030-2050).
The program aims to research, develop, test, and refine methods to reverse the decline of coral reefs in the 64-square-mile marine reserve surrounding Ocean Cay, pioneering the reconstruction of damaged coral reefs with coral species that are more resilient to environmental threats such as pollution and ocean warming. Scientists from the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School and Nova Southeastern University will be directly involved in these studies.
“The MSC Super Coral program seeks to help restore coral reefs in the Bahamas to a healthy state by actively selecting for climate change-resistant genotypes and improving the sexual propagation of those genotypes,” explained Chris Langdon, professor in the Department of Marine Biology and Ecology at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Miami.
“MS students in Marine Biology at Nova Southeastern University have an excellent opportunity to conduct research internships in Ocean Cay, Bahamas, funded by the MSC Foundation,” noted Dr. Joana Figueiredo of Nova Southeastern University. “They will help establish a coral nursery to propagate corals, study the marine life of the reserve around the island, and engage with passengers to educate them about coral reef protection.”.
The objectives of the Super Coral Program are:
- Restore the coral reefs around Ocean Cay to make them more resilient to environmental change.
- To be a pioneer in the use of resilient species and varieties of Super Coral to increase the resilience of reefs.
- Develop and share a replicable, scalable model to advance scientific understanding and promote the successful restoration of marine corals worldwide.
- Promote public awareness and action in support of marine conservation and the restoration of coral reefs.
- Program period: 2019-2024
