In 2019, the team here at Reef-World sat down and mapped out our ‘core values’ to underpin how we work with our stakeholders (and each other) for the conservation impact we want to achieve. One we’ve been thinking about a lot lately is “we stay optimistic in our decision-making and our approach to tackling global conservation issues.” Of course, we didn’t see 2020 was about to come knocking and shake the optimism of the world! In trying times, it can be harder to find and hold onto hope.
Covid-aside, the last couple of years have seemed almost armageddon-like for the environment. Raging wildfires, record-breaking storms and weather systems, and a terrifying reversal of the momentum to curb CO2 emissions that would not only protect humans, but reefs too. There have been times where it’s been overwhelming, and government systems all over the world are cumbersome and bureaucratic and are not moving fast enough. Do we even have a chance at saving reefs?
According to scientists, we’re not past the point of no return yet. And that’s the point of including optimism in our core values - to remind us, in the hardest times, that now is the time to push the hardest. We cannot be part of a pandemic of lost hope. We have to find ways to move forwards and be part of the solution because if we don’t, we’re likely to be losing reefs in our lifetime.
We believe in working with what we’ve got. There’s little point bemoaning that governmental systems are not efficient, that is the system that exists and wishing it weren’t so is a waste of effort. So we work with it instead. We do this through capacity building, providing technical support and education to our partner institutions that adopt and run Green Fins in their countries. We’ve met the good people behind the curtains, and they’re passionate, dedicated and work harder than most of us realise. They’re doing their best with the bureaucracy they’ve got. Collectively we can help shape that bureaucracy to point them in the most efficient direction!
You may have seen our other blog posts about the importance of the International Coral Reef Initiative’s recommendations to the next set of biodiversity conservation targets. These targets are voted on by delegates from countries signed up to the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD). The CBD acts as a blueprint for governments to set up their action plans, activities and programmes - so the wording of the targets is critical to inform impactful policies.
Historically marine environmental targets have been underrepresented and poorly formed in these forums, hence ICRI’s hard push for more accurate wording and more realistic targets, ones that will trickle down to real change on the ground (or substrate!). And we’re not the only ones who are shouting about it!
We’ve reached out to our network to ask about the importance of reefs and why we need to support these high-level policies and, in short, they’ve renewed our optimism! We asked some of our coral reef friends why coral reef protection is so important to them, and here’s what this inspired lot got back to us with:
“We are now facing Paradise lost, but if you give up, it’s over. There are still enough healthy areas in our oceans, particularly coral reefs, to give us hope. Protect the natural systems as if your life depends on it because it does! Our lives do depend on making peace with nature.”
“Coral reefs are beautiful hotspots of biodiversity and ocean productivity. As tempting as it may be to assign them socio-economic value, this will never outweigh an oil or fisheries exploitation in a spreadsheet comparison. Coral reefs are monuments of life on our planet and should be treated with the same respect, and given the same intrinsic value, as humankind’s dearest accomplishments. We must protect coral reefs because they are there.”
“Enough severe damage has been done to our reefs which adversely affects our oceans and planet as a whole. We must cherish and protect what healthy spots remain. The greatest threat to humanity is humanity itself. Now is the time to become responsible custodians for our future generations.”
“Over tens of millions of years coral reefs have survived and adapted to gradual planetary change. In the process, they have become home to a delicate and dazzling array of life. We barely understand the role coral reefs play in the health of the planet, and in turn, our own survival. The death of coral reefs is playing out in our lifetimes, and we must find ways to bring more awareness to this crisis so that we can take action before it’s too late.”
“Personally, reefs are important to me because I want to be able to show my son a thriving, healthy, and vibrant underwater world that’s bursting with life and color. In witnessing that he, and all of us can see and be reminded of what we are fighting for and working so hard to save. In the big picture, reefs are important because they are at the very foundation of a healthy ocean. With the interconnectedness of nature, every single thing on this blue planet is tethered to and reliant on a healthy reef system. Quite literally, reefs = life.”
“Never has there been a time where we need as many eyes underwater as now. To see what we’re dumping into the seas, and what and how we’re taking out of them. Most people don’t know where their trash ends up, and most fishermen don’t see what their gear does to the bottom. We need to see under the reflections, understand it, and change to be better. We can’t afford to lose what we have left.”
photo credit Simon Enderby
“Coral reefs are our planet’s crown jewels. Resplendent in unparalleled colour and grandeur, our tropical reefs flit with exotic gems beyond compare. This alone should be enough, but in a modern world where ecosystem services require more from every habitat, the coral reef is truly Queen. Hidden crevices provide nurseries for marine life that drives our aquatic economies. Reefs and healthy seas are a critical element in mitigating and monitoring climate change. Their aesthetic appeal brings billions in tourist dollars and provides a livelihood for millions living in coastal communities. Yet these essential environments are under assault from all angles. Unless we act soon and address our targets for mitigating anthropogenic climate change, our reefs will very soon be a thing of the past.”
PLEASE JOIN US IN SUPPORTING THIS CRUCIAL CAMPAIGN. FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT WWW.CORALPOST2020.ORG AND ADD YOUR VOICE TO THIS CRITICAL GLOBAL CONVERSATION BY SHARING YOUR SUPPORT ON SOCIAL MEDIA.