REASONS TO CONTRIBUTE

Reef resiliency is an important theme for our research
At the Little Cayman Research Center, we are working to better understand what is causing the decline in the health of our reefs and what could contribute to more resilient reefs. Our goal is to establish the best protective strategies and promote realistic solutions that will reduce the major threats by humans so that reefs may be more resilient to the stresses caused by global warming and climate change. Communicating the knowledge gained to public and private entities to help make the changes that will reduce decline on reefs. We have established a goal to become "the" center of excellence for climate change and coral reef stress.

Results from research on our reefs
CCMI and visiting scientists are revealing new species and higher biodiversity than previously known on our reefs. Work on the "Early History of Coral Reefs" is showing that, while adult corals have been reduced by 40%, juvenile corals of every major species important on Caribbean reefs are re-populating the reefs. We have documented that a deadly disease called "White Plague" is the leading cause of mortality of corals in the region.

EDUCATION & OUTREACH

Field-oriented education in marine ecology and conservation
CCMI provides leadership in undergraduate and professional marine ecology and conservation field-oriented education so that students gain a better understanding of critical issues facing tropical marine ecosystems. Our programs are improving our youth, community and visitor's appreciation and understanding of marine conservation issues. We are providing new learning activities so that children are ocean literate by the time they are 12. The initiative is based on a NOAA/National Geographic Society program and will help improve awareness of actions needed to reverse environmental degradation.

CONSERVATION

Why are coral reefs important?
Despite covering less than 1% of the ocean floor, coral reefs harbor the highest biodiversity in the ocean but they are vanishing from many places on Earth. Substantial research is focused upon the use of coral reefs and reef organisms in the development of new drugs to treat cancer, Alzheimer's, and other diseases. Moreover, coral reefs generate billions of dollars in economic benefit worldwide by attracting tourism that provides jobs, by protecting beaches, and as a source of food. Little Cayman is one of the least-developed tropical islands and harbors some of the most biologically diverse and intact reef systems in the Caribbean. As a result, we are using these reefs to calibrate the changes scientists are measuring on reefs globally.

What are our concerns and what are we doing?
Scientists are reporting that coral reefs are now more threatened than tropical rain forests. Nearly 40% of the corals in the Caribbean have died in the past decade. Our scientific mission aims to provide solutions that will reduce human threats to coral reefs. We are partnering with NOAA to install sophisticated instruments on coral reefs to help predict, model, and keep track of environmental changes so that we can better manage our reefs. In addition, for the last eight years, we have provided scholarships for young people to learn about coral reef conservation because they are our future leaders and policy makers.