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January 2012 E-Current
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 E-Current
January 2012 |
In This Issue: Photo Contest Winner • EcoTales from Kubulau • Alert Diver Feature • Best Practices in Coastal Management
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Featured Location: Honduras
Sharing Best Practices at UN
Creating effective marine protected areas was the topic of CORAL's presentation at the recent Blue Economy workshop in Monaco, a preparatory meeting for the upcoming Rio +20 UN conference on sustainable development. Hosted by Prince Albert II, the gathering provided CORAL an opportunity to educate the international policy community-including key members of the UN delegation-on best practices in coral reef conservation.
CORAL's Jenny Myton shared examples of our success working with the Roatan Marine Park in Honduras. Her presentation underscored the importance of developing effective management tools to alleviate local reef threats and create community buy-in for park management.
Jenny, along with Ian Drysdale of the Healthy Reefs Initiative, also used this opportunity to raise awareness and support for Cordelia Banks-a high-priority coral conservation area located off the coast of Roatan. CORAL is working with local partners to increase protection and management capacity there, thanks in large part to support from the Oak Foundation and the Ocean Fund.
Learn more about our projects in Honduras»
Sharks Win Big in 2011
Source: Pew Environment Group
Electricity Sparks New Life into Indonesia’s Corals
Source: Discovery News
The Gardens of the Queen
Source: CBS News
Scientists Discover Astounding Deep-Sea Sponges with Carnivorous Ways
Source: Underwater Times
Parrotfishes Keeping Reefs Healthy
Source: Science Alert
More News...
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Double Your Impact! »
Make a gift to CORAL today and your generosity will go twice as far! Through January 15th, all donations—up to $100,000—will be matched by our Board of Directors. With your help, together we can make 2012 a banner year for coral reef conservation. |
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Photo Contest Winner Announced!
Congratulations to Gianni Cicalese from Rome, Italy, who is this month’s winner of the E-Current Photo Contest! Gianni captured this brilliant photograph of a harlequin shrimp (Hymenocera elegans) near Tulamben, Bali Island. This particular species is found throughout the Indo-Pacific and is typically white with purple, blue, or orange-red patches. Gianni caught his subject just as it was enjoying a sea star snack. Click below to download Gianni’s image as your desktop wallpaper and learn more about the photo contest.
Download the photo »
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EcoTales from Kubulau
Home to some of the world’s most extraordinary species, the Kubulau District and the broader Vatu-i-Ra Seascape region of Fiji hold an exceptional amount of biodiversity. Species found there are not only ecologically important, but also culturally significant to the people of Kubulau, who have deep ties to their natural environment. To record and showcase the importance of this region, CORAL and WCS Fiji have created Ecotales from Kubulau: A Guide to the Cultural and Natural Heritage of the Vatu-i-Ra Seascape. The guide is now available, and proceeds from the sales will directly support ecosystem management and community development projects in Kubulau.
Learn about the guide and order your copy » |
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Coral Reef CSI Featured in Alert Diver
DAN’s Alert Diver magazine recently published an article highlighting our global Coral Reef CSI program. To date, this field training program remains the only internationally-recognized course which trains natural resource managers and marine enforcement officers to investigate and collect evidence from crimes against our underwater environment. This spring, the program is piloting two new workshops focused on sea turtle field forensics and vessel groundings. Stay tuned for more news on these upcoming workshops!
Read the article » |
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Best Practices in Coastal Management
The last International Coral Reef Initiative’s general meeting devoted a full day to discussions about the Pacific region. One of the recommendations from this day was to develop a guide on good coastal management practices in the Pacific. We are proud to say that CORAL’s work in the Namena Marine Reserve in Fiji was featured in the guide (page 13) and is considered a “strong example of what can be accomplished when a community is empowered to manage and protect its own reef resources.”
Read the report » |
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* Photo Credits and Notes:
Banner Photo: Sea Turtle Silhouette
Photographer: Dan Norton
Large Center Photo: Harlequin Shrimp (Hymenocera elegans), Tulamben, Bali Island
Photographer: Gianni Cicalese
Left Side Photo: Healthy Reefs Initiative’s Ian Drysdale, CORAL’s Honduras Field Manager Jenny Myton, Prince Albert II, and UN World Tourism Organization’s Sustainable Tourism Director Luigi Cabrini, at the Blue Economy meeting in Monaco
Photographer: Jenny Myton
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