Living Reefs Foundation

We’re taking coral restoration to the next level with an innovative new coral spawning system! We’re thrilled to kick off planning alongside Dr Jamie Craggs FLS FLS, Co-founder of Coral Spawning Lab, and Nick Bridel, Director at Tropical Marine Centre Ltd. Living Reefs, CSL and the Tropical Marine Centre met at Reef Futures 2024 hosted by Coral Restoration Consortium to ensure a smooth system transition from the UK to Bermuda. This cutting-edge system will be a game-changer for the 2025 coral spawning season, helping us secure a reliable supply of coral larvae for vital research and restoration efforts. With this breakthrough, we’re one step closer to revitalizing our reefs and protecting marine biodiversity. Stay tuned—exciting updates ahead #CoralRestoration #LivingReefs #SpawningSuccess Photo (Left to right): Nick Bridel, Jamie Craggs, S. Sarkis, M. Sweet

What an exciting way to end the year at Reef Futures 2024 Conference in Cancun! Living Reefs Foundation was thrilled to participate in this inspiring gathering of global leaders in coral restoration and conservation. We shared progress on our Blue Barrier Causeway project, which aims to strengthen climate resilience using a nature-based approach through our coral culture program. A huge thank you to the Coral Restoration Consortium for organizing this incredible event and fostering collaboration among the brightest minds in reef conservation. We also want to applaud Iberostar Group and Gloria Fluxà Thienemann for their remarkable commitment to environmental stewardship, evident throughout the operation and layout of the IBEROSTAR Paraiso Hotel and Resort at Riviera Maya, where Reef Futures 2024 was held. Their commitment to the Wave of Change program, an innovation hub creating transformational strategy for a sustainable ocean economy, showcases their dedication to sustainability and sets an excellent example for the tourism industry. We were especially excited to discuss their future project on integrating corals to a new breakwater and brainstorm on methodologies with Macarena Blanco Pimentel Víctor Galván Reef Futures 2024 has reinforced the importance of collective action in safeguarding our oceans for future generations. Let’s continue to build partnerships and momentum to protect and restore coral reefs worldwide! #ReefFutures2024 #CoralRestoration #LivingReefsFoundation #BlueBarrierCauseway #Sustainability #OceanConservation #naturebasedsolutions #coralcoastalprotection #Bermudacoralreefs https://lnkd.in/eGgfDncd

Rethinking the Future of Insurance: Nature-Based Solutions in Bermuda On November 12, 2024, Living Reefs Foundation had the privilege of joining the PWC Insurance Summit in Bermuda, where an eye-opening panel was led by Arthur Wightman of PWC, featuring Stephen Catlin of Convex and Professor Callum Roberts from the University of Exeter. The discussion centered around climate change and its growing toll on the earth's natural assets, an urgent issue that requires bold action. One key takeaway? Stephen Catlin—Executive Chairman of Convex and Chairman of the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers—has been a pioneer in supporting Bermuda’s financial investments in nature-based solutions and verifiable data as part of climate resilience efforts. According to data presented at the summit, it revealed that only 3% of the attendees expressed concern about the environmental impacts on the insurance industry. This poses a crucial question for us all: What will it take for Bermuda's insurance sector to shift its perspective? As a global leader in reinsurance, Swiss Re is already taking the lead in addressing this challenge by investing in nature-based solutions. By incorporating these solutions into their strategies, they are not just protecting the environment—they are also strengthening their financial resilience. "At the end of the day, the better we manage the health of our ecosystems, the better we manage human health and wealth." – Swiss Re Protecting the planet isn’t just an ethical imperative—it’s a business one. If insurers and reinsurers truly want to mitigate risks and ensure long-term sustainability, they must embrace the power of nature-based solutions. #Insurance #Bermuda #NatureBasedSolutions #Sustainability #ClimateChange #RiskManagement #SwissRe #LivingReefs #EnvironmentalAction #Reinsurance

A fantastic week at the Fishmonger's Hall and Zoological Society of London (ZSL) last week for a networking event on sustainable funding and research priorities for coral conservation and restoration in the UK Overseas Territories! Very grateful to have been asked to present on the challenges of securing continuity in funding for structural needs (core staff and operations) as a case study for small NGOs. Participating in the lively follow up breakout groups was invaluable. We came back with a better understanding of what type of data us marine scientists can provide economists to help build financial models. Thank you to Joint Nature Conservation Committee for organising this 3-day workshop and always a pleasure to re-connect and meet new Caribbean coral conservation peers ! #CCOT

In preparation for Reef Futures 2024, our research assistant, Laia Burgues Palau, is analyzing coral cover changes from photogrammetry surveys. Photogrammetry is a high technology, 3D marine mapping program, which enables us to quantify our restoration impact and assess changes before and after coral planting. She is returning to Living Reefs Foundation to assist our Blue Barrier Initiative, a pilot study in Bermuda aiming to strengthen artificial breakwaters using cultivated corals as a nature-based solution. In collaboration with Dr. Ronan Roche (University of Bangor) and with the assistance of Dr. Andrew Mogg (Tritonia Scientific), we are also analyzing changes in habitat complexity, which will help us in optimizing our coral planting plan and further fortify this artificial breakwater. Results from our 12-month study will be presented at Reef Futures 2024 hosted by Coral Restoration Consortium on December 9-13, 2024. We look forward to having enlightening discussions with colleagues on coral restoration. This work could not have been implemented without the generous support of the Biodiversity Challenge Funds Darwin Plus Local (U.K. Government). Photos: Left- Laia preparing for a photogrammetry survey. Right- Extracting data from Agisoft Metashape shown below. #coralrestoration #Bermuda #coralconservation #Darwinpluslocal #marinemapping

Earlier this month, the Living Reefs Foundation was invited to attend the ILS Bermuda Convergence, BIOS/ASU event to discuss the topics of alternative reinsurance, convergence and insurance-linked securities marketplace. LRF was represented by Jessica Mello, a board member of the foundation that specializes in sustainable blue tourism economy. Pictured below is Jessica with Mark Guishard, PhD, the COO of BIOS.

We are proud to share that the Living Reefs Foundation (LRF) has been awarded a grant from the Biodiversity Challenge Funds Darwin Plus Local Fund (U.K. Government) to significantly advance coral propagation efforts in Bermuda. In collaboration with the Coral Spawning Lab (CSL), this project 'Building Sustainable Coral Propagation Capacity in Bermuda' will enable us to address the challenge of steady supply of young corals for restoration by controlling the timing of spawning. The project addresses the urgent need for a controlled environment to ensure consistent coral reproduction. In 2023, several species failed to spawn during the natural reproductive season, severely impacting LRF's ability to produce coral spat for subsequent planting periods. By moving beyond the unpredictable natural spawning events that only occur over a narrow 3-month window, we’ll be able to increase our juvenile coral production and safeguard the future of these essential reef builders. The project will result in a  cutting-edge coral conditioning system in our hatchery, allowing precise control over seawater temperature, light exposure, and the lunar cycle—three critical factors in coral reproduction. It will develop Bermuda’s coral conservation capacity by training local scientists and staff to operate this system, and  allow us to perform year-round studies on corals' early life stages and improve the cost-effectiveness of our nature-based breakwater programme. This project marks a significant leap forward for coral conservation in Bermuda. Newly settled larvae develop into polyps photographed below. These grow by budding; they divide themselves into new identical polyps (seen in last photo). Having the ability to spawn on demand will mean producing more new polyps able to bud into a large coral colony. #biodiversitychallenefund #darwinplus #coralspawninglab #coralreproduction

This is the first of our wave height data collected inshore of Bermuda’s reefs during Hurricane Ernesto, a Category 1 hurricane making a direct hit on the island (August 17, 2024), and pounding the coast with maximum winds of 105 knots. The purple line shows the increase in wave height during the height of the storm, rising from an average 0.05 m recorded pre-hurricane to 1.8 m during storm gusts. In collaboration with the University of Virginia (U.S.), we are developing an Advanced Circulation Model (ADCIRC) to forecast the impacts of tides, waves, and storms in and around Bermuda- more specifically in the inshore water of Castle Harbour, bordering Bermuda’s international airport. As Ernesto made a direct approach to the island, we took a chance and left our wave gauge in 2 m of water, secured 6 m from the 1 km long Causeway bridge, linking the airport to most of Bermuda. We were rewarded with a first set of wave height data in Bermuda’s inshore waters during a Hurricane event, and a clear evidence of the critical role of Bermuda’s coral reefs in dissipating storm waves. Offshore waves were reported at 10.5 m, and were expected to dissipate by 85%  as they break over the reefs, according to previous models (Smith and Warner, 2004). Our data validates the model estimate, and further points to the efficiency of the near-shore coral-based breakwater in protecting the Causeway bridge from a 36-fold increase in wave height. As far as we know wave height in Bermuda's inshore waters has not been previously collected during storm events. We plan to collect wave height data over the next 12 months as part of our Blue Barrier Project- building efficient coral-based breakwaters to protect our shoreline. #coastalprotection #coralreefeconomicvalue #HurricaneErnesto #Bermuda #climatechange #coralbarrier #riskmanagement #coastalinsurance #wavemodeling #coralconservation #caribbeancoralreef #ukoverseasterritories #naturalcapital #blueinstitute #marineconservation

Following Wednesday's launch of the C-COT Adaptive Management Plan, the Coral Conservation in the UK Overseas Territories (C-COT) working group is delighted to release its new Roadmap, setting priorities for the next 5-10 years https://lnkd.in/egkMF2Np 🌊 ✨ This forward-looking document outlines the steps needed to maximise the benefits of the C-COT platform for coral reef conservation in the UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs). The Roadmap reflects key themes that emerged from extensive consultations, focusing on: 🌊 C-COT and the C-COT Secretariat 🌊 Fundraising 🌊 Representation and Networking 🌊 Coral Reef Management 🌊 Capacity Building, Training and Resource Sharing The report highlights successful collaborations so far and details the group’s expanded mission: addressing multiple stressors impacting Caribbean reefs, beyond just stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD). Recommendations and a timeline for these objectives are also included to guide future efforts This report was funded by the UK Government through Darwin Plus. Let’s continue building a resilient future for our coral ecosystems together! 💙 📸 Alex Mustard Biodiversity Challenge Funds, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Kalli De Meyer, Greta Aeby, Government of Anguilla, The Government of Bermuda, Cayman Islands Department of Environment, Cayman Islands Government, Cayman Islands Government Office in the UK, Montserrat Government UK Office, Marine Conservation Society, TURKS AND CAICOS REEF FUND INC, Turks and Caicos Islands Government, Central Caribbean Marine Institute, The School for Field Studies, Living Reefs Foundation, Beyond The Reef International #CoralConservation #ReefResilience #CaribbeanReefs #SCTLD #TogetherForNature #MarineConservation #OverseasTerritories #TurningScienceIntoAction #ForNaturePeoplePlanet

QBE Foundation continues sponsorship of Living Reefs Foundation to protect Bermuda’s Coastal Infrastructure We’re thrilled to announce our continued engagement with the QBE Re Foundation, a long-standing supporter of our Blue Barrier Initiative, in our mission to protect Bermuda’s coastline through innovative coral restoration. Together, we’re strengthening man-made barriers with homegrown corals, turning them into living reefs that provide critical shoreline protection against storm waves, whilst enhancing reef biodiversity and carbon sequestration. Our "Causeway Project" focuses on fortifying a vital 1km bridge, using photogrammetry, an advanced 3D mapping technology, to monitor coral growth and the impact of restoration efforts. By collaborating with local stakeholders and building restoration capacity, we’re not only safeguarding key infrastructure but also demonstrating the power of nature-based solutions in combating climate risks. At Living Reefs Foundation, we believe that healthy reefs are the foundation of resilient coastal communities. The QBE Foundation’s support is a step forward in our efforts to preserve Bermuda’s unique marine ecosystems.   Learn more about our work and how we’re contributing to a sustainable future by visiting www.livingreefs.org with updates on @bdalivingreefs.   Photo description: Photogrammetry survey of newly planted corals by Living Reefs diver on breakwater highlighted in red (photo:Y Hillier)