Community Engagement As A Catalyst For Coral Conservation

Reef Relief aims to use community engagement to spread awareness and achieve conservation, restoration, and protection of coral reefs. It also hopes to increase our scientific understanding of reef ecology for the design and implementation of policies and strategies for marine protected areas associated with coral reefs. 

Reef Relief was founded in 1987, and since then, they have provided the Keys with a platform for community education and involvement. They often coordinate volunteer opportunities as well as educational programs and campaigns. 

Some of the educational programs are aimed at children through a discover coral reefs school program as well as a coral camp. This is a great way to spread awareness since children often go home and talk about what they learned, which can get even more relatives involved. It also provides the unique opportunity of creating norms for the new generation. 

The educational campaigns that can foster the new norm advocate for stormwater action, the use of reusable straws, and the use of reef-friendly sunscreen. The information behind why they chose each topic is available on their website. Their campaign pages for sunscreen are particularly informative, explaining why traditional sunscreen can cause coral bleaching. 

There are also educational opportunities for the larger Florida Keys community. They create brochures for many sites across Florida, including the Key West Marine Park, and provide on-site interactive opportunities. You can also visit the Reef Relief Environmental Center. Even if you are not nearby, their website contains a learn section about coral reef ecosystems and the marine park. 

Reef Relief does a great job of involving the community in what they do. By fostering environmental stewardship in the Keys, they can make people more conscious of their decisions while also making them care. Since they often work with locals, the impacts are more tangible, making it the perfect choice for protecting Florida reefs.

For more information about the ecology and environmental impacts on reefs in the Florida Keys, click here.