Hope Spots for Rebuilding Coral Reefs

Restoration will be necessary to avoid losing 90% of coral reefs by 2050, yet we’re at a critical juncture to prove it can be done at scale. How can we effectively rebuild our coral reefs? And what role should tourism play in these efforts? These are some of the questions we delved into in our second Riding the Wave series from July 24 to August 4. Experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Fragments of Hope, the University of Southern California (USC), CINVESTAV, the University of Puerto Rico, the California Academy of Sciences, Reef Renewal and the University of Salento discussed the importance of rebuilding coral reefs and hope spots for reef restoration in Latin America.

“Riding the Wave” is a speaker series on our social media channels (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) where experts talk with Iberostar on the importance of our oceans and how we can all play a role in its protection. Previously, in celebration of World Oceans Day, we launched our “Commitment to Responsible Seafood” series, preceding the announcement of our roadmap for 100% responsible seafood consumption in our operations by 2025.

This time around, we shifted the conversation from seafood to coral reefs, and focused on the challenges of scaling reef restoration in Latin America. More specifically, we talked about solutions for rebuilding reefs by starting with aligning targets, encouraging more work broadly across the Caribbean basin, preparing for climate change and working across industries.

These discussions started July 24 with a discussion on the goals of reef restoration and concluded on August 4 with a dialogue on solutions for scaling reef restoration.

If you haven’t had an opportunity to watch the videos, check out our social media channels (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) to watch them all! We are very excited to conclude this Riding the Wave series and announce the launch of our Rebuilding Coral Reefs scholarships!