Hermit Crab, photo credit: Samantha Aird

Background

Research on the multi-year global coral bleaching event in 2015-2017 has brought the impact of climate change on coral reefs to the forefront of the public consciousness. At a global scale, the frequency of global mass bleaching of corals due to anthropogenic climate change has increased nearly five-fold since 1980. On the Great Barrier Reef, back-to-back mass bleaching in 2016 and 2017 has transformed the Great Barrier Reef, killing approximately half the region’s shallow-water live coral, triggering a profound shift in the composition of survivors.

The decline of reef-building corals has profound consequences for the rest of the reef ecosystem, reducing biodiversity and affecting many non-coral species such as commercially important fishes. The need for coral reef research to understand these changes has never been greater.

The objective of our research is to inform and support reef governance and management to navigate the transition to new ecosystems that will maintain biodiversity, biological functions and support human well-being.

Who should attend

Two events are scheduled:

A 2-day Symposium will be held on Wednesday 23rd and Thursday 24th October, with more than 30 presentations by leading scientists. The symposium is aimed at a general audience of scientists in related fields, natural resource managers, conservationists and policy makers. The symposium will be held at the Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney.

A Public Forum is scheduled for 6.00pm (refreshments from 5.30pm) on Wednesday, 23^rd October. This event is intended for everyone: the general public, teachers and school children (10+) as well as scientists, resource managers and policy-makers.

Objectives

Our objectives are to:

• present the latest science which supports the sustainable management of coral reefs, in Australia, our region and globally
• focus on the research, management and policy developments for coral reefs
• present research examining the effects of the changing environment on coral reef ecosystems.

The Coral Reef Futures symposium of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies will be held at the Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane on the 19th and 20th July, 2018.

In the immediate aftermath of a multi-year global bleaching event, the need for coral reef research has never been greater. In 2017, we witnessed the first back-to-back bleaching event on the Great Barrier Reef, resulting in unprecedented damage to two-thirds of this iconic World Heritage Area.

Returning coral reef systems to their former composition is not possible. The objective is for research to inform and support reef governance and management to navigate the transition to new ecosystems that will maintain biodiversity, biological functions and support human well-being.

Two events are scheduled:

A 2-day symposium will be held on Thursday 19th and Friday 20th July, with more than 30 presentations by leading scientists. The symposium is aimed at a general audience of scientists in related fields, natural resource managers, conservationists and policy makers. The symposium will be held at The Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane.

A Public Forum is scheduled for Thursday, 19th July.  The Forum will be hosted by Adam Spencer, popular media presenter, well known as the quirky intellectual host of ABC’s enormously successful 702 Breakfast radio show from 2006 until early 2014. This FREE event is intended for everyone: the general public, teachers and school children (older than about 10) as well as scientists, resource managers and policy-makers.