Abstract: The coral reefs of the Pacific are scattered across a vast area of ocean that is divided amongst a diverse group of island nations and territories. The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) draws upon a network of coral reef scientists, institutions and NGOs to produce four-yearly status reports on Pacific reefs. In 2012, a new reporting approach was introduced that produces more detailed regionally focused reports, uses a standardised framework of themes and criteria, and makes more explicit use of social and economic information. The report also integrates data from national and international sources such as national reports to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the Reefs at Risk program. Released at ICRS in 2012, the Status of Coral Reefs of the Pacific and Outlook also provides an explicit assessment on the future outlook for the coral reefs of the Pacific. The report is now available on-line at www.icriforum.org/news/2012/10/status-coral-reefs-pacific-and-outlook-2011. This seminar will introduce the reporting approach and will demonstrate the framework’s application to four of the Pacific nations or territories – Fiji, Nauru, Guam and French Polynesia. For each country, the report brings together information on coral reef status and trends, resilience, patterns of reef resource use, and governance and management. The seminar will then provide a regional scale view of the main status and trends of the Pacific’s reefs, the factors affecting them, and their prospects for the future.

Biography: Andrew Chin has been working in marine research in the Great Barrier Reef since the 1990s. Andrew worked for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) in the research and monitoring section on reef monitoring and reporting, and impact assessment projects. He was also the editor of the State of the Great Barrier Reef Report and helped to develop the framework and structure of the GBRMPA’s 2009 Outlook Report. He has also authored several chapters for GCRMN publications including the Australia and Papua New Guinea chapter of the 2008 GCRMN status report. Andrew is currently working at James Cook University in Queensland, Australia, focusing on the biology, ecology, conservation and management of sharks and rays, and has a special interest in coastal fisheries in the Pacific. He is one of the founding members of the Oceania Chondrichthyan Society, a scientific society supporting research, management and conservation of sharks and rays in the Pacific.