What do we do?

The mission of Reef Renewal Foundation Curaçao is to protect and restore coral reefs in Curaçao and around the world.

Coral Restoration

Curaçao Reef

Coral restoration focuses on propagating coral stocks within nurseries – imagine underwater coral farms, where coral fragments are then outplanted onto degraded reefs which helps increase the growth of the reef. Reef Renewal Curacao uses strong, science-based techniques to grow threatened coral species and create a sustainable source of healthy coral colonies for use in active reef restoration.

Explore Reef Sites

Coral outplanting in numbers

12,000

+

Corals outplanted

How many total corals have been outplanted back to the reef?

Speed growth

How much faster do our corals grow compared to natural colonies?

80

%

Survivorship

What is the average survivorship of outplanted corals?

1,200 sq. meters

Corals coverage

How much area has been covered by outplanted corals?

Linear extension

What is the total linear extension of outplanted corals?

Low

Diversity

Diversity of coral species in the outplanted ecosystem

3X more fish

Fish survey

How many new species are living on the outplanted reef?

Coral nurseries

Coral nurseries are habitats dedicated to foster coral growth. Many nurseries have “coral trees” where the fragments are suspended like Christmas tree ornaments. Studies have shown that the suspending of coral fragments in the water column accelerates their growth drastically, while also protecting them from excess sedimentation on the ocean floor. Reef Renewal uses a combination of coral trees and coral ropes to grow their corals.

Coral nurseries are

Natural spawning

Coral spawning is an annual phenomenon during which corals of the same species synchronize the release of sperm and eggs (gametes) into the water column over several days following the full moon 🌚. The little white balls that look like snow are coral gametes! Natural spawning is a great sign of healthy corals, as they don't spawn when they are sick or stressed.

Coral Science

Coral reef science can drastically help future coral generations survive, by choosing more heat-resistant genotypes, or conducting experiments to maximize coral reef survival.

currently working on

Increasing the ecological footprint of RRC by expanding classes, community support, nursery capacity, and coral outplanting activities.

Coral species we work on

A. cervicornis

A. palmata

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Top research publications

publications

citations

Publication

Citations

Year

Top projects funded with grants

12+

total PROJECTS

in grants

Coral Education

We work to educate the public about coral reefs and sustainability, through local events, informational talks, volunteer days, and diving expeditions.

community in numbers

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next diving expedition

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Get involved

Our coral leaders

Tripp Funderburk

Manager

Megan Beazley

Coordinator

Ken Nedimyer

Founder

Meet the team

Funding

There are three main areas in which coral conservation organizations usually focus their resources on: coral restoration, coral science & research and last but not least, coral education. This is a breakdown for how this organization distributes their funds.

funds distribution in 2021

Restoration
Local Conservation
Education
Science