Elite Traveler Fall 2022

The staghorn corals returned to Carysfort Reef in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary are thriving

working to help others implement the monitoring system on larger scales. The restoration program is contributing the bulk of the coral restoration work to the 20-year, $97m Mission Iconic Reefs project (spearheaded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA). Additionally, CRF worked with NOAA in 2017 to establish the Coral Restoration Consortium (CRC). “The CRC brings all of the reef practitioners from around the world together to share information and resources, and to work collaboratively on everything from genetic diversity to diseases that pop up in di ff erent parts of the world, so that we can all bene fi t from each other’s best practices,” said Roesler, noting that the CRC also organizes the world’s only symposium (Reef Futures) dedicated to reef restoration. The last time the group convened in Key Largo (pre-pandemic) was 2018, and more than 500 scientists from around the world joined. This year, Reef

Futures 2022 will take place in September in Key Largo. Because education is also a key element of CRF’s work, the organization holds regular dives open to the public and works with sponsors to spread the word. Oris, a watch manufacturer that takes conservation e ff orts seriously and is involved in a host of grassroots programs globally, has been on board with CRF since 2007 — donating a portion of the proceeds of its specially made watches to the cause and even donating three watches for the CRF annual auction. Most recently, CRF sold an 18-karat gold Oris Carysfort Reef Limited Edition Aquis dive watch at its spring 2022 auction for $50,000. “Reef restoration is not an overnight initiative,” said Roesler. “It is a long-term endeavor to go out year after year and work to bring our reefs back. Oris has brought awareness to our program on a much larger scale.”

Above The CRF

Tavernier Coral Tree Nursery is the biggest in-situ coral nursery in the world Left CRF divers work to restore the

reefs of the Florida Keys

coralrestoration.org; oris.ch