CoralCarib project begins to restore corals in Haiti, Dominican Republic, Cuba and Jamaica

Santo Domingo.- The Nature Conservancy (TNC), in collaboration with the Grupo Puntacana Foundation and the Dominican Foundation for Marine Studies (FUNDEMAR), has unveiled the CoralCarib program. This regional initiative aims to restore and conserve coral reefs in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, and Jamaica, which collectively host 60% of the Caribbean’s coral reefs.

The project has a six-year timeline and a budget of 10.8 million euros provided by the International Initiative for Climate Protection (IKI) of the Government of Germany.

CoralCarib seeks to enhance marine biodiversity in 1,871 hectares of priority coral reefs in these four Caribbean countries. It employs a science-based approach and focuses on the Sureste Arrecifes Marine Sanctuary (SAMAR) in the Dominican Republic. The project identifies “Coral Climate Refuges” using historical temperature models, future projections, hurricane impact data, and coral connectivity.

These refuges will be the focal points for conservation efforts, sustainable livelihoods, and policy development to protect coral reefs.

The program aims to make the identified Coral Climate Refuges more resilient to climate change and capable of aiding neighboring coral reefs in restoration efforts. It also seeks to reduce threats to these ecosystems, leverage public and private financing for climate action, support policy development, and create tools and knowledge products to facilitate coral restoration.

The Dominican Republic and its strategic partners, with nearly 20 years of coral restoration experience, are sharing their expertise with other Caribbean countries through CoralCarib.