Welcome Divi Dive Bonaire and VIP Diving

In a moment when responsible and sustainable tourism are greatly valued, Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) is pleased to announce the addition of Divi Dive Bonaire and VIP Diving to the list of dive operators that are supporting the island reef restoration effort. Divi Dive staff getting ready to install coral nursery trees VIP Diving ...

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Assessing reef restoration success

coral
We are Anne Top and Sander Heijnens, two students from Wageningen University and coral lovers. After having read all about corals in the books, we thought it was time to go into action and investigate more about it for our Master thesis. So here we are on Bonaire, for three months, doing an internship with ...

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Education with a greater purpose

Education with a greater purpose
Jong Bonaire and Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire have joined forces to educate and train Bonaire’s next generation of reef protectors. As part of this new project, four students from Jong Bonaire received training to learn coral nursery maintenance, coral propagation, and outplanting techniques. Jong Bonaire students learning how to hang and tie corals on nursery ...

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Potential for a probiotic? By Maarten Morsink

Potential for a probiotic?
The coral-associated microbiome: potential for a probiotic? Coral reefs worldwide are under threat. Over the last 30–50 years there has been a huge decline of the world’s tropical corals. Global warming, pollution, overfishing and other types of stresses have all contributed to a decrease in health and survival of coral reefs. In order to counter ...

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Coral Studies: Epigenetics – By Serena Hackerott

Coral Studies: Epigenetics
Serena Hackerott - Ph.D. Candidate at Florida International University Since the 1980’s, Caribbean coral reefs have declined due to a variety of stressors including coral disease, nutrient pollution, overfishing, hurricanes, and warming temperatures. If corals are unable to keep pace with the changing climate, many reefs are predicted to disappear within the next few decades. ...

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A New Pop-up Nursery

reef
Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire is excited to announce the installation of our newest pop-up nursery – Punt Vierkant. The Punt Vierkant nursery consists of 10 trees, for a total capacity of 1,000 corals, and is RRFB’s first staghorn coral pop-up nursery. Ten coral nursery trees hover above the reef at the Punt Vierkant pop-up nursery. ...

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Restoration and Beyond

Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire is delighted to announce the addition of Beyond the Corals as our latest Dive Shop Member. Beyond the Corals joins Buddy Dive Resort, Eden Beach Resort, Harbour Village Beach Club, and Tropical Divers Resort as a partner and education center for Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire. RRFB and Beyond the Corals staff ...

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A Boulder Approach to Reef Restoration

A Boulder Approach to Reef Restoration
In an exciting first for the Foundation and the island of Bonaire, Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire (RRFB) has started growing three species of boulder corals in its nurseries. These three coral species are among the most common reef-builders that make up Bonaire’s reefs – lobed star coral (Orbicella annularis), mountainous star coral (Orbicella faveolata), and ...

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Propagating Larvae: New Technique Expands Bonaire’s Reef Restoration Program

RRFB-Spawning-10-small
Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire has entered an exciting five-year partnership with SECORE International to bring a new and innovative reef restoration technique, known as larval propagation, to Bonaire for the first time. For the past decade, SECORE International has been a leader in the study of the sexual reproduction of corals and has conducted pioneering ...

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Q&A with Our Interns

Staghorn coral
Over the course of the past 3 months, Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire has had two interns working in the office, teaching the interns about and involving them in our coral restoration efforts. Caroline and Mackenzie came to Bonaire from the States in May, and as their time nears its end, they wanted to share a ...

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