Meet the people who are creating a global movement to tackle coral bleaching

An estimated 25% of all marine life, including over 4,000 fish species, depends on coral reefs at some point in their life cycle. But as global temperatures rise, the asphyxiated corals bleach faster than they can recover, triggering severe downstream consequences to ecosystems and people.

Ocean heat waves cause stress for sensitive corals. Even a rise of just one degree Celsius for only four weeks can trigger bleaching in a coral. If ocean temperatures stay high for eight weeks or longer, the coral cannot recover and begins to die. Half of the world’s reefs have already been lost, and they may disappear completely by 2050 without action.