The Association of Marine Laboratories of the Caribbean (AMLC) hosted its 39th meeting in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic during May 19-24, 2019 under the theme: Environmental variability in the wider Caribbean and the ecological, social, and economic consequences. The meeting was attended by a diverse group of participants with interests in marine science, policy and sustainable resource management.
The Perry Institute of Marine Science was reinstated as an Institution Member and was represented by Senior Scientist, Dr. Krista Sherman. PIMS is looking forward to strengthening collaborations and developing new partnerships with other institutions conducting research in the Caribbean region and applying this information to assist with conservation efforts.
The Bahamas has a long history of coral reef research and monitoring and PIMS has expanded this work with a number of local and international partners. Dr. Sherman provided a summary of coral reef research and its applications to marine resource management and the conservation of key species and habitat restoration. “Reversing the decline of Bahamian coral reefs: assessing reef health for effective management and restoration” was presented under the Atlantic Gulf Rapid Reef Assessment’s (AGRRA) Reef Monitoring-AGRRA: Science to Action session of the meeting. AGRRA Scientific Coordinator and session co-moderator Dr. Judith Lang noted, “The PIMS talk provided a clear demonstration of how much integrated, thoughtful, strategic approaches to reef research can accomplish”.
To learn more about our coral reef research, monitoring and restoration projects visit www.perryinstitute.org and follow us on social media via @perryinstituteformarinescience and @reefrescuenetwork.
Text and photos courtesy of Krista Sherman, Perry Institute for Marine Science
