Unlocking the Secrets of Coral Reef Resilience
September 8, 2015
Here’s a word from our new partners at the Central Caribbean Marine Institute!
At the Central Caribbean Marine Institute (CCMI) we are creating a hopeful future for coral reefs, vibrant ecosystems that have been the heart of healthy oceans for more than 200 million years. CCMI is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1998 to protect the future of coral reefs through research, conservation, and education.
In 2005 we opened the flourishing Little Cayman Research Centre (LCRC). At the groundbreaking for the center, HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, and CCMI Royal Patron dedicated the site “to sustain biodiversity so that the children of the world may forever discover the treasures of the sea.”
The reefs around Little Cayman truly are treasures of the sea and they offer insight for coral reefs globally. They are among the most biologically diverse reef systems in the Caribbean, located in one of very few locations in the world showing coral reef regeneration on a positive trajectory. The island, therefore, offers rich prospects for research to address global issues such as climate change and ocean acidification, marine protection, threatened and endangered species, and coral reef resilience.
At the Little Cayman Research Centre we are surrounded by crystal clear water, marvelous marine wildlife, and several marine protected areas including Bloody Bay Marine Park. Scientists and students at the LCRC have beachfront access to this spectacular marine learning environment. Thanks to this vibrant home base, our research teams have discovered new species and habitats, published over 100 scientific papers, hosted hundreds of visiting scientists and educated thousands of students and visitors about ways to support the health of coral reefs and vitality of our oceans.
Over the next five years, we are committed to expanding research and education programs. CCMI resident scientists conduct research in three core areas: Ocean Health & Resilience, Biodiversity, and Science & Society.
We are also proud to maintain one of four CREWS (Coral Reef Early Warning System) monitoring stations in the Caribbean in partnership with US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA). Part of a global effort to monitor and study reefs worldwide, our CREWS system and monitoring buoy transmits near real-time data about weather and marine conditions to scientists and the public around the world, creating a record of local climate patterns over time that will help us predict threats to our reefs and understand conditions that support coral reef resilience.
At the heart of our mission is a commitment to ensure that 100% of Caymanian children are ocean literate, and we also welcome students from around the world. Our education programs offer an active learning environment for K-12 students engaged in making a real difference as young citizen scientists and our new generation of ocean stewards.
Connect with us! Together, we can create a hopeful future for corals and the great web of life that depends on them.
Learn more about our research and education programs at reefresearch.org
To visit and request a tour of CCMI’s Little Cayman Research Center, please contact us at or (345) 948-1094.
