2024 was a challenging year for coral reefs and restoration practitioners worldwide, with one of the most extensive coral bleaching events on record, severely impacting these vital ecosystems. Yet, amidst much devastation, certain reefs demonstrated remarkable resistance, offering hope and help in guiding global restoration efforts.
As part of the Mars coral reef restoration program, the team at Mars, an ICRI member, continued to focus on areas predicted to be less vulnerable to climate impacts, collaborated on ground-breaking scientific studies, and firmly integrated thermal resilience strategies into their restoration practices.
Key Milestones for Mars in 2024:
Globally, Mars reached significant milestones in 2024. For the first time, Reef Stars were deployed in the Red Sea, thanks to new partnerships with KAUST in Saudi Arabia. The Mars teams co-led the Maldives’ “Big Build,” where 15,000 corals were successfully outplanted in just five days. Across the globe, the team completed 24 new restoration projects, out planting more than 80,000 corals, and in partnership with their dedicated researcher network from around the world they published 10 influential scientific papers, further advancing coral restoration science.
2024 saw another year of successful restoration training of local communities and NGOs, science trips in collaboration with international and regional researchers and reef restoration conferences to exchange knowledge to tackle restoration in a changing climate. The Mars team and all their many partners, including ICRI, were invaluable to another successful year for coral restoration as we continue to spread hope for the future.
Mars 2024 Impact Video
To learn more, please enjoy fully exploring our 2024 Impact Report and join us in championing coral reefs in 2025.
“When we install Reef Stars, we don’t just grow Hope for the coral reefs we’re restoring. We grow and spread Hope for each person who is part of the journey, providing tangible evidence that there are man-made solutions for man-made problems.” – Mars Sustainable Solutions
