The Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL) is an environmental
non-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
,
501(c)(3)
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
that is dedicated to
coral reef conservation. The organization was founded in 1994 by Stephen Colwell.
Programs
CORAL's work includes aquatic research, educating local communities, and building alliances with governments, agencies, research institutions, and other NGOs to protect coral reefs. CORAL also has a
coral bleaching
Coral bleaching is the process when corals become white due to loss of Symbiosis, symbiotic algae and Photosynthesis, photosynthetic pigments. This loss of pigment can be caused by various stressors, such as changes in water temperature, light, ...
response network using high-resolution satellite images to monitor coral reefs and bleaching events. CORAL estimates that 90% of the world's coral reefs could undergo annual coral bleaching, and in a ''
Nature Ecology and Evolution
''Nature Ecology and Evolution'' is an online-only monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Nature Portfolio covering all aspects of research on ecology and evolutionary biology. It was established in 2017. Its first editor-in-chief w ...
'' publication, predict that a significant portion of coral reefs may go extinct without further intervention.
CORAL operates at reef regions in
Hawai'i
Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...
(
Hawai‘i Island
Hawaii is the List of islands of the United States by area, largest island in the United States, located in the Hawaii, state of Hawaii, the southernmost state in the union. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcani ...
and
Maui
Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...
),
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...
and
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
to maintain clean water, healthy fisheries, and protected habitat. In a March 2023 interview with CORAL employee Javier Pizaña-Alonso, it was reported the organisation is planning to expand operations to
Roatán, Honduras, and
Belize
Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...
as these are major cruise ship destinations with a large amount of reef tourism.
Finances
In the
fiscal year
A fiscal year (also known as a financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. La ...
of 2020, tax documents (
IRS Form 990
Form 990 (officially, the "Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax") is a United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) form that provides the public with information about a nonprofit organization. It is also used by government agencies t ...
) show a total revenue of $4,056,840 and expenditure of $3,430,103.
They are funded by individual donors, foundations, as well as corporate and government grants.
In 2021, CORAL raised $4 million in total revenue. $1.3 million of this came from individual and corporate contributions, with the remaining $2.7 million coming from foundation and government grants.
See also
*
*
References
External links
*
{{authority control
International environmental organizations
Underwater diving organizations