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As COVID-19 continues to spread, the future has never felt so unpredictable. These are challenging times for us all, and we hope you’re in good spirits and health! We are in uncharted waters. In terms of Reef Check operations, we are following Government advice and have put strict measures in place to protect our staff and volunteers. Right now, we’re doing everything possible to sustain our bare-bone daily operations and maintain services locally and internationally. While there’s a lot of uncertainty, we know that we need to continue to adapt quickly to our changing reality.
While protecting our community, we must also consider the economic implications of the virus and the potentially damaging financial impact on Reef Check. We have had to cancel several important fundraising events this year, including our auction, depriving us of the financial safety net that allows us to continue our important mission. Now, more than ever, our marine environment needs us, and we need you. In order for us to be able to sustain our operations, we need to raise $40,000. If you are able, we are asking that you please make a donation to help sustain us during this critical time. Any amount would be appreciated and would help ensure that we emerge from this difficult period with the ability to jump straight back into the ocean of need that will be waiting for us out there.
Immediately prior to the coronavirus crisis, the State of California approved a grant for Reef Check to conduct the Bull Kelp Restoration Project in Northern California. If the first year of this project is successful, we will expand the effort to other areas to create a North Coast network of bull kelp forest. Without these efforts, kelp forests and the species that they harbor might be lost from California’s north coast forever. We are still planning to start this project this summer and have made modifications to ensure the safety of our community and ourselves. In addition, we plan to be ready to restart our reef monitoring programs around the globe the moment this becomes feasible and we hope that with your help now, we will be able to get right back into our important work when the time comes.
If you are unable to donate at this time, there are many other ways you can support us! You can advocate for us by sharing our mission with a family member or friend. Even a quick mention on your social media would mean the world to us. We would also love to hear from you – what have you been up to at home? Have you been able to volunteer in any way? Are you finding creative ways to stay in touch with nature? Let us know through our social media or in an email and maybe we will be able to feature your story on one of our channels.
You can give now by visiting our secure donation page, or sending a check to:
Reef Check Foundation
13723 Fiji Way Ste B2
Marina del Rey CA 90292
Reef Check California’s 2020 training classes are now open for registration, providing 10 locations across the state to get involved in our kelp forest monitoring program as a citizen scientist diver!
Dr. Matthias Hammer, founder and executive director of Biosphere Expeditions, also took part in the survey and adds: \”I would not have wanted to miss this historic event. We have trained Omanis over the last few years in Musandam, and I am delighted to see our placement graduates now taking things into their own hands and surveying the reefs near Muscat, too. This is exactly what we need: local people surveying their own reefs so that the natural beauty of Oman can be better managed and passed down to the next generation, as well as safeguarding livelihoods and traditions, including fishermen.\”
