Coral reef scientists, conservationists, policymakers and community leaders from more than 90 countries met July 19-24 at the International Coral Reefs Symposium in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand.Participants discussed how to combat the drivers of climate change, how to characterize and communicate the current condition of coral reefs, and how to empower Indigenous communities and integrate their knowledge systems, among other topics.During the week of the conference, a new U.S.-based coral reef research center was launched and the first-ever high-resolution mapping of living corals for the Pacific Ocean was announced.The next International Coral Reef Symposium will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in July 2030.
AUCKLAND — Lest anyone think scientific conferences must be staid affairs, the International Coral Reefs Symposium closed with inspiration from none other than U.S. rap metal band Rage Against the Machine, known for revolutionary lyrics in the 1990s:
“It has to start somewhere.
It has to start sometime.
What better place than here?
