Coral reefs support more biological diversity than any other marine ecosystem in the world and provide life support to hundreds of millions of people in the form of food and income. However, all of this is seriously endangered by a combination of global threats – first and foremost climate change – and local threats such as fishing, habitat destruction and pollution. The synergistic effect of these impacts has led to dramatic declines in coral ecosystems around the world. Over 50% of corals may have been lost in the next 30 years, and corals are now listed as “highly endangered” by the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The IPCC predicts that an increase in ocean temperatures of 1, 5 ° C could lead to the loss of 90% of coral reefs and a 2 ° C increase could cause them to disappear. Coral reefs around the world are facing serious threats that jeopardize their survival and have already led to degradation and destruction in many places. This state of emergency underlines the immediate need for management and recovery actions to ensure that coral reefs continue to exist and that their already severely compromised structure and function are not completely lost.