Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation
Providing science-based solutions to protect and restore ocean health
Following the mass bleaching events that endangered coral reefs in 2023, we published the first book in our Reefs at Risk: Activity and Coloring Book series, focusing on coral bleaching. Unfortunately, mass bleaching events have continued into 2024 in the southern hemisphere, with …
We are proud to announce that the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Coral Research and Development Accelerator Platform Foundation (CORDAP). This formal agreement was signed by HRH Princess Hala bint Khaled bin Sultan, President of KSLOF, and Professor Carlos Duarte, the CEO of CORDAP Foundation, during the Champions for Coral Innovation Accelerator Gala held at the Science Museum in London.
This agreement marks the beginning of a strategic partnership to train the next generation of coral restoration professionals. The collaboration focuses on building capacity and enhancing educational initiatives for coral reef restoration. By sharing best practices and training practitioners, the partnership aims to improve the effectiveness of coral reef restoration efforts around the world.
Following a unanimous decision made by the representatives of the G20 nations of the Initiative Governance Committee (IGC) of the Global Coral Reef Research and Development Accelerator Platform (CORDAP), the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) has been appointed as a new member of …
Today, a worldwide network of coral reef scientists announced that the world is currently experiencing its fourth global coral bleaching event, the second to hit reefs in the last 10 years. The announcement, made by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI), comes at a time when coral reefs are facing a number of threats to their survival.
Bleaching-level heat stress, caused by prolonged increases in anomalous ocean temperatures, has – and continues to be – extensive across the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.
Earlier this year the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation (GBRF) entered into a formal partnership to help save corals in the South Pacific region. Founded in 1999, the Great Barrier Reef Foundation …
Earlier this month, our partners at the Coral Research & Development Accelerator Platform (CORDAP) hosted a four-day workshop in Mombasa, Kenya, to identify challenges surrounding coral reef conservation and restoration in the Global South. The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation was invited to participate in this workshop to advise on actionable strategies to address the importance of co-design and capacity building for coral conservation programming. The workshop brought together representatives from academia, conservation philanthropies, the private sector, restoration, and government from 19 Global South countries. The Global South…
Researchers used Earth-orbiting satellites to map coral reef biodiversity at a global scale to show that areas of high habitat diversity also have high species diversity. This new satellite mapping technique, developed by researchers at the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) and the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, can help guide future efforts to identify and protect highly biodiverse reefs…
Coral reef bleaching has been in the headline news this past summer, as it was the hottest three-month period on record. As ocean temperatures soared to 32°C (90°F) around the Florida Keys and the Caribbean, coral reefs were way past their temperature threshold and started to bleach. But what happens when a coral bleaches?
Coral bleaching is a phenomenon that occurs when coral polyps expel the symbiotic (mutually beneficial) algae called zooxanthellae from their tissues, causing the corals to lose their color and turn white or pale. These algae provide the corals with essential nutrients through photosynthesis and contribute to their vibrant colors. When coral polyps expel the zooxanthellae, it not only leads to the loss of color but also affects the overall health and survival of the coral reefs…
The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation (KSLOF) has returned to Fiji! We’re here to help our partners at the Pacific Blue Foundation (PBF) survey reefs in Beqa Lagoon and share our findings from the Global Reef Expedition with traditional leaders and …
Lately, you have been hearing from our partners at the University of Miami (UM) about their experiences processing and picking tiny foraminifera from sand samples that we collected on the Global Reef Expedition (GRE). As our colleagues continue to process the large quantity (2,500) of sand samples, we are creating an educator’s guide called “Little Creatures with a Big Message.”
Together, the University of Miami and the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation received a three-year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to utilize microscopic organisms, called foraminifera (‘forams’ for short), to assess the state of coral reefs over the past 1,000 years, and potentially create new metrics that can be used to assess reef health.
NSF recognizes that a critical component to any research project is how it can benefit society. This is what NSF defines as the “Broader Impacts.” As a part of this grant, we will deliver on the broader impacts portion of the grant to educate and communicate this science to others. One of the ways will do this is by creating curriculum that improves STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) education and increases participation of minorities in STEM.
