Strengthening Reef Resilience: Skills & Strategies for Marine Managers Training – New Zealand, 2026

Strengthening Reef Resilience: Skills & Strategies for Marine Managers Training – New Zealand, 2026

Held in conjunction with the 2026 International Coral Reef Symposium (ICRS), the weeklong training was designed to strengthen participants’ management capacity to address climate-related threats to coral reefs through instruction, mentorship, networking, and knowledge exchange. Participants represented government agencies, non-governmental organizations, research institutions, community-based conservation organizations, and protected area management programs from Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Saba, Puerto Rico, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Tokelau, Cook Islands, Guam, Hawaiʻi, and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Strengthening Reef Resilience: Skills & Strategies for Marine Managers Training – New Zealand, 2026

Climate-Resilient Coral Restoration Learning Exchange – Dominican Republic, 2026 

The Belize cohort traveled to the Dominican Republic for an immersive five‑day program that combined hands‑on fieldwork with focused classroom sessions. Throughout the learning exchange, they strengthened their technical skills in restoration planning, deepened their understanding of climate‑resilient approaches, and built stronger collaboration across organizations.

New Climate Adaptation Resources

The new Climate Adaptation Toolkit provides an overview of key climate adaptation concepts, as well as guidance on assessing climate threats, identifying impacts, and developing site-specific responses. The framework, featured in the toolkit, integrates climate change into all aspects of a management plan and can be adapted to any site. This allows managers to tailor their approach to local ecological, social, and governance contexts while enhancing resilience to climate change.