Coral Reef Restoration Mentored Online Course – Kenya, 2024

The Reef Resilience Network and The Nature Conservancy in Africa are working together to scale-up effective coral reef restoration activities in the Western Indian Ocean by building knowledge and skills of the marine managers and practitioners leading this work. In May 2024, 33 members of the Kiunga Community Wildlife Association (KICOWA) and its partners from the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, Kenya Wildlife Service, REEFolution Foundation, and A Rocha Kenya participated in a mentored version of the Coral Reef Restoration Online Course to advance reef restoration efforts in Kiunga and Pate Island, Kenya.

During this online training, participants completed four course lessons and attended three webinars, five in-person meetings, and office hours for direct consultation and support from course mentors. Mentors provided guidance on a variety of topics, including selecting monitoring indicators, data collection methods, and data analysis and interpretation. The in-person meetings were conducted in the Kiunga community to provide online access for participants with limited Internet connectivity and to discuss topics further and answer questions.

The training resulted in an empowered community of reef stewards with the knowledge and tools needed on reef restoration best practices and an updated coral reef restoration plan that managers and practitioners at KICOWA and Pate Marine Community Conservancy are using to guide restoration efforts. Thank you to the local experts, Joan Kawaka and Cathrine Nduati (TNC), Juliet Karisa (KMFRI), Willis Osore (KWS), and Joshua Oginda (NRT-Coast), who facilitated and provided technical support in the course on the ground as well as Margaux Hein, Phanor Montoya-Maya, and Caitlin Lustic who provided restoration expertise to develop course content and answer questions from course participants.