FESTIVAL OF SEAS 2023

2023 Silver Seas – Celebrating 25 years of CCMI

This year, CCMI’s largest fundraiser for the year, Festival of Seas 2023: Silver Seas was also a celebration of CCMI’s 25 years of work for coral reefs in the Cayman Islands. Having so many of our supporters and stakeholders together with us at this event was very special as we shared in this significant milestone together! With more than 370 guests in attendance and raising more than $250,000, this was CCMI’s largest, most successful gala to date!

We could not have developed into who we are today without the significant support of all of you – some of you who have been on the entire 25-year journey thus far. The efforts we have all put forward are truly bearing fruit:

• 25 years of coral reef monitoring in Little Cayman
• more than 1500 local scholarships awarded
• investing USD $1 million in research annually
• expanding our reach to more than 300,000 people annually with social media and Reefs Go Live
• continued growth of international partnerships with visiting scientists, collaborative research projects, international conference participation, and hosting 250+ university students in residential programmes
• supporting early career scientists with internships, entry-level research positions, lab and field work experiences, and more!

This black tie and silver sparkle gala was held at the Kimpton Seafire Resort & Spa, and featured Vicki Wheaton as the evening’s master of ceremonies and auctioneer. During the evening, there was an online silent auction of amazing items and experiences that were donated by the local business community. Gala-goers also participated in a raffle to help raise money for CCMI. A live auction of five amazing items – from art to travel to one-of-a-kind experiences – made for an entertaining experience for all. And we are grateful to all who donated to CCMI through our ‘Last Person Standing’ pledge, which will support the Coral Fund capital campaign to expand CCMI’s facilities in Little Cayman, which will significantly increase our impact for coral reefs.

We enjoyed a fun photo booth from Blue Dot Studios, a special dance by Quinntessential, keynote address from Tanya Streeter, and the gala ended with an energetic performance by LionFish, who provided amazing music to ensure we all took a turn on the dance floor!