CONTACT
gallery
facebook
instagram
youtube
twitterDATE: Friday, 6th June 2025
TIME: 10:00 am – 10:40 am Cayman time (UTC -5h)
LOCATION: Camana Bay Cinema
NEWS & EVENTS
WORLD OCEAN DAY
2025 – CORALS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE
- introduction
- AT THe cinema
- healthy reefs
- ARCHIVE
introduction
In 2023, the year we celebrated the 25th anniversary of CCMI, we saw some of the most severe coral bleaching globally and one of the longest bleaching events observed in the Cayman Islands. As the impacts of climate change become evident in Cayman’s waters, one of our most important efforts, CCMI’s long-term coral monitoring project, has become even more crucial. Since 1998, our data showed that Little Cayman’s reefs demonstrate resiliency and ability to bounce back to a healthy state after a period of stress.
Our 2024 data have revealed the extent of the impact of the 2023 marine heatwave and subsequent coral bleaching event. The reefs of Little Cayman showed extensive bleaching and suffered loss of coral. Continuing to understand this post-bleaching recovery as it progresses through 2025 will be key to gaining insight into what the future could look like for Little Cayman’s reefs. Although 2023 was a sobering year for ocean lovers globally, our 2024 data show that all hope is not lost.
Coral reefs are remarkably resilient ecosystems, and the protections offered to reefs in Little Cayman support this. Our 26 years of data have shown us there is hope for coral reefs for the future, but recent events have compounded the urgent need for our ongoing research to understand this resiliency to warming temperatures, disease, changes in the ecosystem composition, and other outside factors that continue to put pressure on local reefs, jeopardising their long-term survival.
Join the CCMI team this World Ocean Day to understand more about changing climate and how it impacts our ocean through our free community outreach of Reefs Go Live and the Reef Lecture in Grand Cayman. Help us to share the important messages about threats coral reefs face and how every person can do their part at this pivotal moment for our ocean.
2025 sponsors
WORLD OCEAN DAY AT THE CINEMA
CCMI celebrates World Ocean Day every year as part of our Healthy Reefs outreach efforts, and in 2025, we will return to the Camana Bay Cinema for this FREE World Ocean Day Reefs Go Live event! (Virtual registrations also available.)
The past few years have bought record-breaking climate extremes across the world, including the rising temperature of the oceans globally and here in Cayman. Coral reefs have often been referred to as the ‘canary in the coalmine,’ the ecosystem at the forefront of these pressures. Join CCMI to understand how recent marine heatwaves have impacted the reefs of Little Cayman.
We will also dive into the ocean’s unique ability to absorb carbon dioxide, regulate weather and planetary health, help to mitigate the impacts of climate change, and how CCMI is working towards supporting this climate mitigation in Cayman.
This virtual underwater experience also allows the audience the opportunity to send questions to our Little Cayman dive team, with selected questions being answered live during the broadcast! Come prepared to ask your coral reef questions.
This event is FREE and open to local schools, tourists, and members of the public. Classes, especially years 4, 5, and 6, are encouraged to participate. Registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance. Donations are appreciated and support the conservation, education, outreach and restoration projects of CCMI.
This episode links to the international DearTomorrow campaign, dedicated to inspired people to reflect on their climate legacy through the act of crafting personal letters to the future. CCMI’s educators will reveal their promises to their families, communities, or future selves about climate change and will encourage viewers to do so too. All DearTomorrow promises will be submitted to the campaign, joining over 5,000 climate-concerned voices.
HEALTHY REEFS ART GALLERY
As part of a special collaborative effort, students in Ms. McDougall’s BTEC art class at the Cayman Islands Further Education Centre (CIFEC) were tasked with designing a poster in support of CCMI’s Healthy Reefs awareness campaign. This project was an assignment to students as a way to develop artistic techniques while also working with a client, allowing students to develop transferrable life skills in support of their career path in art.
During the first term of the 2023-24 school year, students practiced their techniques, spoke with CCMI staff, researched coral reefs, incorporated feedback from the client, and worked toward a final Healthy Reefs poster that was submitted as part of their portfolio for the course.
Visit this virtual art gallery of the posters designed by these talented students of Ms. McDougall’s class. We hope you enjoy seeing their creativity and skills at work in support of healthy coral reefs!
reports
2023 Little Cayman Healthy Reef Report Card & Bleaching Report Card
Since 1999, CCMI has conducted annual monitoring of coral reefs in Little Cayman to build a database of information about the state of coral reefs and the changes seen over time. Results from the 2023 AGRRA surveys were released in the 2023 Reef Report Card.
Shortly after CCMI’s 2023 surveys, the world’s reefs experienced the fourth global coral bleaching event. These data and associated report card doesn’t reflect the impact of this bleaching event on Little Cayman’s reefs, but CCMI has monitored the event closely. The results of which can be found in the 2023/24 coral bleaching report card.
world ocean day 2024
Corals in a Changing Climate: A Dive into the Future of Coral Reefs
To celebrate World Ocean Day 2024, CCMI hosted a Reefs Go Live broadcast at the Camana Bay Cinema, released the 2023 Reef Report Card and 2023 Bleaching Report Card, and hosted a Reef Lecture to share “Impacts of the 2023 marine heatwave on corals in Little Cayman.”
The focus this year was how coral reefs are changing due to the supermarine heat wave and subsequent mass global coral bleaching event in 2023.
world ocean day 2023
25 Years of Coral Reef Research
To celebrate World Ocean Day 2023, CCMI hosted a Reefs Go Live broadcast at the Camana Bay Cinema, released the 2022 Reef Report Card, and hosted a Reef Lecture to share what we have learned about coral reefs in Little Cayman from 25 years of coral monitoring surveys.
The focus for this year was 25 years of CCMI’s work for coral reefs.
world ocean day 2022
Restoring Healthy Reefs for the Future
To celebrate World Ocean Day 2022, CCMI hosted a Reefs Go Live broadcast at the Camana Bay Cinema, released our 2021 Reef Report Card, and hosted a Reef Lecture to announced the findings from our 2021 AGRRA coral monitoring surveys.
The focus for this year was Restoring Healthy Reefs for the Future, which encompasses our major research projects at CCMI as well as our annual Healthy Reefs campaign of public outreach programmes and events.
world ocean day 2021
STAND UP FOR REEFS
For World Ocean Day 2020, CCMI shared news of hope, resiliency and a clear pathway for corals reefs, when we announced that CCMI successfully championed Little Cayman as a Mission Blue Hope Spot! Building on that important designation, we planned our 2021 activity to promote taking action for coral reefs. Coral reefs make up less than 1% of the ocean, yet they are home to more than 25% of all marine life – more than 1 million species! Healthy coral reefs are critical to healthy oceans, and as we are all interconnected, it is time for everyone to stand up for coral reefs to ensure a healthy future for our blue planet.
In support of the message Stand Up for Reefs, we launched the Stand Up for Reefs podcast, held a Reefs Go Live broadcast at the Camana Bay Cinema, released our 2020 Reef Report Card, and hosted a Reef Lecture to announced the findings from our 2020 AGRRA coral monitoring surveys.
VIRTUAL ART EXHIBITION
As a project in the fall of 2020, students in Ms. McDougall’s art class at the Cayman Islands Further Education Centre (CIFEC), were tasked with creating a two-dimensional piece of art to support CCMI’s Healthy Reefs campaign.
Students explored different art techniques while also learning about coral reefs, marine life, CCMI’s work and the important of healthy coral reefs to the Cayman Islands to create meaningful pieces that conveyed the campaign’s important messages.
We invite you to visit our Healthy Reefs Virtual Art Gallery and enjoy the beauty of the art and the talent of these students.
