NEWS
Reef Lecture: Last year’s extreme ocean temperatures and what it means for coral reefs
CCMI’s Grand Cayman Reef Lecture Series returns for 2024. Please join us at this upcoming event:
Last year’s extreme ocean temperatures and what it means for coral reefs
with Dr. John Bruno, UNC at Chapel Hill
About the topic:
Over the last twelve months, the ocean has been warmer than at any previous time in human history. During the summer of 2023, this caused coral bleaching and mortality across the greater Caribbean. This event represents both the most severe impact of climate change so far and a glimpse of what’s in store for us in the near future.
This is a FREE in person event. Advance registration is required. We will record the session and post the recording to our YouTube channel in the weeks following the lecture.
This talk approaches the extreme coral bleaching event of 2023 from a regional perspective, sharing insight into how the coral reefs of the Caribbean region were impacted by this prolonged period of ocean warming. In June 2024, CCMI will offer a Reef Lecture specific to the Cayman Islands, including the results of coral bleaching monitoring on the reefs in Cayman.
About the speaker:
John Bruno is a marine ecologist and Professor in the Department of Biology at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA. John grew up surfing, fishing, and SCUBA diving in south Florida. He came to UNC in 2001 after a post doc at Cornell University, and a PhD at Brown University where he worked on the ecology of coastal plant communities. His research is focused on marine biodiversity, particularly the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems.
The Bruno lab works in the Caribbean and Galápagos on understanding how human activities alter marine ecosystem and what local conservation strategies are effective in mitigating these impacts. John works closely with NGOs and resource managers on ocean conservation. At UNC he teaches Marine Ecology, Seafood Forensics, and the Future of Food.