Reef Relief, a nonprofit membership organization founded in 1986, is dedicated to improving and protecting our coral reef ecosystem through education and conservation. Reef Relief’s Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) places a special focus on youth education as an important, initial step in saving endangered marine ecosystems. Our Discover Coral Reefs School Program offers over a dozen marine science topics taught in interactive classroom presentations supplemented with question-and-answer sessions and related activities. These lessons teach students the value and importance of our marine ecosystems, the organisms in them, as well as ways to be positive environmental stewards. Annually, this program reaches over 15,000 students from all over the world through our in person and virtual opportunities. These lessons are provided for free as part of our “Marine Science for All” initiative to make marine science more accessible. In addition to our live classroom visits, our educational programming also includes a virtual classroom where students can work at their own pace through eight marine science focused units. The lessons in each unit are paired with original worksheets, at home experiments, arts and crafts activities, and interviews with marine scientists.
Reef Relief also offers unique educational opportunities through our Coral Camp for Kids and Reef Explorer Coral Camp Programs. Coral Camp is a fun, engaging environmental camp that expands the knowledge of youths ages 6-12 in a variety of marine science topics through lessons, games, and crafts at the Reef Relief Environmental Center in tandem with daily field trips including four days of snorkel excursions in the Florida Barrier Reef. Reef Explorer Coral Camp is designed for the aspiring marine scientist aged 10-14. Over the course of the week, campers practice collecting scientific data and observe various marine ecosystems during two days in Key West and three days camping at the Dry Tortugas National Park to compare the anthropogenic factors affecting both areas. These camp programs reach over 250 children per summer. Scholarships are provided for youths to attend whose families suffer from financial hardship.
The Reef Relief Environmental Education Center teaches the public about marine ecosystems, the threats they face, and ways to protect them. Reef Relief provides additional outreach by distributing educational brochures on safe practices for boaters, snorkelers, divers, and fishermen. We offer these to Chambers of Commerce, resorts, hotels, marinas, dive shops, boat charters, and visitor centers throughout the Florida Keys. Our website, www.reefrelief.org, is an extensive coral reef education resource that is visited by thousands of people per month. We also educate a growing network of over 100,000 people through social media platforms.
We engage the community in active ocean stewardship by partnering with other nonprofit organizations, government agencies, learning institutions, and businesses. This includes recruiting volunteers for our Stormwater Education Campaign, marine debris removal events, Plastics Free Key West, and Protect Your Skin, Protect Our Reefs safe sunscreen education effort.
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