Love the environment, traveling, snorkeling in the ocean, and storytelling to help protect coral reefs? Five lucky winners turned coral reef influencers will have the opportunity to see the the center of the world’s largest coral restoration program—the SHEBA Hope Reef—on an all-expenses paid trip to Indonesia in August 2023. The contest closes June 2. Read on for how to apply and why coral restoration is important.
The SHEBA Hope Reef
The SHEBA Hope Reef coral restoration project, unveiled to the world on May 5, 2021, is just one of 30 reef restoration projects in seven different countries led by the SHEBA cat food brand and parent company Mars Inc. So far, that work includes restoring more than 860,000 square feet of coral reef around the world. By 2029, SHEBA’s Hope Grows program aims to restore coral reefs the equivalent size of 148 Olympic swimming pools (almost two million square feet).
Coral reefs are dying, largely due to climate change and resulting warming oceans, pollution and non-sustainable fishing techniques. These reefs are critical for the communities that live near them and for the whole world as they provide biodiversity, food, protect coasts from storms and flooding, and drive tourism.
“Scientists have estimated that if we do nothing, 90 percent of the world’s tropical reefs will be gone by 2043—a devastating prospect not just for the reefs’ ecosystems, but for the billion people who depend on the reefs for food, income and coastal protection,” said David Smith, Chief Marine Scientist at Mars Inc., in a statement.
Source: Forbes
