The G20 Coral Research and Development Accelerator Platform (CORDAP) has launched a new Call for Proposals for its Coral Accelerator Program (CAP) 2023. US $18 million is expected to be granted in this call to innovative solutions which help secure a future for all corals and reefs in the face of climate change and other environmental pressures. The deadline for submission is 10 November 2023, with funded projects expected to begin in late 2024.
CORDAP’s inaugural CAP, launched in 2022, received 89 proposals from all over the globe and 14 projects have now been awarded, worth a total of $18 million USD distributed over 20 countries.
Two-thirds of the world’s coral reefs have already been lost due to human activity and according to the IPCC, 70-90% of the remaining coral reefs could disappear in the next 10-15 years if no actions are taken. One in four marine species depend on coral reefs and they provide food, income and coastal protection for one billion people. The estimated global economic value of coral reefs is approaching US$10 trillion per year through ecosystem services and goods.
From the 489 applicants for the CAP 2022, 51% of the lead applicants were female and 60% of the countries involved in the wining proposals are from low and middle-income countries. Potentially groundbreaking projects will be implemented in Mexico, Malaysia Indonesia, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Maldives, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Honduras and Philippines.
CORDAP is a G20 initiative created to fast-track research and development solutions to save the world’s corals and it is the only international organization fully dedicated to funding R&D in this area.
Three core principles underpin the Coral Accelerator Program (CAP):
- Ensuring the local community benefits: Developed solutions should be affordable and accessible to those who need them most.
- Globally inclusive: Applicant teams must consist of organizations from at least two countries, one of which must be a low or middle-income country.
- Solutions must be open source: IP resulting from CORDAP- funded activities will be made available free under public license for all commercial and non-commercial coral conservation use, it will allow anyone to access and build on the research and technology.
“Corals are the rainforests of the ocean, yet they are at risk of functional extinction in the next decade without urgent action. For the first time, an entire ecosystem that supports millions of species and people may be lost at the hands of humans.”
“The goals of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and Sustainable Development Goals cannot be achieved if we lose coral reefs, which is a real and urgent risk.”
“CORDAP was set up because accelerating research and innovation is our chance to save corals. The window for protecting these ecosystems is rapidly closing. However, the awardees of the inaugural Coral Accelerator Platform have shown that there is still hope,” said Carlos Duarte, a distinguished Professor at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Executive Director of CORDAP.
The CAP 2023 will award projects which have the potential to significantly advance science and technology in high need coral research areas including coral aquaculture, cold-water corals, means to preserve and conserve existing corals and limit their early life mortality, as well as on approaches that contribute to research and development capacity building, among other topics.
The deadline for submissions for CAP 2023 is November 10, 2023. For more information on the Coral Accelerator Program and how to submit a proposal click here, and to learn about the 14 awarded CAP 2022 projects visit cordap.org/awardedprojects2022/
Photo: Franceso Ungaro