Coral reefs are in decline. The largest global reef assessment to date has found that average hard coral cover in 2020-2024 was 9.5% below its 1980-2009 level, and this figure does not yet include the full toll of the fourth global bleaching event that brought 84% of the world's reef area under bleaching-level heat stress between 2023 and 2025.
The Philippines holds around 9% of the world's coral reefs, and their benefits to fisheries, tourism and biodiversity are valued at about US$4 billion a year, with the Visayas, our region, benefiting most. A nationwide survey of 206 Philippine reefs found that roughly a third of their coral cover had been lost in a decade, and its authors called for ongoing monitoring rather than one-off assessments. The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network makes the same point: consistent, long-term reef data are still scarce across East Asia.
That is the gap we work to close. Since 2015 we have surveyed the reefs of southern Negros Oriental season after season, and today we run about 2,000 surveys a year, building the long-term record needed to see what is changing, and why.
2,000+reef surveys a year
120+government divers trained in scientific diving
12+municipalities whose MPAs we work in or with
180+reports and papers in our archive
Our surveys feed a handful of long-running questions. Each one has produced reports you can read in full.
We survey reefs inside and outside marine protected areas, tracking coral cover, fish biomass and invertebrates, and send each municipality a report twice a year. We look at how each MPA is guarded too, since enforcement shows up in the fish counts.
When their numbers boom, these coral-eating starfish can strip large areas of reef. We track their densities so outbreaks can be dealt with early, and we are studying how they find their way at night.
Many reef fish spend their early lives in seagrass beds. We survey both habitats side by side to see how much the reef depends on its neighbours.
We measure how marine litter builds up on reefs, and we take it out: more than 427,000 kg collected through our Pro Ocean partnership, with clean-ups in five municipalities.
Reefs below recreational diving depths are among the least explored anywhere. Using technical diving, we are developing ways to survey the upper mesophotic zone along the south Negros coast.
We have planted 31,000 mangroves across five municipalities, matching species to site. Suitable shores are now nearly all planted, so we are looking for neglected fish ponds to restore.
Our archive holds more than 40 MCP reports and papers since 2015, alongside Coral Cay Conservation's Philippine reef reports from 1997 to 2021.
Our survey teams are volunteers and staff trained in our methods. Survey dives run on a fixed daily schedule, recording fish, invertebrates and the reef's substrate along transects at set depths, with the same standardised methods at every site.
We log the time of every survey too, so tidal effects can be studied as the record grows. We hold research permits in Zamboanguita, Siaton and Santa Catalina.
Everything we collect is free to use. Our data portal shows coral cover, fish biomass, algae and predator outbreaks by municipality and site, updated every survey season.
Researchers and students can request the raw survey exports under a Data Sharing Agreement. Teachers can use an abridged dataset with students aged 14 to 18 in our Reef data lab lessons.
Our data is used by the people who manage the reefs. A few examples:
We also train government dive teams in scientific diving and our survey methods, so municipalities can monitor their own reefs. More than 120 government divers have trained with us, and since 2024 we have been the technical support partner for marine conservation to two municipal alliances: BATASS (Bais City, Amlan, Tanjay City, San Jose and Sibulan) and BATMAN (Bindoy, Ayungon, Tayasan and Manjuyod).
We work with ENRD, DENR and the local governments of southern Negros Oriental, and hold a permanent seat on the Protected Area Management Board for Apo Island. Read more about our coastal resource management work and our partners.
Learn our survey methods and collect real reef data.
Base your thesis or research project on our sites and data.
Earn UK or US college credit for your time with us.
Free dive training from Open Water to Divemaster, with hands-on survey work.
Paid science and dive roles open up from time to time, often filled by former interns.
Working on reefs in the region? Talk to us about sharing data or joining forces.