Need advice on studying reef ecology, sustainable captive growth, and coral farming.

[redfishsc]

Howdy all,

Entertain me in a daydream for a moment. :spin3:

I just need some direction to start looking into the opportunities to be found (or created).


I am closing in on finishing my grad work in theology. My lifelong love for anything and everything aquatic has also been drawing me toward further study of captive propagation of coral and producing sustainable results. I actually have theological reasons for wanting to study corals (stewardship and ecology) but I'll save that discussion for another time (for obvious reasons). Feel free to PM me if that interests you.


Right now I am a mere hobbyist, with the small amount of scientific background that comes with having a B.A. degree with a few extra physics classes tossed in. Not to mention the school of Randy. I've "sat at his feet" for the past year and learned an enormous amount from him and others.


Anyhow, I am considering looking around (perhaps internationally) at universities that offer grad work in coral reef ecology.

My main interest is to eventually contribute as much as I can to propagating corals for the hobby trade that are otherwise in danger from the potentially catastrophic bleaching even that is predicted to take place in the coming generation. Likewise I would like to contribute what I can to promoting the hobby, increasing our ability to propagate more varieties and more sensitive varieties.

If this all comes to fruit, as I am daydreaming it, I may end up in the Pacific Rim, teaching local, impoverished people groups how to farm/propagate corals inland, in order to supply the huge coral markets that seem to have opened up in Japan and other eastern nations.

I just see this as a win/win situation. Much of the Pacific Rim area is quite poor, yet so close to the very things we treasure and pay crazy amounts of money for. What a benefit to an impoverished area to be able to farm corals (inland, preferably, to avoid impacting the local reefs) using solar light and other "green" forms of energy---- all the while bringing income to support their families.


So here are my questions:

1) Do you know of organizations, companies, or individuals doing something like this?

2) What universities or other educational institutions offer respected graduate work in coral reef ecology? Where do I begin looking?


Any help, advice, and encouragement is appreciated!

 

[charlesr1958]

I would ask Eric Borneman at his forum over at Marine Depot.

Chuck

 

[greenbean36191]

Well unfortunately, almost all graduate programs for coral reef ecology will require you to have a degree in a science related field. I do know of one person who majored in business and then went for a masters in marine bio, but she had to do lots of lobbying to get in and was only accepted on a provisional basis. At the time I knew her she was really struggling with it because she lacked some of the background in oceanography and biochem in particular. Most universities will require you to go back and take certain undergrad courses that you missed, so if you're lacking an undergrad background in science there is a good chance you'll be forced to go back and take most of the undergrad science curriculum. Bottom line, without a B.S. it's a hard row to hoe.

The good news though is that for what you're talking about doing, you don't need a masters in reef ecology. A masters in business would probably be more beneficial and would probably be easier to pursue with your background.

Rather than pursuing this from a purely academic route though, my suggestion would be to get real-life field experience and build from there. I've helped on a few farming projects, and most of the people working with them were not reef ecologists or even marine biologists, yet they had more practical knowledge on the subject than I did. If you google "reef restoration internship" you will find that there are numerous organizations out there in exotic locales working in preservation and restoration of reefs and they're constantly looking for volunteers. IME, if you want to learn about the protocols for farming and assessing corals and the pitfalls therein, you will find the hands-on experience much more useful than a degree.

If you're still interested in pursuing a degree, there are hardly any places that actually offer a masters in coral reef ecology. There are however, one or two universities in most states that offer a masters in marine biology, marine science, or fisheries- any of which you could get a degree in and specialize in coral reef ecology. You can find a (partial) list here: http://marinebio.org/MarineBio/Careers/US-schools.asp
You should go through the list and follow the links to the schools and see what the faculty and researchers there are working on. It probably works the same way as in liberal arts, but for graduate work you're shopping for an adviser that works on subjects similar to what you want to work on rather than shopping for a school.

 

[redfishsc]

Well unfortunately, almost all graduate programs for coral reef ecology will require you to have a degree in a science related field. I do know of one person who majored in business and then went for a masters in marine bio, but she had to do lots of lobbying to get in and was only accepted on a provisional basis. At the time I knew her she was really struggling with it because she lacked some of the background in oceanography and biochem in particular. Most universities will require you to go back and take certain undergrad courses that you missed, so if you're lacking an undergrad background in science there is a good chance you'll be forced to go back and take most of the undergrad science curriculum. Bottom line, without a B.S. it's a hard row to hoe.

Yup, I know that I would need to backtrack and take a large dose of sciences. That is great for me, since I love science anyhow. My actual intent, before taking a theological route, was actually to work on a B.S. in Marine Biology. There are several universities in my tri-state area that offer such. I had some other life events that happened that persuaded me into the realm of theology, a decision that I am VERY glad I took.

The good news though is that for what you're talking about doing, you don't need a masters in reef ecology. A masters in business would probably be more beneficial and would probably be easier to pursue with your background.

Good point. Unfortunately my brain doesn't grapple with business concepts that well, but boy does my wife!

Rather than pursuing this from a purely academic route though, my suggestion would be to get real-life field experience and build from there. I've helped on a few farming projects, and most of the people working with them were not reef ecologists or even marine biologists, yet they had more practical knowledge on the subject than I did. If you google "reef restoration internship" you will find that there are numerous organizations out there in exotic locales working in preservation and restoration of reefs and they're constantly looking for volunteers. IME, if you want to learn about the protocols for farming and assessing corals and the pitfalls therein, you will find the hands-on experience much more useful than a degree.

This is PRECISELY the kind of information I wanted to hear. Thank you for sharing that!

If you're still interested in pursuing a degree, there are hardly any places that actually offer a masters in coral reef ecology. There are however, one or two universities in most states that offer a masters in marine biology, marine science, or fisheries- any of which you could get a degree in and specialize in coral reef ecology. You can find a (partial) list here: http://marinebio.org/MarineBio/Careers/US-schools.asp
You should go through the list and follow the links to the schools and see what the faculty and researchers there are working on. It probably works the same way as in liberal arts, but for graduate work you're shopping for an adviser that works on subjects similar to what you want to work on rather than shopping for a school.

Great link, I will be looking into those after work today.

 

[Hoyden]

The good news though is that for what you're talking about doing, you don't need a masters in reef ecology. A masters in business would probably be more beneficial and would probably be easier to pursue with your background.

Rather than pursuing this from a purely academic route though, my suggestion would be to get real-life field experience and build from there. I've helped on a few farming projects, and most of the people working with them were not reef ecologists or even marine biologists, yet they had more practical knowledge on the subject than I did. If you google "reef restoration internship" you will find that there are numerous organizations out there in exotic locales working in preservation and restoration of reefs and they're constantly looking for volunteers. IME, if you want to learn about the protocols for farming and assessing corals and the pitfalls therein, you will find the hands-on experience much more useful than a degree.

It really depends on what you actually want to do - if you want to do nuts and bolts work in the field of coral restoration, the above advice is right on the money - check out CORIS for lots of info on coral conservation in the US SECORE for info on some of what is being done with sexual reproduction in coral or contact someone like Ken Nedimyer who is working on staghorn coral.

Jackie

 

[redfishsc]

Excellent links, I bookmarked both of them. Thank you!