Summary

September 19, 2024 | 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

115 Broadway, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10006

The Academy invites you to its latest event, which will focus on innovative coral restoration through the lens of both science and art. 

Marine Biologist and National Geographic Explorer, National Fellow at The Explorers Club, and President of the Board of Trustees of SECORE International, Fernando Bretos, will kick off the evening with an explanation of the science behind creating genetically stronger strains of coral through the use of coral larval prorogation technique. He will also share the work of Silvia Patricia González Díaz, PhD, from the University of Havana, an esteemed scientist and longtime colleague of Bretos who oversees field operations in Cuba. We will then be joined by Tom Goreau, PhD, Director of The Global Coral Reef Alliance, to learn about “biorock,” a restoration technique that utilizes a novel way to restore corals with light electrical fields of negative electricity using the anodic-cathodic process on metal structures which then accrete calcium carbonate, a property that produces coral skeletons. “Biorock” is a “self-healing” material that, when appropriately grown, has five times the strength of concrete, which makes it excellent for wave attenuation and beach breaks. Dr. Goreau will illuminate our audience on the dire health of coral in the Caribbean, its relation to human intervention, and the concept of ‘Geotherapy‘. 

The panel will end with Mara G. Haseltine, a science-based environmental Artist, exploring the link between our cultural and biological evolution. Haseltine will discuss her reef designs, which utilize innovative reef restoration methods that do not use plastic or concrete, showcased in her retrospective “Blueprints to Save the Planet:1 Coral Reefs” in the foyer of The New York Academy of Sciences new office headquarters. Haseltine will focus on her newest prototype design for a coral nursery in Cuba, combining the two restoration techniques presented by her team on this panel for coral restoration in the age of the Anthropocene.  

Emily Driscoll, an award-winning science documentary filmmaker and Founder of BonSci Films, will moderate the panel.

Following the panel discussion, we invite you to an art reception featuring organic wine donated from Perkins Harter Vineyard and light refreshments. This reception will celebrate Mara G. Haseltine’s solo show, “Blueprints to Save the Planet:1 Coral Reefs”. It’s the perfect opportunity to continue the conversation after the panel event. 

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