The Nature Conservancy in the Coral Triangle

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With your help, we can protect beautiful places like the Coral Triangle for people and nature.

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Coral Triangle Overview

The Coral Triangle sustains the lives of over 120 people and benefits millions more worldwide. Find out why this region is globally important.

Coral Triangle Strategies

Read about how The Nature Conservancy is working to save the Earth's Richest Coral Reefs.

Protecting the World's Center of Ocean Biodiversity

In the heart of the Coral Triangle, the Conservancy has helped design the first network of marine protected areas designed to help corals withstand the deadly pressures of climate change.

ConserveOnline

Get more essential information on the Coral Triangle by visiting the Conservancy's Coral Triangle Program on ConserveOnline.

“Linked as networks these marine protected areas bring benefits beyond their boundaries. Only by working together can we pass the heritage of the Coral Triangle to our own and future generations.”

— Rili Djohani, Chief Director of The Nature Conservancy’s Indonesia Program

The Conservancy’s Coral Triangle Center in Bali anchors and guides much of our efforts to develop resilient networks of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to ensure that they thrive into the future — for the benefit of people and nature alike.

Though the Center, Conservancy scientists, policy and financing experts, and field staff come together with a wide range of partners to share knowledge and take action for the Coral Triangle.

A Regional Hub of Expertise and Leadership

The Coral Triangle Center (CTC) is home base for the Conservancy’s site-based research, training, communications and policy initiatives in the region. It is also a one-of-a-kind training facility where marine managers, government officials and regular citizens get equipped to better protect the resources they depend on for survival.

The CTC’s Training Program includes:

Marine Protected Area Management Training. This course provides guidance in designing, monitoring and managing Marine Protected Areas for the best conservation results. Already, more than 300 representatives from government agencies, academia and local conservation groups have participated in the course.
Sustainable Livelihood Training. Villagers living in and around national parks are offered training on environmentally-friendly sources of income, such as seaweed and fish farming, weaving and wood carving, and SCUBA training for local tour guides.
Field Exchanges. The CTC hosts field exchanges for national park managers from Indonesian national parks with staff from parks around the world, including Ecuador, Mozambique, and Cambodia.

Sound Science = Sound Policy and Practice

The CTC Science Program fosters the development of MPAs by providing our partners with research and technical assistance with the design of MPAs and the development of long-term management plans and zoning systems to help regulate resource use.

Our data is helping decision-makers ensure that the most biologically-rich and sensitive areas are set aside for protection — and that MPAs are linked throughout the region. Scientists believe that large networks of reefs will be better able to survive the effects of climate change.

The Science Program also equips our policy team with data that demonstrates the soundness of our recommendations. And our on-site long-term projects earn us a place at the table when policies on MPAs and fisheries management are being decided.

Spreading the Word, Enlisting More Partners

The CTC strives to involve all sectors of society in the preservation of the Coral Triangle’s marine resources. To that end, the center’s Communications Program works to generate understanding and support for MPAs through media campaigns, technical reports, community workshops, conservation education, the web and even comic books.

Dive deeper into the Coral Triangle.

Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photo © TNC(Community Outreach in Raja Ampat, Indonesia); Photo © Burt Jones and Maurine Shimlook/Seoret Sea Visions (Underwater scene at Komodo).