November 2024
Newsletter

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Welcome to the November newsletter! I hope you have as much fun reading through the accomplishments of October and learning about our work as I had putting it all together! Every month, I am amazed at what we’re accomplishing thanks to the people being brought together to work for a better tomorrow.

November is Global Coral Bleaching Awareness Month and we are joining our colleagues across the world in campaigning that “Life is Better in Colour.”

Dive in and learn more about the past month’s education efforts, find out about the amazing individual who is training to run the length of Providenciales to raise funds for coral conservation, meet the team and take a peek into TCReef’s expansion plans! 

All of these efforts are only possible through the continued support of people like you! Let’s keep pushing for a better, more equitable tomorrow together.

With Hope,

Alizée Zimmermann
Executive Director
Turks and Caicos Reef Fund

life is better in colour

The month of November is Coral Reef Bleaching Awareness month and in solidarity with Coral Reef Alliance and others around the region, we have bleached our logo white across social media platforms and will continue to discuss the plight of coral reefs in the face of unprecedented climate uncertainty.

Our amazing friend and volunteer Cole Perera will be running 18 miles along the length of Providenciales on December 1st 2024! She aims to raise $100 per mile for our conservation efforts.

Check out the Go Fund Me page to support the cause!

The campaign, aiming to raise awareness of the disproportionate effect of carbon emissions on the Ocean has the tagline #lifeisbetterincolor.

Cole is and has always been a ray of sunshine, colourfully dressed during her long runs. She will be posting stories on her Instagram @pigandroosters showing her training, volunteering during our outreach programs and generally keeping everyone updated on the campaign.

The GoFundMe has already raised $485 USD out of the $1,800 target — just 73% away from her goal.

Let’s support Cole as she helps protect our vibrant reefs. You can make a difference too by donating anything over $5. Every contribution counts towards a brighter, more colorful future for our oceans.

Together, we believe that #LifeIsBetterInColor!

Positive news to keep our hearts inspired…

Student field trips at an all time high

We are welcoming up to 40 students a week to visit the Coral Lab and learn about coral reef and mangrove ecology. We have the next 2 months booked out and have been receiving positive feedback. These are free learning opportunities that we offer to schools.

We also welcome community support in the form of donations that can help keep our free tours running and expanding. If you’re interested in supporting our education efforts, please reach out!

Reach out to info@tcreef.org to book your class!

We’re set to start growing

South Bank continues their support with a mid-term (3-5 year) access to land to expand our land-based holding and rescue capacity! This will allow us to install 2 x 40ft containers as well as outdoor tanks for herbivores and research. These units will be fully translocatable for when we find land for a permanent home but the creation of a permanent facility will take several years, and anyone who’s been to our facility recently, knows we’re out of space!

We are incredibly grateful to South Bank for their continual support of our efforts. This is just a first step, we are now looking to secure the funding for our  expansion effort.

inside climate news feature

Alizee’s passion and TCRF’s dedication to coral preservation made waves in Inside Climate News article released on October 15th, 2024.

“Alizee Zimmermann saw corals dying en masse and built a living biobank to hold corals on land. With ocean temperatures hitting unprecedented highs due to climate change, she doesn’t plan on putting them back.” —Teressa Tomassoni

We extend a special thank you to journalist Teressa Tomassoni for bringing this story to the world with her talent!

ENVIRONMENTAL FUNDERS NETWORK

Alizee was invited by Environmental Funders Network to discuss the need for environmental funding in the UKOTs.

On October 14th Alizee sat on a panel “Innovation in Environmental Funding in the UK Overseas Territories”, she spoke of the creative ways that she has funded research and conservation efforts with TC Reef and appealed to the greater funding network in the UK to consider extending their funding to the UKOTs which after all host over 90% of the UKs biodiversity.

At the end of November, Alizee will be flying to London to attend a Coral Conservation in UKOTs workshop and presenting on TCReef’s coral biobank project in the Reef Conservation UK Conference on November 30th. The timing fortuitously coincides with a December 2nd Dinner hosted by the Environmental Funders Network to which Alizee has been invited.

Realities that we’re facing…

rising ocean temperatures

TCRF is continuing to monitor our nurseries for coral bleaching during these high water temperature months.

Data from a temperature monitor installed at our Staghorn nurseries at NWP shows  that the average water temperature between May-Oct 2024 has been 29.84C/85.71F with a high of 31.53C/88.75F and a low of 28.01C/82.42F.

Basically, the water has been continuously warm for the whole 6  months that this temperature logger was underwater. Although recent weather has helped lower the water temp, we are not out of the danger zone yet and continue to keep a close eye on the state of the reefs.

Reef keeper partnership program

Andaz Turks & Caicos — Champion Reef Keepers
Andaz has committed to an annual contribution of $25,000 in the 2024/2025 fiscal year and has offered meaningful support through media and marketing since 2023. Opening in early 2026 as Champion Reef Keepers, Andaz is dedicated to completing quarterly water quality monitoring and annual sea grass & coral reef monitoring of the adjacent shoreline.

Wymara — Reef Keeper Certified
Wymara joined the program in 2023/2024 fiscal year and to date has raised over $40,000 through the optional $2 per night donation program. In over 16,000 guest nights over 4,000 guests, less than 10 opted out of the donation proving that this is a service our visitors seek. Wymara has also added a sustainable menu item to their restaurant in the form of delicious cauliflower tacos! 10% of this menu item also goes to supporting our work! It is clear that visitors to our islands are looking for ways in which they can support environmental initiatives and Reef Keepers has created an avenue for companies small or large to help and get involved. 

Ocean Club Resorts — Reef Keeper Certified
Both Ocean Club East and West have joined the Reef Keeper program and in the month of October we hosted groups of their Front Desk, Concierge and Pool & Beach employees to learn at the Coral Lab about the coral reefs, the work we do and how they can share that information with guests in an engaging and informative way. We got great feedback from the staff!

Are you interested in having your staff learn more about the environment around your property?
We can educate your team to engage and enhance your guest experience!
Reach out to alizee@tcreef.org to discuss options.

tcrf Recommends Dive provo

Dive Provo have donated close to $5k in goods and services in the 2023/2024 Financial Year. We continue to partner with them on our Scuba courses for young locals to get involved in the marine world. They fill our tanks and give us space on their boat when possible to help us get out there more often, and have even collected video footage to support marine research. A huge thank you to the team at Dive Provo for always being willing to help!

If you're interested in seeing how your company can help our cause in a similar way, contact us today.

Meet the TCRF Team!

Our team is so much bigger than the office team but let’s start here as these are the ladies you’re likely to see when you visit our facility at South Bank Marina. The Inside Climate News article offers great intro to Alizée Zimmermann, our dedicated and passionate Executive Director — so check it out to get to know her!

Meet Stacy Belizaire — the Office Manager of the Turks and Caicos Reef Fund. She has accumulated fourteen (14) years of experience in the finance sector, demonstrating her expertise in financial management and operations. Additionally, she has dedicated four (4) years to conservation showcasing her commitment to environmental sustainability and aligning with the organization’s core values.

Stacy holds 9 CXC/GCE passes along with an Associate's Degree in Building & Design Technology. With a deep appreciation for nature, Ms. Belizaire's personal values and ethos align closely with the company's mission. Her passion for art, travel, and active involvement in community work contribute to a well-rounded perspective that enhances her professional capabilities.

Her dedication to sustainability and environmental preservation drives her to celebrate the beauty of creation through her work, making her an integral part of the Turks & Caicos Reef Fund team.

Meet Gracie Perry-Garnette — the Coral Aquarist for the Turks and Caicos Reef Fund. The ocean has been a passion of Gracie’s for as long as she can remember. Gracie has kept saltwater aquariums as a hobby for over 14 years, during which time she kept corals and seahorses.

Gracie first visited the Turks and Caicos Islands in August 2019 and fell in love with the islands. During her bachelor's degree senior year, she studied the Spread and Prevalence of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) across the Inshore Reefs of North and Middle Caicos for an Undergraduate Senior Thesis.

While working on her thesis, she connected with the Turks and Caicos Reef Fund and shared the research data she collected about SCTLD. Gracie has a General Biology degree and a Chemistry minor from Guilford College in North Carolina.

The Turks and Caicos Reef Fund contacted Gracie in 2023 to join the team as the Coral Aquarist. She was trained with The Reef Institute for keeping Caribbean corals before starting at the Turks and Caicos Reef Fund in October 2023.

Help bring supplies to the Island

We invite you to browse our latest Amazon Wishlist filled with items that benefit our non-profit directly! By downloading it, you can view the items listed that we need desperately. You’re welcome to purchase & drop these items off to help support our cause further.

Thank you for your continued support!