Supervised By: Dr. Ethan Deyle, Department of Biology, Tufts University 

My research will explore how coral reef restoration can be effectively scaled in climate-stressed small-island systems in the Western Indian Ocean, with a focus on community-led restoration efforts in Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania. I will be working alongside The Ropes of Hope - a community-led coral reef restoration and marine conservation initiative. My research will investigate whether coral survival and growth, together with labor and cost considerations, can determine when restoration becomes both ecologically viable and practically sustainable. Coral reefs are increasingly threatened by climate change, coral bleaching, and environmental degradation, making restoration an important strategy for protecting biodiversity, fishing, and coastal communities. However, many restoration projects remain difficult to expand because the early post-outplant stage is highly vulnerable and resource-intensive. 

During my six weeks in the field, I will measure coral survival, growth rates, and attachment stability across restoration methods currently in use, including diamond mesh fencing, reef spiders, and coral-rubble concrete substrates. I will compare freshly fragmented and nursery-reared corals of different sizes and coral genera to assess how fragment size, nursery duration, and species differences influence survival. Measuring early mortality and detachment rates is especially important because this stage often determines whether restoration efforts succeed or fail in the long term. By identifying which combinations of coral type, fragment size, and substrate produce the highest survival rates, my project will help identify the conditions under which reef restoration can be sustainably scaled at a community level. 

Because this research is grounded within an active community-led restoration system, I will evaluate the practical realities of restoration by documenting the labor demands, material costs, and feasibility of sustaining these approaches within community-led conservation systems. The goal is to identify restoration strategies that maintain strong ecological outcomes while developing realistic programs that local communities can manage in the long term. Following the fieldwork, the data will be analyzed to determine which restoration conditions best support scalable reef recovery and whether higher coral survival rates correspond with broader ecosystem resilience. This project reflects my broader interest and commitment to applied environmental science that connects ecological research with practical decision-making in climate-vulnerable communities. By combining coral survival data with assessments of cost, labor, and feasibility, I aim to identify restoration strategies that are both scientifically robust and sustainable for community-led management systems.