Join our fight to protect the corals

Cozumel's coral reefs was once a thriving diving paradise teaming with marine life, but the island's rapid development as a tourism destination, has impacted these ecosystems. In 1994, the government pushed the Marine Park limits further south and built a cruise ship terminal near the now unprotected Villa Blanca reefs. This decimated the corals and the marine life that depends on them.

One man's vision to save his backyard reef prompted German to start the Cozumel Coral Reef Restoration Program. Corals are resilient and with a little human help, they can bounce back. Through German's tireless efforts with his team of volunteers, we have managed to salvage and protect a piece of paradise. If you swim down the coast, you will notice our coral garden is one of few places left with a diversity of fish to see. All due to the presence of corals which provide homes for the fish.

The reefs still face continual threats from pollution from the new developments down the coast which do not have proper sewage treatment, road run-off, the threat of the expansion of the cruise ship terminal, and new threats of coral bleaching and heat-stress death from climate change.

Every day we fight for the corals. Join our fight! We run entirely off donations from people like you!

BECOME A CORAL GUARDIAN!

Dr German Mendez
Founder of CCRRP

"Join me in my fight to save the reef! 1 in 4 fish live in the corals and depend on the reefs. Only 1% of the ocean has corals and half of them are already deteriorated."

We are a non-profit that relies on donations from generous people like you. Becoming a Coral Guardian monthly donor gives us a stable funding stream so we are able to embark on longer term, impactful projects like micro-fragmentation, safeguarding corals on land and expanding our deeper water nursery program. Your donations will go towards the purchase of the microfragmentation machines, coral planting epoxy, air tank refills, electricity to run the lab and temperature controlled tanks. Thank you so much!

What your donations support

Your generous donations help support our conservation and educational activities:

Planting of coral fragments in the Cozumel area to foster regrowth of new colonies
Research and rehabilitation of corals from human damage, disease and coral bleaching caused by climate change
Enhanced biodiversity as coral reefs are not only home to a diverse array of marine life, but also serve as vital nurseries & feeding grounds for countless species.
Fund our advocacy work to protect the corals from increased damage
Run our programs to educating visitors on the importance of corals and their conservation
Equipment for marine biologists and volunteers to clean coral structure to prevent corals from getting smothered by algae

Help us make a positive change in this world!

Equipment Donations

As some equipment is considerably more expensive or unavailable in Cozumel, we appreciate it if foreign volunteers can bring and donate some of these following items: