Coral Triangle Day: History, Themes, and How We Can Celebrate It

The Coral Triangle is the biggest reef system that covers almost 132,636 km of area in the Western Pacific Ocean. This reef system passes through 6 countries- Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and the Salomon Islands.

Coral Triangle holds just 1.5% of the total ocean area across the globe, but the world’s 30% of coral reefs contribute to this reef system. This place is known to have the highest coral diversity, approximately 76% of the world’s coral species. This reef system is home to a huge range of coral reef fishes worldwide.

This triangular-shaped coral reef area plays a vital role in marine diversity, but unfortunately, it is under threat. The coral triangle countries (CT6) came forward to work together to protect and conserve marine diversity in the coral triangle region, which is known as the epicenter of marine diversity.

The Emergence of Coral Triangle Day

Coral Triangle Day was established by CTI-CFF (Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security) to conserve coral reef diversity. CTI-CFF is a multilateral partnership of the six countries across the region, i.e., CT6, that works together to save marine resources, coastal areas, oceanic biodiversity, etc., from the adverse effects of environmental pollution.

The day was celebrated on 9th June 2012 for the first time in conjunction with World Oceans Day. CTI-CFF observed this day to raise awareness about marine conservation, mainly focusing on the coral triangle region.

Coral Triangle Day is celebrated every year in different locations of CT6 countries, highlighting the protection of coral reefs in this region. On this day, individuals, organizations, etc., contribute through various activities such as coastal clean-up tasks, planting mangrove trees, beach parties, fashion shows, contests, ocean film festivals, seafood exhibitions, etc.

Coral Triangle Day History

Marine pollution is affecting the biodiversity of oceans, including coral reefs. Coral Triangle, the main empire of the reef system, also has to pay for marine pollution. CT6 countries observed Coral Triangle Day in 2012 to prevent the reefs of this region.

It was a great initiative taken by CT6 countries to preserve the beautiful treasure of the Western Pacific Ocean. An outlook of the journey of CT Day has been given here in brief.

CT Day 2012

It was the beginning of the celebration when WWF launched the day with its partners on the 9th of June 2012. The event was celebrated successfully under the overall banner of “Shared Waters, Shared Solutions.”

The main objective of this event was to spotlight ocean conservation to rejuvenate the coral reefs of the Coral Triangle region. Many events were organized in Indonesia by various NGOs, dive operators, individuals, etc., to raise awareness about ocean conservation.

CT Day 2013

The 2nd CT Day was celebrated with the theme “Saving the Marine Ecosystem through the Marine Coastal Clean-up Program.” More than 30000 people joined the celebrations of CT Day 2013 with a lot of enthusiasm. More than 60 individual events were organized around the Asia-Pacific Ocean region this year.

CT Day 2014

This year, in the Philippines, the celebration of Coral Triangle Day was planned with celebrity chef Bobby Chinn; This was a sustainable seafood event assisted by the WWF Coral Triangle Program and WWF-Philippines together. Hamilo Coast was the place for this event. It was the 3rd year that Bobby Chinn contributed with WWF to the CT Day celebration since its beginning.

Apart from this sustainable seafood event, the WWF Coral Triangle Program also assisted other events such as two recorded events in Fiji and Timor Leste, respectively, three recorded events in the Solomon Islands, four recorded events in Malaysia, ten recorded events in the Philippines and 16 recorded events in Indonesia.

CT Day 2015

This year the event was planned to go viral with the support of WWF. The CT Day partners organized a social media activity to enhance the profile of the event and the conservation of the Coral Triangle.

This social media activity – “I Heart the Coral Triangle,” was an Instagram completion. The motto of this competition was to encourage individuals to take photographs of natural elements that are arranged in heart shape. Then they can share these photographs on social media such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook with the hashtag #iheartcoraltriangle.

The photographs with maximum likes on social media were awarded as the competition’s winner. It was a successful event where many people celebrated the 4th CT Day.

CT Day 2016

The 5th Coral Triangle Day was celebrated under the theme “Save Coral Triangle: Stop Plastic Pollution.” The objective of the theme was to raise awareness about the protection of the marine ecosystem from threats of plastic pollution.

CTI-CFF organized a social media campaign in coordination with WWF named “#noplace4plastic”. This campaign was initiated to create a discussion to minimize plastic pollution waste to protect the coastal and marine ecosystems. A photo competition was also a part of this campaign.

CT Day 2017

The theme was “Curbing Marine Debris-Reduce Your Plastic Waste!”. NNC Indonesia at Goethe Haus, Jakarta, was the place of celebrations for the event in 2017. The event was held in coordination with CTI-CFF supported by GIZ BMUB Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape Project, WWF Indonesia, RARE, and Change.org.

CT Day 2018

By 2018, plastic waste was observed as the primary source of marine pollution. It was high time when we needed to reduce the use of plastics, especially single-use plastic. Single-use plastic was majorly getting accumulated not only in the Coral Triangle but in the oceans worldwide.

In 2018, WWF and CTI-CFF planned to run a high-profile Instagram contest to deal with single-use plastic waste problems throughout the Coral Triangle region. The Instagram campaign “#PLASTICRESISTANCE” aimed to invite people to join the event to encourage their family & friends to reduce single-use plastic.

CT Day 2019

As Indonesia is the center of the Coral Triangle region, hence the communities across Indonesia host the celebration of CT Day every year. In 2019, Indonesia celebrated the day on the 19th of June at Kusamaba Beach, Dawan, Klungkung, in East Bali. The event was held in collaboration with Coastal & Marine Resources Mgmt. Center Denpasar.

A beach clean-up activity was conducted where more than 300 individuals participated from local schools and local govt. & many other groups. These groups collected more than 250 kg of trash that mostly came from household and fishing industry sources.

CT Day 2020

The Coral Triangle is known as the Amazon Rainforest of oceans as it is the most influential marine ecology in the world. In 2020, we were going to enter the 9th edition of Coral Triangle Day. CT6 countries came together with some innovative preventive measures to protect the coral reef systems of the region. CTI-CFF conducted various events and activities to promote CT Day 2020. This event focuses not only on conserving the coral triangle region but also grabs the world’s attention toward coral reef protection across the globe.

CT Day 2021

Coral Triangle Centre (CTC) celebrates World Ocean Day on the 8th of June and World Coral Triangle Day on the 9th of June every year. This year CTC conducted a 2-day online workshop after a five-day training for educators where they shared creative teaching methods on marine conservation.

It was performed from May 22-28 in collaboration with Ludere Nusantara. Besides, they did an online collaborative musical performance on the 11th of June from 7.00 to 8.00 PM (Bali Time) as a live stream on YouTube. Further, CTC conducted a two-day exclusive learning program where participants learned in-depth about coral biology, threats they face, and their restoration methods.

The Conservation and Environment Protection Authority (CEPA) conducted different events to celebrate World Coral Triangle Day 2021. They hosted the Coral Triangle Day event out of Motupore Island, where they cleaned up the beach and planted mangroves.

They also performed coral and seaweed planting with the local community for the occasion. Several other initiatives were working to collaborate on the epicenter of global marine resources through the Coral Sea Initiative. They celebrated this occasion to raise awareness about our marine biodiversity among the population.

Also, Coral Triangle Day 2021 was celebrated by Malaysia’s Ministry of Environment and Water, Malaysia’s National CTI-CFF Coordinating Committee, and Universiti Malaysia Sabah.

They observed this occasion through a webinar called “Driving Blue Recovery for Sustainable Coral Triangle” from 2.00 – 3.00 PM (GMT + 8) on Zoom. Moreover, several organizations through the Coral Triangle Initiative tried to support and protect our ocean biodiversity by getting involved in blue recovery activities.

CT Day 2022

Like every year, last year, World Coral Triangle Day was celebrated on the 9th of June, followed by the celebration of World Ocean Day the day before. The theme of the celebration last year was “Driving Blue Recovery for a Sustainable Coral Triangle.”

Some common ways people celebrated this event included beach clean-ups, sustainable seafood dinners, beach parties, and exhibitions where individuals celebrated Coral Triangle Day under the banner.

If you belonged to one of the six Coral Triangle regions, you could still participate by following these hashtags on Twitter: #loveforcorals, #coraltriangle, #coraltriangleday.

On the 28th of June 2021, DENR CALABARZON celebrated World Coral Triangle Day by highlighting the urgency to protect the natural biodiversity area of Mabini, Batangas.

Cyan Planet celebrated World Coral Triangle Day 2021 with the message “Shared Water, Shared Solutions.”

Furthermore, Carbonreef.org spread awareness by stating the increased rate of coral bleaching over the last 40 years. According to the Coral Triangle Organization, West Papua, Indonesia, was announced as the first conservation province in the world.

Additionally, through their Twitter page, Trader Tactics raised awareness about corals by sharing the potential of coral agriculture and the discovery of medicinal functions of corals someday. Several other organizations put constant effort into conserving and restoring one of our largest ecosystems.

CT Day 2023

Coral Triangle Day 2023, began the “OceansNeedActions” campaign (theme), which promotes marine conservation and combats plastic pollution.

Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) released a Regional Plan of Action (RPOA) 2.0, which is a strategy to preserve marine biodiversity and support sustainable livelihoods. It’s a framework for the years 2021-2030.

One of the key activities was creating the Coral Triangle Conservation Fund, which funds Marine Protected Areas and Conserved Areas. USAID and the EU are supporting this initiative.

A new regulation was introduced in Likupang, North Sulawesi, which bans single-use plastics to reduce waste and protect marine ecosystems. The regulation is part of a bigger effort to safeguard marine biodiversity and support Eco-friendly tourism and fisheries.

Coral Triangle Day 2024

During Coral Triangle Day 2024, which is scheduled for June 9, numerous events and activities will focus on marine conservation and sustainability in the Coral Triangle region, which includes Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Solomon Islands. A few key points are as follows:

15th Anniversary Celebration in Manado, North Sulawesi: This major celebration will mark the 15 years of the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF). There will be a high-level forum on Blue Natural Capital, community engagement programs, and talks on sustainable marine practices.

USAID Sustainable Coral Triangle Launch: The goal of this project is to protect marine biodiversity and improve sustainable fishing practices in the Coral Triangle. Collaborations with local and international organizations, educational workshops, and community outreach will be part of the initiative.

Collaborative Conservation Efforts: The CTI-CFF and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) will hold a regional meeting to discuss marine conservation collaboration strategies. The purpose of this meeting is to strengthen partnerships and make conservation policies successful.

Ocean Film Festivals and Beach Parties: There will be ocean-themed film festivals in many cities in the Coral Triangle. It’ll feature documentaries and movies about marine life. It will feature documentaries and films about marine life and conservation. A beach party with Eco-friendly themes will also be held to celebrate the day.

Women’s Contribution in Fisheries: A special seminar will take place on recognizing the important contributions women make in the fisheries sector. The event hopes to find ways to empower and support women in sustainable fishing practices.

How to Celebrate Coral Triangle Day?

Every individual effort will make a difference to protect the most important diversity of the marine ecosystem. You can follow these tips to contribute your valuable efforts to CT Day celebrations:

• There are many events organized in the region to celebrate CT Day every year. You can be a part of any of these events.
• You can also promote these events in your known circle and ask them to join any event or activity. You can explain how deforestation, fossil fuel burning, and industrial processes cause ocean acidification through workshops or presentations.
• To implement your ideas for marine and coral reef protection, you can encourage organizations, establishments, etc. It will give you a bigger platform to implement your ideas about CT conservation.
• You can put together educational displays that show how ocean acidification affects marine life, like coral bleaching, weakening of shellfish, and disruptions of marine food chains.
• Awareness among people helps them understand any issue, such as environmental problems. Coral Triangle degradation is also a big environmental issue. that needs the world’s attention. You can raise awareness to save the region.
• Nowadays, social media is an excellent platform to raise your voice against any issue. You can use this platform to make people aware of the causes, effects, and preventive measures of the downfall of the Coral Triangle region.
• You can visit schools to interact with the students. Explain to them the importance of coral reefs in an exciting way.
• You can play some ocean and coral reefs related to clips or movies to make the students understand why the Coral Triangle needs protection.
• Create your event, make a group, and lead this event to take part in Coral Triangle Day. For Example: beach clean-ups, fundraising activities, recycling drives, etc.
• You can also organize community events on things like reducing carbon emissions, protecting marine habitats, and supporting sustainable agricultural practices to prevent further ocean acidification.
• Encourage people to stop using single-use plastic to minimize plastic waste debris in the region.

The coral reef system at Coral Triangle acts as the backbone of the world’s total coral reefs. Hence, we need to stop polluting the Triangle region to save coral reefs. Understand your responsibility and act accordingly to be an active participant.