The GCRMN was established by the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) in 1995 to monitor the condition of the world’s coral reefs. We are a network of scientists, managers and organisations that monitor the condition of coral reefs throughout the world, aiming to provide the best available scientific information on the status and trends of coral reef ecosystems for their conservation and management. The network operates across 10 regional nodes, covering the distribution of tropical coral reefs, from the Eastern Tropical Pacific, the Caribbean and Brazil, to South Asia, East Asia Seas, and the Pacific (Fig. 1).

The flagship products developed by this global network are the “Status of Coral Reefs of the World” reports, which are often supplemented by topical reports developed upon request from the global community and ICRI. The Regional Coordinators, those who manage each of the Network’s regions, also work collaboratively with national data contributors to produce regional reports;  highlighting the status and trends of coral reefs at the regional level, often providing greater analytical granularity. Since 1995, we have produced six “Status of Coral Reefs of the World” global reports with the latest, the sixth edition of the GCRMN “Status of Coral Reefs of the World” report released in 2021. This report was a herculean effort by the entirety of the network and formed the first ever quantitative global analysis of the world’s coral reefs. The report’s development relied upon the efforts of over 300 members of the network with the global dataset spanning over 40 years from 1978 to 2019, and consisted of almost 2 million observations, from more than 12,000 sites in 73 reef-bearing countries.

By compiling and analysing a global coral reef monitoring data set, the Network evidenced that, from 2008 – 2019, a 14% decrease in live coral on the world’s coral reefs was recorded, likely driven recurring large-scale coral bleaching events, with declines also observed in 1998 and throughout the reporting period (Fig. 2). 

Through this publication, we were able to demonstrate the urgent need for national, regional, and international cooperation, strong commitment, and immediate action to conserve, protect and restore coral reefs; halting, and ideally reversing, biodiversity loss in the coming decades. The GCRMN forms a critical mechanism to support Nations in implementing, and achieving, their commitments and targets, such as those adopted under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). 

However, recognising this critical decade for coral reefs, and the mounting threats and pressures on coral reefs (e.g., the Fourth Global Bleaching Event announced by ICRI and NOAA in April 2024), as well as the commitments made by countries to 2030, the GCRMN is calling for coral reef monitoring data contributions for the development of its seventh “Status of Coral Reefs of the World” global report, which we aim to release this next edition in 2026 (Fig. 3).

We are inviting all stakeholders, managers, and organisations, including GEF projects, to contribute their coral reef monitoring data and to collaborate in the next Global Report. We will aim to describe the temporal trends of hard coral and algal cover (ideally macro, turf, and coralline algae) at the global level, providing an update of the “Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2020” report.

We are particularly interested in data that describe the percentage cover of benthic organisms including additional information such as spatial management including marine protected areas. Your data can be contributed in any format, from Excel csv through to published data and data repositories, and we are available to support data standardisation processes. We have created a dedicated website as well as additional resources including a Data Sharing Agreement and Guide for Data Contributors to support your contribution which are available in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. 

We welcome all coral reef monitoring data and encourage your collaboration to contribute to this next global stock take of the world’s coral reefs. If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact Data Collation team, the GCRMN Coordinator, or the ICRI Secretariat, or via the GCRMN Contact Page.

About the project

The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, an operational network of the International Coral Reef Rescue Initiative. The GEF 7 Coral Reef Rescue project is a global initiative that is working to safeguard globally significant climate refuge reefs in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Indonesia, Philippines, Madagascar, and Tanzania. For more information, please contact Ms. Neelam Bhan, Project Coordinator at nbhan@wcs.org  or visit the dedicated page on iwlearn.net

The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) is a network of scientists, managers and organisations that monitor the condition of coral reefs throughout the world, aiming to provide the best available scientific information on the status and trends of coral reef ecosystems for their conservation and management. The GCRMN was established by the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) in 1995 to monitor the condition of the world’s coral reefs. The GCRMN has published an extensive range of global, regional, and thematic reports on coral reef status and trends. The GCRMN collates and presents coral reef data, aggregating from national to regional levels, and then to a global level.

GCRMN has three primary goals, with capacity building as a fourth, overarching priority. Specific objectives are identified under each goal: 

• Goal 1. Improve understanding of coral reef status and trends, globally and regionally 
• Goal 2. Analyse and communicate coral reef biophysical, social, and economic trends, providing science-based recommendations in support of raising awareness, management and policy development
• Goal 3. Enable and facilitate greater utilization of coral reef data, including in research
• Goal 4. Build human and technical capacity to collect, analyse and report biophysical and socio-economic data on coral reefs.

The actions of the GCRMN are guided by an Implementation and Governance Plan (IGP), which became operational in January 2019. To ensure the IGP remains fit for purpose it is reviewed and revised periodically, including at least in 2025 and 2030, corresponding to milestones of the Sustainable Development Goals and the post-2020 biodiversity framework.

The plan establishes operational practices for the GCRMN, including strengthening the role and importance of the regions in coordinating and organising the aggregation and reporting of data, outlining procedures for ensuring data quality in the provision of key indicators from varied but comparable methods, and governance of the GCRMN under the umbrella of a Steering Committee which includes members of ICRI and is chaired by a host institution.

The implementation of the GCRMN is led by a Global Coordinator, who is supported by a host institution, and who works closely with:

• Regional Coordinators of the Regional Networks
• Time-bound Task Forces mandated by a Steering Committee
• Relevant technical experts providing input when needed

Participation in the GCRMN is voluntary, based on the shared goals and objectives of the GCRMN.