I.CARE Co-Founders Dr. Kylie Smith and Michael Goldberg first met during the summer of 2017. Kylie reached out to the Key Dives owner to be the support shop for the research she was conducting for her graduate work at Clemson University. Each time she came into the dive shop, Mike would launch into a discussion about what he was seeing on the reefs to gain a scientific understanding behind his observations. As time went on, these discussions moved from the dive shop between tank fills to over a beer at the local beer garden at The Florida Keys Brewing Company This is where the idea of I.CARE was born in December 2018.

Kylie and the Key Dives crew met for a beer after the local Reef Futures conference to catch up. True to Mike Goldberg fashion, he was full of questions about what information was presented at the conference. Kylie was excited to learn more about the conservation efforts ramping up at Key Dives, specifically the marine debris clean-up dives. It didn’t take long for the two to put together the idea for I.CARE; combining the science, technology, and best practices for successful coral restoration with the passion for marine conservation that only recreational divers have! Mike and Kylie started reaching out to contacts with Mote Marine Lab, permitting agencies (the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and the FWC), and other Islamorada dive shops and all were in full support! In January 2021, I.CARE officially transplanted their first corals to Alligator Reef!

Learn more about Kylie, Mike, and the rest of our steering committee below! If you would like more information about our work, please contact us at info@icareaboutcoral.org.

Mission, Vision, and Program Overview
Protecting Marine Life Through Education, Service, and Research

REEF was founded in 1990, out of growing concern about the health of the marine environment, and the desire to provide the SCUBA diving community a way to contribute to the understanding and protection of marine populations.

Mission
REEF conserves marine environments worldwide. Our mission is to protect biodiversity and ocean life by actively engaging and inspiring the public through citizen science, education, and partnerships with the scientific community.

Vision
REEF envisions divers and marine enthusiasts actively engaging in marine conservation. With knowledge, training and the opportunity to get involved, these marine citizen scientists make significant and ongoing contributions through REEF’s strategic partnerships with government agencies, science and academic institutions, the non-profit sector, and local communities. Divers and snorkelers are in a unique position to observe and document the many valuable and vulnerable living marine resources. They play an important role in bringing information to the surface that adds to the knowledge base of ocean ecosystems and facilitates informed decision-making. Through REEF’s efforts, marine citizen scientists impart an ethic of stewardship to current and future generations.

Overview of Programs
REEF accomplishes its mission through four main programs: the Volunteer Fish Survey Project (citizen science fish monitoring), Invasive Species Program (invasive lionfish removals, detection, and removal of other potential invaders), Grouper Moon Project (endangered species spawning aggregation research), and Explorers Education Programs (formal and informal education with various age groups). The organization has a broad geographic reach, and its work focuses on direct impact with local communities. For more details on each of these programs, visit the About pages in the Programs menu of our website.

The ADFC Story

ADFC is the brainchild of Michael Anderson, Co-Founder and President of ADFC. Over the past two decades, Michael witnessed the decline of coral reefs in the Florida Keys and Bonaire on numerous scuba diving trips, and became interested in what was causing this decline. This led him to learn about climate change, its effects on coral reefs, and what scientists are doing to mitigate coral bleaching. During this educational journey, Michael learned that the majority of efforts for coral restoration relied on volunteer scuba divers who visited these areas while on vacation, but there was a catch. Anyone interested in volunteering had to pay to become certified in coral restoration, which is a deterrent for many recreational scuba divers. Thus, coral restoration work is always in dire need of volunteers. Sympathy for the cause, coupled with his love for the marine environment, inspired Michael to  start brainstorming about how to address this dilemma. He spent two years networking with coral restoration foundations, NOAA, colleagues, and fellow aquarium divers to create a program for aquarium divers to travel together to areas around the world for coral restoration work. Thus, ADFC was born, a 501(c)3 non-profit that brings fellow aquarium divers together, gets them certified through coral restoration non-profits, and allows them to help save the coral reefs.

Co-Founders: Michael Anderson, Denise Hassinger, Allen Herron, Abby Ferkler, Ed Frankel, Elysa Leonard, Zoe Bermudez, and Michael Gallagher