Maui Nui Marine Resource Council to host free live talk on coral restoration in Hawaiʻi 

Maui Nui Marine Resource Council will host the December edition of its “Know Your Ocean Speaker Series” featuring Alika Garcia and Blake Nowack of Kuleana Coral Restoration, on Dec. 6 at 5:30 p.m. in the Sphere Theater at the Maui Ocean Center.

Garcia and Nowack will share the basic methods of coral restoration being applied in Hawai’i and the approaches Kuleana Coral Restoration employs in its practice. The presentation will discuss considerations for site selection for restoration, the goals of coral restoration, how communities can use coral reef monitoring to make management decisions, and how to create a blue workforce for this growing field. 

Garcia is the Executive Director of Kuleana Coral Restoration and was born and raised on the island of Oʻahu. He is a Native Hawaiian and multi-generational subsistence fisherman with over 15 years of experience in Hawaiian commercial fishing.

Garcia studied marine biology and aquaculture at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he conducted various coral reef surveys throughout Hawaiʻi as a part of its Scientific Diving group. His approach to solving Hawaiʻi’s marine resource problems is to combine the knowledge and experience of local fishermen with modern scientific practices while using traditional Hawaiian values as a guide.

Nowack is the Science Program Manager for Kuleana Coral Restoration and comes from a diverse background in aquaculture, research, marine ecotourism, and photography. Nowack earned a degree in Marine Biology from Hawaii Pacific University in 2016 and has been working with KCR for three years. Nowack has over a decade of experience in coral propagation and husbandry and plays a key role in KCR’s monitoring program. 

The in-person event is free to attend. Seating is limited and registration is required. Registration can be completed at: https://bit.ly/KYOKCR