 to do it soon, and we need to do it fast. And what better time to do it than in 2018, the International Year of the Reef?
Life on Earth needs coral reefs. They are the "rainforests of the sea," supporting 25 percent of all marine life, protecting our shores, feeding our people, providing pharmaceutical solutions and breathtaking natural playgrounds that underpin economies around the world. Yet coral reefs are among the most endangered ecosystems on the planet.
Running from north of Miami down to Key West in the south, right on Florida's doorstep, lies the Florida Reef Tract—the third largest barrier reef in the world and the only barrier coral reef in the continental U.S.
The Florida Reef Tract was once dominated by two species of reef-building coral, staghorn (Acropora cervicornis) and elkhorn (Acropora palmata). It now hosts just three percent of the once-dominant staghorn and Elkhorn cover that it had in the 1970s. These became some of the first corals to be included on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species, and are both now listed as "Critically Endangered"—one step away from a listing of "Extinct in the Wild."
At the current rate we are losing them, all shallow water coral reef systems could be functionally extinct in the next 80 years. As the Netflix documentary, Chasing Coral, so powerfully revealed, the crisis gripping our oceans is dramatic, but also, unfortunately, invisible to most people.
Films like Chasing Coral are vital as they are helping to bring the death of our coral reefs to light, generating a groundswell of awareness and action, at a time when it is now essential that we act together to save and restore these precious ecosystems. Thankfully, we have the data and technology to enable us to do just that.
One organization is offering a practical way of bringing coral reefs back from the brink of extinction—the Coral Restoration Foundation, based in Key Largo, Florida.
Over the last decade, the Coral Restoration Foundation (CRF) has developed a science-driven method for "farming" and "outplanting" colonies of staghorn and elkhorn, in an effort to bring these species back from the brink of extinction.
By hanging finger-sized fragments of these corals to grow on Coral Trees™, suspended in the nutrient-and-sunlight-rich water column, Coral Restoration Foundation can produce colonies that are large enough to be planted onto the reef in just six to nine months. With around 500 Coral Trees™ across seven large nurseries, to date, CRF has now planted more than 66,000 corals back onto the Florida Reef Tract.
CRF's outplanted coral thickets are now spawning naturally—evidence that the method is working, and that with a little help, these damaged reefs could eventually return themselves to a healthy state.
Thanks to collaborations with organizations such as NOAA, The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Universities, Georgia Aquarium, Force Blue, Florida Aquarium, dive operators, private businesses and the local community, Coral Restoration Foundation has recently been able to shift its mission into higher gear: Their focus in the U.S. is now on fully restoring eight reef sites along the Florida Reef Tract.
It is a massive undertaking, but with the methodologies at our disposal, and the right support, it is a very achievable goal. But to be truly successful, the most important partner CRF needs, is you.
The Coral Restoration Foundation has practical ways that you can get involved, both on and off the water: Recreational dive programs let you help in the Coral Tree Nurseries, outplant corals and monitor reefs that are in the process of being restored. You can also take part in CRF's events, volunteer programs, educational activities and donations drives.
You may feel powerless in the face of the threats to our oceans, but you are not alone; there are hundreds of thousands of oceans advocates around the globe, working right now on protecting the planet's marine ecosystems. And, in the same way that CRF's tiny coral fragments have the potential to grow into large, healthy, reproductive coral thickets, every tiny, individual, positive action adds up to make an enormous difference.
You can learn more about what can be done to save our coral reef ecosystems, and join the mission in a meaningful way on April 28, at Raise the Reef 2018, Coral Restoration Foundation's 6th Annual Gala. Click here for more details and to buy tickets. For more information on the Coral Restoration Foundation, visit the website.
Coral Restoration Foundation is a non-profit marine conservation organization dedicated to restoring reefs to a healthy state, in Florida and globally. Through large-scale cultivation, outplanting and monitoring of genetically diverse corals, CRF works to support the reefs' natural recovery processes. CRF engages and empowers others in the mission with dive programs, educational activities, scientific collaborations and outreach.Bring more traffic to your website through organic search listings. We make your website appear on the first page of SERPs with our brilliant SEO strategies.
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Processes should I choose?
RPA is best suited to highly manual and repetitive activities. Typical task examples include data entry, reconciliation, data transfer, report generation, data processing, archiving, and data mapping. Within financial services specifically, common use cases include client onboarding, mortgage approvals, invoice processing, loan processing, account opening and closing, trade execution, and KYC.
Based on the technical suitability criteria above, what % of the overall task/process can be automated (higher % the better).
Happy to get associated with Mr. Shiv Kumar. We can now cover a large client base and can enjoy a better presence than our competitors.
Thanks for bringing our work to the upfront in the business world. They delivered the work much before time. We are happy to get such partners.
Greate work experience with Mr. Shiv Kumar, as a freelancer we give him the projects, he delivered the project on time.I'm trying to think if I have anything else to say to you today about pretty boys. Hrm. Oh, right, let's turn our attention over to Wolfie at Back2Stonewall.com to admits to his love affair with Spencer Pratt from The Hills, who (apparently) recently turned down a role as a gay porn star with legendary producer Michael Lucas. I am not familiar with the show, but Wolfie gives us a great slideshow that makes me wonder what a Pratt porn would be like... something I'd probably watch, of course.
- Scott Hoover -- That's his picture to your right. His work tends toward the commercial; you will probably recognize some of the images from advertisements, or you will recognize the theme of a lot of them as having been in other advertisements.
- Kristopher Kelly -- Kelly is much more sexual in his work, and far more editorial than commercial. In fact, when you go to look at his "feature" page, you get a disclaimer telling you that there are no full nudes... but there are some that skirt the level of appropriateness for a work setting. In short: NSFW.
- John Gress -- Very commercial work. Almost all of his shots would be appropriate for clothing advertisements (I think that's where everything comes from). A lot of homoeroticism involved, and, of course, quite a bit of sexuality (if you can call the "lifting the bottom of my shirt shy-boy look true "sexuality"). Of course, full back nudity has nothing to do with clothing and quite a bit to do with sexuality.
- Fred Goudon -- Probably my favorite of all these listed. Extremely hot men pictured in amazing poses and with great looks. I don't even know how to describe, so I'll just give you a picture to describe for me:
These are, of course, thanks to our friends over at Just Beautiful Men who have an ongoing list of great photographers for you to check out. And your shameless objectification of the male body blog of the day:
Gay Body Blog. Posts a couple of time a month, the author has this to say about his work: "Gay Body Blog is a blog that celebrates male beauty and all of its parts. Geared towards the gay man, this blog will explore what makes us guys work so hard to get that perfect body, and what also allows us to sit back and enjoy the view." And, boy, do we thank you for taking the time to give us such -- ahem -- excellent views like thus:
1 comment:
these boys are all cute and all that but what i want to know is when are you going to be showing some boys with unshaven chests on this blog?!Michael Jordan is suited up in court, defending his name and his image from unauthorized use. We find out what the case could mean for His Airness and for other athletes and celebrities. Target is doing away with in-store gender specific labeling on some products. Is it a “boy” toy or a “girl” toy...or is it just a toy? Roller Derby turns 80 years old today...and it was born here in Chicago. We talk about the history of roller derby, and how it’s become a symbol of female empowerment in the new millennium. And musicians and dancers have come together to re-interpret a legendary jazz suite that was originally