Welsh marine biologist Callum Hobbs, 26, was the scuba diver selected to travel to Indonesia as 2023 UK Advocate for what is claimed to be the world’s largest coral-restoration programme: Sheba Hope Grows.
Divernet reported in mid-May that applicants were being sought for an expenses-paid trip to Makassar in South Sulawesi, and it was DEFRA employee and ocean influencer Hobbs who came up trumps.
The Sheba initiative is named after the cat-food brand, part of Mars Sustainable Solutions (MSS), that organises it. The company was looking for an applicant with “a passion for the environment, travelling and a knack for story-telling” to join five other Sheba Advocates from different parts of the world.
Hobbs had to undertake a 10-day virtual training course with the Mars Petcare and coral-restoration team before travelling out to Indonesia to work with the local community and MSS team on Bontosuan Island, Spermonde Archipelago.
Visible from space
Over two weeks he learnt about the coral-restoration process and helped to prepare and plant the 90cm-wide steel “reef-stars” hand-made by the community to interlock on the seabed and create a stable base on which coral fragments are regrown. He also used blog posts and social media to document and share his experience.
Hope Reef Indonesia was unveiled in 2021, with a “beacon of hope visible from space” in the form of 14 x 46m letters spelling the word HOPE in the regrown coral. According to Sheba, coral growth there has shot up from 2% to 70%, fish populations have risen by 260% and there has been a 64% increase in the number of fish species.
“I have always been passionate about the preservation and protection of the ocean, so when I had the opportunity to visit the iconic Hope Reef in person, I knew I had to do everything I could to get there, and I was so happy when I got the call-up,” said Hobbs.
“Working first-hand with the local community, building and planting reef stars, and witnessing all the work that Sheba is doing was truly life-changing. Coral is a life-source to so many beings, which is why seeing the impact and taking part in Sheba’s work was so inspiring.
“It showed me there is hope for our oceans and coral reefs, if we all act now, and that’s what I hope to show others too.”
By 2029 Sheba Hope Grows aims to have restored coral reefs at key sites around the world covering more than 185,000sq m. Thirty reef-restoration sites have been launched across seven countries, with 60,000 reef-stars installed (more than 11,000 of these on Hope Reef) and 80,000sq m has been restored so far.
Overall coral cover has increased from 5% to 70%, with an accompanying 10% increase in the number of fish species, a tripling of fish populations and a doubling of fish biomass.
Also on Divernet: The Big Build: Reef-star dives in overdrive, How catfood spells hope for corals
