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IOLR Prof. Buki Rinkevich Speaks at the JNF Sustainability Summit

IOLR Researcher Presents at the JNF Sustainability Summit

Prof. Buki Rinkevich of IOLR gave a presentation at the first Jewish National Fund (JNF) Sustainability Summit, which took place in Las Vegas, Nevada on Sunday, April 28, 2013. He joined a panel called "Israeli Innovation That Makes the World A Better Place," where he spoke about restoring coral reefs.

Coral reef restoration research presented at the JNF Sustainability Summit
Coral reef restoration research shared at the summit

Moving Coral Reef Restoration Forward

For many years, Prof. Rinkevich and his colleagues at IOLR's National Institute of Oceanography have been developing aquaculture techniques that enable active restoration of declining coral reefs. His methods, proven through successful trials on Israel's reefs in the Gulf of Eilat, have been taken up by leading international funders of environmental restoration. Pilot projects to replant coral reefs are now running in tropical waters around the world.

At the summit, JNF brought Israeli innovators together with young JNF leaders from across the United States for the first time to examine global sustainability initiatives. Prof. Rinkevich shared the panel with Michael Granoff of Better Place, who covered Israeli innovation in electric vehicle infrastructure; Naty Barak of Netafim, the global leader in drip irrigation; and Rachel Ishofsky of Innovation Africa, which brings Israeli solar electric and agritech technologies to rural African villages.

Other panels included "From Start-Up Nation to Partnership Nation," with Patricia Mulroy, General Manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, speaking on modernizing southern Nevada's water infrastructure; Booky Oren, who presented on Israeli startups shaping the water infrastructure industry; Sharon Megdal, Director of the Water Resources Research Center at the University of Arizona, who pointed to Israeli and JNF water solutions relevant to the Colorado River watershed; and Prof. Alon Tal of the Arava Institute, who addressed the role of regulation in sustainable water markets.

Prof. Rinkevich's presentation drew a warm response. Attendees saw the parallels between JNF forest planting and coral reef replanting—both are hands-on interventions that rebuild sustainable ecological communities and enrich the natural world. IOLR works with JNF USA on coral reef restoration research projects.

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Coral reef restoration depends on science that can be applied in the water, and IOLR's aquaculture work is designed for exactly that. Stories like this one show how Israeli marine research travels from the Gulf of Eilat to reefs around the world, often through partnerships with supporters such as JNF USA.