Research conducted through Indonesia’s Mars Coral Reef Restoration Programme has shown that coral restoration can revitalise important ecosystem functions remarkably quickly. The study involved adding substrate and transplanting corals on reefs that had been badly injured by blast fishing three or four decades earlier, and it concluded that restored coral reefs can grow at the same speed as healthy coral reefs just four years after coral transplantation. Before the scientists intervened, the reefs had not demonstrated any signs of recovery. Positive reef growth is important to keep up with sea-level rise, protect coastlines from storms and erosion, and provide habitat for reef animals. But, the restored reef communities differ from natural ones, which may make them more sensitive to bleaching. Read more about this exciting research here.