The Great Barrier Reef Foundation (GBRF) invests in science that will maximise the sustainability of the Great Barrier Reef for the benefit of all Australians. Its project investments stem from two sources:
Project Partnerships have been established for large investments where corporations are seeking to invest in discrete science projects and programs.
The ZooXTM Fund was established in 2007 to provide a way for everyone, philanthropists, foundations, companies and their staff and customers and the general public to do something positive about climate change.
Key features of the research projects which the Fund has invested in so far are:
- Each project has opened up new areas of research (acidification research is a good example);
- Each has an applied focus, with the potential for results to be directly translated into management actions a defining project attribute;
- Each project features collaborations of scientists, bringing best practice globally into local GBR project initiatives;
- While it is difficult to say that one project is more important than another, the science GBRF funds is recognised by established metrics as strong science. The lists of scientists authoring papers and the number of publications all attest, in formal terms, to the quality of the people and projects on whom and which we are focused;
- The sum of the project parts and their application to management response planning is where the Foundation’s effectiveness will be tested. The Foundation is confident these projects add directly to that response capability.