Road Town, Tortola, April 14 – The BVI Tourist Board is inviting the Virgin Islands community to a wine tasting happy hour to honour Dr Gregor Hodgson, founder of Reef Check International on Thursday, April 15.
Dr Hodgson is a coral reef ecologist, who received his bachelors in 1979 from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and earned a PhD in zoology in 1989 from the University of Hawaii. Subsequently, he worked in Hong Kong where he served as the Environmental Sciences Manager for Binnie Black & Veatch, carrying out environmental impact assessments and baseline ecological surveys of coastal and marine areas. He designed and led integrated coastal management projects in China and Vietnam and taught at two Hong Kong universities. From 2000 to 2004, Dr. Hodgson was a visiting professor at UCLA’s Institute of the Environment and taught Environmental Science, International Coastal Management and Marine Conservation. He now works full time on marine conservation through Reef Check.
The event begins at 5:30 p.m. at Drakes Point and is hosted by Reef Check BVI. This presents an opportunity for the community to learn more about reefs throughout the Territory’s waters, its importance in maintaining our marine eco system as well as its contributions to life in the BVI. There will be a presentation by Dr Hodgson as well as the chance for guests to ask questions. Additionally, the presence of lionfish in Virgin Islands waters will be addressed.
Founded in 1996, the Reef Check Foundation is an international non-profit organization dedicated to conservation of two ecosystems: tropical coral reefs and California rocky reefs. With headquarters in Los Angeles and volunteer teams in more than 80 countries, Reef Check works to create partnerships among community volunteers, government agencies, businesses, universities, and other non-profits. Its goals are to; educate the public about the value of reef ecosystems and the current crisis affecting marine life, to create a global network of volunteer teams trained in Reef Check’s scientific methods who regularly monitor and report on reef health, to facilitate collaboration that produces ecologically sound and economically sustainable solutions, and to stimulate local community action to protect remaining pristine reefs and rehabilitate damaged reefs worldwide.
For the event wine has been donated by TICO, snacks and hors d’oeuvres are provided by Drakes Point. The organisation is asking for a $5 donation from each guest. Persons wishing to stay for dinner may also do so, but reservations are recommended. For more information, please contact reefcheckbvi@gmail.com or visit www.reefcheck.org
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