The Problem
Reefs sustain 500 million livelihoods and Australia's $6 billion reef economy. Yet reef change is outpacing our ability to monitor and respond. Across Sea Country, ranger groups carry stewardship responsibility but lack scalable, AI-enabled tools to convert field observations into the timely climate intelligence that community-led reef stewardship depends on.
The Solution
Our solution combines in-water reef image collection with artificial intelligence to generate accessible, large-scale reef intelligence. During the Great Reef Census, Sea Country rangers and local participants capture standardised reefscape images and upload them to the Citizens of the Reef platform, where a scientifically validated human–AI system analyses coral cover, bleaching, rubble, and reef condition with 97–99% accuracy compared to expert assessment. Interactive maps and dashboards then surface priority reefs, thermal refugia, coral trends, and areas requiring intervention - turning observations across 300 reefs (25% of the 2,300km system) into actionable insights for reef managers.
Alongside the platform, we enable structured training in safe survey methods, digital workflows, AI-assisted analysis, and data interpretation. Participants build skills in freediving, ecological monitoring, climate data literacy, and resilience mapping. The result is a scalable, cost-effective system that strengthens local capability, improves access to reef intelligence, and supports informed, community-led Sea Country stewardship. greatreefcensus.org
Stats
Over the past four years, more than 15,000 virtual volunteers and citizen scientists across 120+ countries have analyzed coral imagery through the Great Reef Census platform.
