Marine Innovation Hub Punta Cana

Last September, we shared our vision to expand our coral restoration efforts with a new facility in Playa Blanca. Today, we are excited to report that the support of Grupo Puntacana, The Nature Conservancy, Oceankind Foundation, and donors like you are making this dream a reality—and we want to take you behind the scenes of this critical moment in our project.

Progress So Far:

• The main building structure is complete, providing a sturdy foundation for our work, offices, and laboratories.

• The outdoor coral nursery framework is now almost complete! Once finished, this nursery will hold 32 new propagation tanks, dramatically increasing our capacity to grow and rehabilitate vulnerable coral species.

• Our wet lab, quarantine room, marine feed production, and marine organism reproduction labs’ concrete structures have not yet been completed— these are key upgrades to safeguard biodiversity and scale our impact.

Why This Matters: This facility is not just a building—it is a lifeline for our conservation efforts here in Punta Cana. This expansion will allow us to:

• Triple our coral propagation capacity to restore local degraded reefs.

• Enhance our efforts to bolster local marine species populations through our fish and herbivore reproduction programs.

• Pioneer and test new techniques and technologies in coral restoration and resilience research.

What’s next?

We have a ways to go before opening our doors to the public. If all goes according to schedule, the new building will be finished by May 2024, and we can begin moving into our new home this summer! We’re deeply grateful to everyone who has contributed so far. Together, we can turn concrete and tanks into thriving reefs—and ensure future generations inherit an ocean full of life.