From an early age, I dreamed of snorkeling in the Maldives. This can be traced back to my favorite documentary series, Blue Planet. The marine world, filled with explosions of color lying beneath turquoise waters, left a deep impression on me. However, when I eventually visited the islands to go snorkeling, I realized it was completely different from the ocean I had pictured.
As I dived into the water, I was left in shock. Despite the different species of marine animals all living together, the reef was not beautiful in the flawless way that I had expected. Between the purple and orange clusters of corals, patches of white coral that seemed extremely brittle were an upsetting sight.
The patches of white coral stood out against the bright fish that were swimming above them, and most were visibly damaged. As I came onshore, I noticed fenced off sections with ‘Reef Regeneration Area’ signs, in which new corals were planted in neat rows to save those corals that were already bleached and damaged. The resort was clearly trying to repair their reefs that were already lost or bleached by the sun.
What I did not understand then was that most of the actions that were hurting the corals were not done intentionally or out of cruelty; for example, the boats with particularly loud engines that brought us there, the rubbish that had fallen into the ocean, or even the accidental kick of a fin. These things were not intended to hurt and damage the reefs, yet intention does not excuse the detrimental impacts caused.
The more times I went snorkeling, the more I noticed signs of people’s presence. There were water bottles floating near the shore, and also patches of corals that had been snapped, perhaps by an anchor. While these actions cannot be considered malicious, it underscored that this paradise was not equipped to cater to this level of tourism.
I. �The Disruption of the Reef
Following our trip, I learned that the number of tourists visiting the Maldives had exploded since the turn of the millennium. According to the Maldives Ministry of Tourism (2020), annual arrivals increased from fewer than 500,000 in the early 2000s to over 1.7 million by 2019. More tourists generated more business, which meant more boats whose anchors and propellers scarred the reef, more sunscreen chemicals accumulating in the water, and more plastic waste. Although each individual visitor may seem harmless, the weight of their collective actions has become something the reef cannot bear.
A 2024 study, which assessed threats to tropical marine ecosystems in Southeast Asia, indicated that tourism and recreation rank among the top two human activities most damaging to coral reef habitats (Culhane et al., 2024).
When new hotels and resorts are constructed near the reefs, people do not consider the negative impact. This made me ponder whether our impact on animals generally results from ignorance rather than from direct violence.
II. The Systems Shaping the Reef
To better understand, it is first necessary to comprehend what corals are. A single coral is a colony of hundreds or thousands of polyps that secrete a hard calcium carbonate skeleton. Hard corals build reefs whereas soft corals lack a solid skeleton but still form part of the ecosystem (NOAA, 2023). Inside each polyp live microscopic algae called zooxanthellae, which provide the coral with its color and most of its energy through photosynthesis (Rossi et al., 2022).
When ocean temperatures rise due to human‑induced climate change, it experiences coral bleaching by expelling the algae and turning white (Dove et al., 2018). Bleached coral is not dead, but they are starving due to the lack of food from the interrupted photosynthesis processes. Eventually, if the heat stress continues and temperatures rise further, the whole colony of corals will die (Hughes et al., 2018). In 2024, the world experienced the Fourth Global Coral Bleaching Event, driven by record‑breaking ocean heat linked to greenhouse gas emissions (Szereday et al., 2025). Some regions recorded up to 85 percent of corals affected, with average live coral cover losses of 23 percent (Spalding et al., 2025, Summary section). In the Gulf of Thailand, sea surface temperatures were 0.54°C higher than the previous year, triggering bleaching in nearly 45 percent of coral colonies and reducing hard live coral cover by 19 percent (Szereday et al., 2025, p.� 7).
Not all corals are equally vulnerable; branching species such as staghorn and elkhorn are structurally fragile and amongst the most prized by the aquarium trade. These species often experience the highest mortality during bleaching events (Szereday et al., 2025).
However, the damage to coral reefs is not only from climate‑driven bleaching, because human choices also cause harm to the reefs in more subtle ways. In contrast to killing or physically abusing an animal, the impacts on corals are often indirect. A tourist applying sunscreen may not realize that the chemicals wash off the skin into the water and accumulate on the reef, and this lack of awareness is a serious problem. Research conducted in the Maldives discovered that even sunscreens labelled ‘reef safe’ can cause severe tissue loss and pigmentation damage in corals within hours of exposure (Rücker et al., 2025). Similarly, plastic waste and discarded fishing gear can smother coral colonies, whilst nutrient pollution from untreated wastewater fuels algal blooms that suffocate reefs (The SEA People, 2024).
Physical damage such as dropping anchors on reefs, boats propellers churning over shallow areas, and even accidental kicks of snorkelers can break fragile branching corals and therefore pose another indirect threat. In areas with heavy tourism, the time available for recovery between disturbances is dramatically reduced, leaving reefs more vulnerable to cumulative damage (Culhane et al., 2024). The most frequented dive sites often have the most extensive damage, as the very presence of visitors adds to the stress these ecosystems face.
Thus, these specific indirect factors are less visible than a poacher’s catch or a factory farm’s confinement, but their impacts are no less real. They arise from a combination of ignorance, convenience, and the sheer scale of tourism.
Beyond the visible impacts of tourism and the crisis of climate change, another human system has been quietly shaping the fate of corals for decades: the global aquarium trade. This lucrative industry, valued at over $2 billion, relies heavily on the wild harvest of corals directly from colonies in the reefs (Rhyne and Tlusty, 2023). Each year, more than 1.5 million coral colonies are taken from reefs, with Indonesia and Fiji amongst the largest exporters (Coral Reef CPR, 2016). In various regions, collectors break off living coral with hammers and chisels, leaving permanent gaps and scars on the reef (Australian Marine Conservation Society, 2025). In Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the Queensland Coral Fishery is permitted to extract up to 190 tons of coral annually, much of it exported overseas (AMCS, 2025).
The marine aquarium trade industry is growing significantly, yet the vast majority of marine ornamental organisms are still taken from the wild, with only 10 percent produced through aquaculture (Sinha et al., 2023, p. 2). Whilst captive coral propagation offers a sustainable alternative for the trading of corals, most of the trade continues to rely on harvesting reefs that are already struggling to survive.
All of the human systems described have something in common, and it is that their impact on corals is largely invisible. A factory farm or a poacher’s kill makes headlines, but a reef turning white does not. Corals do not attract the same media attention as animals suffering or being mistreated. The corals that are dying largely go unnoticed, and their suffering is silent and out of sight.
This is a different kind of cruelty, but cruelty, nonetheless. Corals are being killed by human choices, just as surely as animals hunted for their tusks or confined in factory farms. They cannot cry out and cannot flee. Yet they are living beings that lay the foundation for one‑quarter of all marine species (NOAA, 2023). When a reef dies, the entire ecosystem in that area collapses. Crucially, it is not only the corals that suffer: the fish, crustaceans, and countless other creatures that depend on the reef also lose their home in the process (Klompmaker et al., 2013; Arias-Godínez et al., 2019).
If we extend compassion only to animals that look or act like us, we ignore most of the life on Earth. Human empathy tends to flow most easily toward mammals, especially those with expressive faces or social structures we recognize (Raccanello et al., 2025). However, the vast majority of animal species, from corals and crustaceans to insects, live and suffer in ways foreign to our own. Responsibility, then, means learning to perceive suffering even when it is not readily apparent. It means recognizing that a bleached coral is not just a dead rock, but a community of animals pushed to its limit by human systems. Moreover, it means considering whether we are willing to change those systems before the silent victims are completely eradicated.
III. The Restoration of the Reef
My family had kept a saltwater tank for years, and we used to purchase corals taken from the wild. Some came from Bali and Australia – reefs already under pressure. Regrettably, I never really thought about where they came from until after our trip to the Maldives, which made me reflect on my own culpability.
Subsequently, my dad and I started researching more sustainable ways to continue our hobby. We learned about coral propagation, namely, growing corals from small fragments instead of taking them from the ocean. Then we built a small marine farm at home that eventually developed into a family project called ‘Coral Echoes.’ Today, we grow corals sustainably and sell them to other aquarium enthusiasts who want an alternative to wild‑harvested coral. It is our way of demonstrating that you can enjoy the beautiful things from the ocean without contributing to its decline.
We cannot stop rising ocean temperatures or reverse decades of pollution but we can offer an alternative to wild harvesting and reduce the number of disappearing corals. Each coral we grow is one less taken from a reef, and every customer who chooses captive‑bred over wild‑caught learns to be a responsible coral enthusiast.
Protecting coral reefs requires active responsibility.
Education and the dissemination of information enable individuals to recognize the consequences of routine actions, such as sunscreen application, tourism practices, aquarium purchases, and the importance of choosing alternatives that reduce harm. The damage inflicted by human systems is not inevitable, in fact, it is the result of choices that can be reconsidered. Compassion, in this context is about identifying points within complex systems where individual and collective change is possible. The destruction of coral reefs is a major problem, but it is the result of countless decisions, each of which can be redirected towards sustainability.
A world without tourism is unrealistic, and the rise in global temperatures will not cease overnight. Yet the absence of a perfect solution does not justify passivity, hence, the task is to strike a balance to protect competing interests.
People should endeavor to pursue more sustainable forms of travel, and reduce the cumulative pressures of human activity in fragile ecosystems, while also acknowledging that our everyday choices carry weight far beyond what we initially perceive.
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