Red Sea Research Center established at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
Wednesday April 13, 2011
Thuwal, Makkah, Saudi Arabia -The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) Red Sea Research Center (RSRC) was inaugurated this week and heralded by local and international faculty for its potential to further marine science research.
"The University has extraordinary access to the Red Sea on its doorstep. This is the kind of opportunity that oceanographers dream of…. it is a wonderful chance for compelling research," explained Professor James Luyten, RSRC Director, during his welcome remarks at the RSRC Symposium in the Campus Conference Center.
Speaking to an array of local and international academics and researchers, Prof. Luyten discussed the RSRC's "unique" opportunity for research in the Red Sea and how collaboration with institutions worldwide will play a major role in this.
"We cannot manage or develop a sustainable environment or fisheries unless we understand the ecosystem – beyond the individual elements in isolation. This requires an understanding that extends from genes and genera, to winds and waves," said Prof. Luyten.
"The RSRC at KAUST cannot carry out this research alone. We need to develop collaborations in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East."
Dr. Sameer J. Ghazi, Presidential Deputy for Environmental Affairs, Presidency for Metrology and Environment (PME) emphasized the need for collaboration in Red Sea Research during his speech at the RSRC inauguration. He explained that the RSRC would be the "main partner" in "helping the PME achieve sustainable development and protecting the marine environment of the Red Sea."
Dr. Ghazi said that a "memorandum of understanding" had been reached with several Saudi universities to carry out environmental research that will promote "the protection of marine environment and nature resources."
He said: "This information and data will help environmental protection authorities to formulate, review and revise their strategies, policies and regulations and achieve our common and shared goal of protection of environment, public health and the welfare of citizens.
"In this context, I would like to call upon KAUST to take lead in this field. PME will be more than willing to cooperate and support KAUST in these endeavors."
Through multidisciplinary research, the RSRC will focus on developing an integrated understanding of Red Sea coral reef ecosystems and their oceanographic context.
The center provides state-of-the-art facilities and readily available resources for researchers and staff. The RSRC hopes to help lead development of a knowledge base for the Red Sea and its unexplored waters.
Professor Terry Hughes, Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, James Cook University (Australia) said that there is a "real opportunity" for research in the Red Sea.
He said: "A third of papers currently published on the Red Sea are taxonomic in that someone who lives outside the region will come to the area for a few weeks or less, where they will gather information and take that back to their institution in another country.
"Here at the RSRC, however, there is an exciting opportunity here to do much more interesting, cutting-edge research that is longer-term and larger-in-scale."
RSRC academic partnerships began in 2008 with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and the American University in Cairo. These collaborations have resulted in 32 publications in scientific journals thus far (recent examples include Dr. Feras Lafi's paper on Red Sea sponges and Dr. Christian Voolstra's research on the effects of climate change on coral reefs).
The RSRC also collaborates in the private sector with Saudi Aramco, the National Institute of the Oceanography and Fisheries (Egypt) and the Regional Intergovernmental Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden (PERSGA).
RSRC Symposium
To celebrate the Inauguration of the RSRC, the University hosted a three-day symposium that brought together researchers from around the world who are working to understand the Red Sea's environment.
The Symposium emphasized two aspects - results from recent expeditions, field and modeling work in the Red Sea and potential application of research results on similar systems.
Red Sea Research Center
The Red Sea Research Center at KAUST will develop an integrated understanding of coral reef ecosystems and their oceanographic context - the physical, chemical, biological and geological environment, the stresses arising from natural as well as anthropogenic factors including overfishing, pollution, coastal development, and global climate change.
The primary focus of the Red Sea Research Center is developing a scientific basis for sustaining and conserving coral reef environments along the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia.
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is an international, graduate research university committed to advancing science and technology through multidisciplinary research, education and innovation.
The University's unique matrix structure supports basic and goal-oriented research in the globally significant areas of energy, water, food and environment to benefit Saudi Arabia and beyond.
Located on the Red Sea, KAUST is the realization of a decade-long vision of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
The University is governed by an independent, self-perpetuating Board of Trustees and supported by a generous endowment.