In 2002, Huang Hui, a researcher of the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, went diving near Xisha. In addition to getting an irremovable suntan (晒黑), she was left with memories of a beautiful experience with clear water and abundant colorful corals (珊瑚). However, much of the breathtaking scenery of this reef has disappeared due to climate change and human activities. All of these factors led to the decline of the coral reef in the near shore waters. "We started to cultivate corals near the Xisha Islands in 2010, and restored more than 200,000 square meters of coral reefs," Huang said.
In 2004, when Huang was attending the 10th International Coral Reef Symposium, she found herself the only representative from the Chinese mainland. She said she felt sad but she made up her mind to strengthen communication with other countries to improve China's level and status in coral research. She visited top coral research institutes in the US and Australia, establishing long-term cooperation with some of the world's top coral researchers. By far, Huang has worked on coral research and protection for 22 years. Now, China is in a leading position in terms of technology and coral planting scale.
Huang believes that people's consciousness of coral protection matters most to the sustainable development of the coral reefs. "I want to call on more people to love nature and look at the ocean in awe," Huang said.
Partly due to her efforts, Hainan Province released a law in 2017 banning reef exploitation (开发), trading and damaging.
Huang works as a consultant for customs and frontier police on coral protection and promotes coral protection in her local schools. Huang also provides online free training for divers to teach them proper behavior in the sea to protect coral reefs.
"A group of ‘folk scientists' have also been trained with the hope that more people can gain awareness of the significance of coral reef protection and know how to protect them," said Huang.
"I am 50, and when I become 60, I hope that not only a coral island will be built but a sustainable development pattern will also be created," said Huang. "The ideal state is that the coral island should be able to support fishermen and preserve the ecosystem," she added.
