Jakarta, Indonesia – The stunning results of an unprecedented photojournalistic expedition have been released in the new book The Coral Triangle, a 272-page masterwork of images and essays that showcase the incredible diversity of people, places and species living amidst the world’s richest marine environment.
Implemented by WWF and the Freund Factory, the 18-month journey took wildlife photographers Jürgen Freund and Stella Chiu-Freund across the Coral Triangle, a 6 million km2 expanse of land and sea that encompasses Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.
“The goal of the Coral Triangle expedition was to demonstrate the connectivity between the wildlife and peoples of the region, the threats they face, and the partners working together to help protect this world’s centre of marine life” said Dr. Lida Pet-Soede, Head of WWF’s Coral Triangle Programme.
“We wanted the world to sit up and take notice, so we commissioned one of the world’s best wildlife photographic teams to embark on this challenging journey,” Dr. Pet-Soede added.
The book includes over 400 stunning photographs that highlight the region’s extraordinary abundance of life – coral reefs, whales, dolphins, sharks and a brilliant kaleidoscope of reef fish interspersed with essays on the Coral Triangle by conservation experts from around the world.
“Beauty is everywhere in this fragile marine environment, from the birds to the smallest creature underwater. And despite all that is being asked of it, this phenomenal place that is the Coral Triangle still holds wealth of unimaginable proportions,” remarked Stella Freund.
“Many places we visited in the Coral Triangle were small islands packed with people. Fishermen are everywhere we have been, and their lives, as well as the lives of their wives and children, are inextricably linked with the sea. The sea feeds all—and the sea is under so much pressure,” observed Stella Freund.
“The Coral Triangle is brimming with marine life but is struggling to support human demands on its finite resources. If this level of unsustainable consumption is not urgently curbed, millions of people whose lives directly depend on the sea will soon be compromised,” adds Dr. Pet-Soede.
During the release event in Jakarta, the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security (CTI-CFF) announced a selection of notable achievements over the past year, including the CTI-CFF website, CTI Learning Network Portal, and the CTI-CFF History Book. The Coral Triangle has been published by the WWF, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the Freund Factory.
The Coral Triangle will be available in selected WWF offices in the coming weeks, including Australia, Hong Kong, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Netherlands, Singapore, Switzerland, USA, and the UK.
Please refer to the Coral Triangle book webpage at www.panda.org/coraltriangle/photobook for updates on the book’s price and availablity.
