The Australian Government, through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, is hosting the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) for 2012-13 in partnership with the Government of Belize.

Over the two years, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority will be involved in a range of activities including hosting a series of meetings of ICRI members.

The ICRI is an informal partnership among governments, international organisations, non-government organisations and the private sector.

It strives to preserve coral reefs and related ecosystems around the world by implementing Chapter 17 of Agenda 21, adopted by the international community at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and calls for the protection and rational use of oceans, seas and coastal areas.

The initiative contributes to raising awareness on the importance of and threats to coral reefs and related ecosystems, recognising that they are facing serious pressure. 

The ICRI secretariat is usually hosted by one of the founding country members (i.e. the governments of Australia, France, Japan, Jamaica, the Philippines, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America) for two years.  It has been hosted in tandem with another nation in the last ten years.

To find out more about the International Coral Reef Initiative:	Visit the ICRI website www.icriforum.org	Follow ICRI on Facebook	Tweet about ICRI on Twitter