Throughout the world coral reefs and reef-dependent communities are facing significant changes. A large proportion of the world's reef resources are under threat and many have become seriously degraded. Most of these resources are found in developing countries, where large numbers of poor coastal people depend on coral reefs to support their livelihoods. As coastal populations and developments continue to expand and global warming predictions become reality, the many benefits provided by the fragile coral reef resources are increasingly threatened, undermining the livelihoods of some of the poorest people.
 
Current responses to these changes are primarily focused on the coral reef resource and only partly concerned with reef-dependent people. However, there is a growing recognition, highlighted at the 2002 World Summit for Sustainable Development, that if future development is to be sustainable and equitable, environmental and poverty concerns must be brought closer together. If we are to achieve such goals we must begin to view, understand and work with coral reefs and the reef-dependent poor in a more integrated way.
 
The Coral Ecosystem, Livelihoods and Policy (CELP) Group based at Exeter University in the UK represents a interdisciplinary team motivated by the need for integrated approaches and responses to coral reef environments. The group combines the coral reef ecology, mapping and conservation focus of the Marine Spatial Ecology Lab (MSEL) and the poverty, development and policy focus of IMM Ltd. to create a unique partnership to build bridges in understanding and action towards the sustainable and equitable development of coral reefs and reef-dependent communities.