Ben Charo

Program Coordinator

Ben has been captivated by coral reefs since his first underwater forays as an Island School student on Eleuthera, Bahamas. He is fascinated by the abundant and spectacular collections of life that exist in these underwater cities and is keenly interested in understanding how human health and well-being intersects with coral reef conservation outcomes. Prior to joining CORAL, Ben worked with the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation to help manage and develop Capitol Hill Ocean Week—an annual, marine conservation-focused conference in Washington, DC that draws over 1,000 attendees. As a 2018-2019 Watson Fellow, he embarked on a yearlong journey exploring the consequences of coral reef decline for coastal communities in Australia, Micronesia, Palau, Tuvalu, and Belize. He conducted over 100 interviews with scientists, fishermen, tour operators, artists, and others. Ben received his BA in Biology from Swarthmore College in 2018. He is also an avid runner, photographer, and musician.

Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.

Vaclav Havel