A (very) long overdue post on the Reef Celebrations held at Botany Centre, Singapore Botanic Gardens on 8 and 9 Aug 2008.

Much fun was had by all at the event, although there were a couple of hic-cups along the way.

At the 11th hour, we were informed that our Guest-of-honour, Prof Tommy Koh, was called away, which left Francis (Chariman IYOR 08 Singapore) and Prof Chou (our keynote speaker) to hold the fort. Francis, ever the charmer, managed to hold the attention of the almost 100-strong audience, with his vision of what the IYOR 08 Singapore could achieve - a coral paradise in Singapore by 2018.

Francis at the podium speaking to the packed Function Hall.

Prof Chou’s keynote address was interesting - it was, at once, funny, sobering, and filled with hope for our beloved reefs.

Prof Chou, relating his experience with Singapore reefs, and possibilities for the future.

Sivasothi, considered by many to one of the “founding fathers” of the conservation volunteer movement in Singapore, also gave his perspective on the effectiveness of marine conservation NGOs in getting the conservation message across to the public.

The programme also included a ceremonial handing over of a donation by TMX Pte Ltd, the owner of Asian Dive Expo and Boat Asia to the IYOR 08 Singapore committee. The monies were collected during the last Dive Expo, and amounted to S$5,000, which was to be used for marine conservation events.</p