Diving into change: how a coastal cooperative confronts warming seas

Early on a humid Tuesday morning, the scent of sea‑salt mingles with diesel as Ana Rivera unlocks the gate to Coral Hope Dive Cooperative on the outskirts of Puerto Azul. The modest wooden dock, painted a faded teal, creaks under the weight of two motorized launch boats ready for the day’s trips.

Rivera, a former marine biology student, founded the cooperative in 2015 with the goal of linking eco‑tourism income to reef stewardship. Today, the cooperative employs twelve local captains and runs three daily tours that showcase the fringing reef’s biodiversity while collecting data for the Costa Mar Reef Monitoring Network.

Since the recent temperature surge recorded at the Cayo Verde station, Rivera has had to adjust routes to avoid the most affected sections of the reef. “We’ve shifted the dive sites 1.2 kilometres south, where the corals still show colour,” she explained, noting that the change has reduced average dive depth by two metres but preserved the experience for tourists.

Rivera’s story illustrates how individual operators are adapting to climate pressure while maintaining livelihoods. The full profile explores her daily routine, the cooperative’s data‑sharing arrangement, and the broader implications for Costa Mar’s marine economy.