Research at Akumal, supported by CEA and area businesses has been extensive. CEA's dorm rooms, laboratory and Information Center with Internet access have attracted many well-known and highly experienced individuals. The Original Akumal Dive Shop, located on CEA property provides dive support.

Past Studies
The Cornell Tropical Marine Science students have studied the marine environment and provided data on Akumal coral reef health since 1994. Copies of the course projects and information are available from CEA's Research Library.

Dr. Mark Nelson received his doctorate for his thesis on the constructed wetland systems he designed for CEA.

Dr. Pedro Ardisson brings his graduate students from CINVESTAV to work on theses at Akumal.

Graduate students, Isaac Razo and Alfonso Cuevas received Masters Degrees from CINVESTAV based on thesis work on sediments at Akumal.

Dr. Lang and Dr. Bob Stenneck have evaluated the coral reefs at Akumal.

Roshan Roy, Doctoral Candidate, University of Texas, is working on her Doctoral thesis on algal sediment mats studied at Akumal. Dr. Judy Lang was Roshan' s advisor.

Dr. Robert Ginsberg, University of Miami, taught the AGGRA protocol at CEA to marine biologists from the Mesoamerican Reef Region.

Patricia Beddows received her Master's Degree based on her thesis on the geohydrology of the region. Ms. Beddows is now completing her doctoral thesis at Bristol University. Ms. Beddows is looking at the caves systems and the water flow.

Samantha Smith is working on her doctoral thesis at Bristol University and she is studying the chemical composition of the water in the cave systems.

Dr. Fiona Whitaker and Dr. Peter Smart, Bristol University are Patricia's and Samantha's thesis advisors and have made geohydological studies in the area as well.

David Whitney and Mark Krekeler, doctoral candidates at the Universities of Vermont and Chicago, with supervision from Dr. Nancy Hayden, University of Vermont, have evaluated the existing Akumal wetlands and have made suggestions on how the systems can be made to operate more effectively. They have submitted their work the Journal of Environmental Engineering.

2002 Studies
Dr. John Bruno and graduate student Shauna Slingsby are studying the nitrogen levels in the marine waters and their effects on the corals and other animals.

Dr. Drew Harvell, Cornell, and eight graduate students are studying soft coral diseases and the effects of Aspergilosis fungus on the common sea fans at Akumal and Florida. Dr. Harvell is collaborating with Eric Jordan from the UNAM Research Station in Puerto Morelos.

Dr. Harvell is bringing a research group to Akumal in September. Her group will be funded by the World Bank. She has chosen Akumal, Zanzibar and South Florida as her three study sites.

In July 2002, Dr. Janet Foley and graduate student Susanna Sokolow will begin viral tracer testing of the marine environment to determine the quality of the water and to detect if there are any disease carrying organisms present.
Biography and Publications list for Dr. Foley can be accessed at http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu In August, Mark Krekeler will return to Akumal with a group of 8-9 people who are going to help do the isotope analysis. The lab that will be doing the analyses is top flight. They will take ~90 samples a night and ~90 in a day. They will look at both CEA wetlands and others if access can be arranged. They are also thinking about installing a small temporary well field to get some real high quality spatial data. This will augment the work they did in December. In addition, they hope to do a regional ground water survey using isotopes. This should give them some ideal of how the karst hydrology works in the region.

In September, Dr. Silvia Diaz from UAM will spend part of her sabbatical to continue her studies of the fish diversity and density at Akumal. Dr. Diaz has had six graduate students working on their thesis at Akumal.

CEA is discussing the possibility of collaboration with UNAM. Bridgit van Tussenbroek, director of the UNAM Research Station at Puerto Morelos has approached CEA with the idea. UNAM is seeking funding from NOAA for sea grass, mangrove and reef studies and CEA will decide whether to join UNAM in a joint proposal.

CEA Support
Centro Ecológico Akumal has provided support for this research by providing low-cost housing and infrastructure to the researchers. This represents a significant monetary investment by CEA in research and problem solving. CEA has supported a significant volume of scientific study at Akumal.

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