Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology

[1] In 1993, the Pauley family donated the remaining private part of Coconut Island for the construction of a world-class marine laboratory.

This is part of the master plan approved by the University of Hawaii's Board of Regents in 1998, which includes the addition of several research buildings, laboratories, and conference facilities.

[3] The boundaries of the Hawaii Marine Laboratory Refuge surrounding the island start at the high-water mark on the island and go to twenty-five feet beyond the outer edges of the reefs, including sand and seawall shoreline, where coral and sand calcium carbonate reef flats are exposed at low tides.

It went on to include rapid quantitative research and habitat mapping, which are tools new used to understand the ecology of the Hawaiian coral reefs in relation to surrounding geographic areas.

[12] The institute also spoke publicly to argue in favor of banning sunscreens with chemicals, as they majorly contribute to coral bleaching.