Inform students of important concepts in the two Executive Orders for preserving the coral reefs.    

Provide students with the two Executive Orders (OD) for preserving the coral reefs

•  Executive Order 13089 (1998 year)
• Executive Order 13178 (2000 year): Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve

Teacher note:

It is recommended to download the full-texts of two Executive Orders and take a look at it before providing them to the students.

Explain the purpose of each EO to students. The first EO was to raise concerns regarding the coral reefs and establish the Coral Reef Task Force. The second EO was to establish the reserve to Northwestern Hawaiian Island Coral Reef Ecosystem.

Ask students to think about why the EO was written and what efforts the government undertook to implement the EO?

Ask students to identify which government organizations are involved in preserving the coral reefs?

Ask students to think about the following questions and  to complete  the Activity sheets : Coral Reefs Task Force Research

• When was the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force (CRTF) established?
• What are the responsibilities of CRTF?
• Who are the members of CRTF?
• How can you group the members of CRTF and which organizations are belonged to each category (group)?

Sample student responses:

• Coral reefs are one of the U.S.'s natural resources to protect and therefore the U.S. government wrote the EO to create the Coral Reefs Task Force in order to preserve the coral reefs effectively.

• Federal Government: President. Department of Interior, Department of Commerce, Department of State.

• State Government: Governors, Governments in the state of Hawaii

• Government Agencies: NASA, NSF, EPA

• Students complete the Activity sheets: Coral Reefs Task Force Research while exploring the following web sites.

• Research Background website:
• Coral Reefs Task Force
• CRTF Purpose
• Members of the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force