Fiorella Prada was recently awarded a U.S.–Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF) grant for a collaborative project with Tali Mass from the University of Haifa, investigating how corals maintain strong, functional skeletons under long-term ocean warming and acidification. Using naturally resilient Mediterranean coral populations growing across thermal gradients and volcanic CO₂ vents, the team will integrate molecular and metabolic approaches with advanced skeletal imaging and mechanical testing to uncover the mechanisms that enable corals to persist in a changing ocean.
