The Marine Aquarium Council (MAC) is an international, multi-stakeholder, not-for-profit and non-governmental organization. It brings together conservation organizations, the aquarium industry, public aquariums, hobbyist groups and government agencies to ensure the marine aquarium trade is responsible and sustainable.

MAC’s mission is “to conserve coral reefs and other marine ecosystems by creating standards and certification for those engaged in the collection and care of ornamental marine life from reef to aquarium.”
MAC accomplishes its mission through the following activities:

• Establishing independent certification of best practice standards;
  
• Raising public awareness of the conservation role of the marine aquarium industry and hobbyists;
  
• Promoting the sustainable use of coral reefs and other marine ecosystems though the responsible collection of marine ornamental life;
  
• Ensuring the health and quality of marine ornamental life through responsible collection, handling and transporting practices; and
  
• Encouraging responsible husbandry through education and training.

Each stakeholder group may have different problems and face different issues. However, they all agree that consumer demand for environmentally sustainable products can motivate the industry to adopt and adhere to standards that ensure that those resources are sustainable, responsibly managed and supported by good husbandry and handling practices.

More than five thousand (5,000) individual aquarists, industry operators, conservationists and researchers from over sixty (60) countries belong to the MAC network. Involvement of a broad spectrum of interested parties and stakeholders is one of MAC’s strengths.

MAC has created several international partnerships to support certification. Among the key partnerships are the following:

• Reef Check, a member of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, has developed international scientific methods for assessing and monitoring the health of coral reefs and aquarium fish and coral stocks in marine ornamental collection areas.


• Conservation and Community Investment Forum (CCIF) collaborates with MAC in Southeast Asia. It designs and finances conservation solutions leading to direct and sustainable conservation outcomes.

The United Nations Environment Program’s World Conservation Monitoring Center (UNEP WCMC) has developed an international database to provide credible information on the marine ornamental trade. Major wholesalers from around the world have provided their data, summarized in the UNEP WCMC report “From Ocean to Aquarium: the Global Trade in Marine Ornamental Species”, 2003. This report is available at the following address: http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/resources/publications/UNEP_WCMC_bio_series/index.htm#17
Ensuring that the MAC mission is achieved is the primary function of the MAC Board of Directors, which is representative of the relevant global multi-stakeholder network. Statutes require that conservation or public interest group representatives make up the Board majority.

The MAC Board of Directors has included individuals from the following organizations:

•American Marinelife Dealers Association • American Zoos and Aquariums Association
• Indonesia Coral, Shell & Ornamental Fish Association • IUCN - The World Conservation Union
• Marine Aquarium Societies of North America • Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association
• Ornamental Fish International • Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council
• Philippine Tropical Fish Exporters Association • Terangi (Indonesia Coral Reef Foundation)
• The Nature Conservancy •Traffic International • World Wildlife Fund

MAC receives funding from foundations, charitable trusts, public development assistance funds and other non-commercial sources. Over the next decade, MAC will evolve into a self-financed organization, supported by industry contributions based on the value that MAC Certification provides in ensuring that marine aquarium organisms are healthy, practices are responsible and the trade is sustainable.

Staff members at the MAC headquarters in Hawaii and around the world comprise the MAC Secretariat, which undertakes the organization’s day-to-day operations.