In 1997, coral scholar Gregor Hodgson of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology proposed a global survey of coral health dubbed "Reef Check." Part of the work was grassroots, as scuba divers were enlisted to facilitate the survey. The purpose of the project was to investigate how human behavior affects coral reefs and use the findings as a basis for conservation policy.
1997 年，香港科技大學的珊瑚學者葛里格．哈吉森發起「珊瑚礁總體檢」，希望藉由一種國際通用的調查方法，號召全球潛水志工投入珊瑚礁監測工作，並調查人類行為對珊瑚礁造成的影響，以做為制定保育政策的基礎。