DOI: 10.5061/dryad.d2547d89w
title: Towards inclusive global collaborations in coral reef science

description: Protecting and restoring coral reefs demands concerted global efforts that
 transcend national boundaries. However, equitable participation in coral
 reef science remains challenging, particularly for researchers from
 lower-income nations. Through quantitative scientometric analyses and
 qualitative surveys, we examined global collaboration dynamics in coral
 reef research. Our findings reveal that high-income countries dominate the
 research landscape, often sidelining contributions from lower-income
 regions. While international collaborations were valued for benefits like
 access to funding, opportunities for professional development, enhanced
 publication success and improved conservation outcomes, most partnerships
 were short-term, with limited opportunities for evolving roles.
 Researchers from developing nations face significant barriers, including
 undervaluation of contributions, differing expectations around authorship,
 and ethical concerns like parachute science and tokenism, raising concerns
 about inclusivity and respect for local expertise. To improve
 collaborative practices and increase participation in coral reef science
 we propose actionable recommendations directed towards publishers, funders
 and the greater coral reef research community. We recommend fostering
 mutual respect, building long-term relationships, and promoting fair
 funding and publishing practices. These steps are essential for equitable
 research collaborations that support coral reefs and the communities that
 depend on them.
description: <strong>Survey design and
 implementation</strong> We conducted an
 international survey aimed at evaluating collaboration and authorship
 practices within the coral reef science/conservation community. This study
 was conducted in accordance with ethical guidelines and received approval
 from the Institutional Biosafety and Ethics Committee (IBEC) at King
 Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) under protocol
 23IBEC062 and 24IBEC024. All participants were informed about the purpose
 of the research, and their participation was voluntary. Informed consent
 was obtained from all participants, and they were assured of the
 confidentiality and anonymity of their responses. Participants were given
 the right to withdraw from the study at any time without any
 consequences. The survey, comprising 58 questions, was
 open to anyone working with coral reefs and we received responses from
 people working in academia, NGOs, government, industry, and tourism. The
 survey addressed a variety of ethical consideration, encompassing critical
 elements such as authorship naming, the prevalence of "parachute
 science" and “tokenism” practices, and ethical misconduct.
 Explanations for concept such as parachute science and tokenism were
 provided in the survey. Parachute was described as the practice whereby
 international scientists from higher-income countries, conduct field
 studies in a lower income nation, without engaging or acknowledging any
 local researchers, and tokenisms was described as the practice of making
 only a perfunctory or symbolic effort to be inclusive to members of
 minority groups, especially by recruiting people from underrepresented
 groups in order to give the appearance of racial (or gender) equality
 within a workplace or educational context. The survey was designed to
 explore variables such as gender, career rank, nationality/geographic
 factors, and more, aiming to uncover their influence on collaborative
 dynamics and ethical practices. To ensure the survey’s relevance across
 diverse cultural and economic contexts, a dedicated webinar was organized
 in partnership with collaborators (authors), to draft relevant questions
 attuned to a variety of socio-economic situations. This collective effort
 significantly shaped the survey's inclusivity and cultural
 sensitivity. Additionally, the survey was translated into eight different
 languages, to enhance its accessibility to a broader audience.
 Translations were done using AI tools (ChatGPT and Google translate) and
 were later reviewed and corrected by native speakers to ensure
 comprehensibility. Prospective survey participants were
 identified using the WOS database that was used for the bibliometric
 analysis, from which email addresses of corresponding authors could be
 extracted. The sample was randomly selected but we tried to specifically
 select for a broad geographical representation. Using the Web of Science
 (WoS) as a database inherently introduces biases, as it tends to favor
 researchers working in the natural sciences and those with higher
 publication outputs. To mitigate this bias, enhance outreach, and
 encourage participation from a diverse range of backgrounds, the survey
 was also promoted on various social media platforms, including Twitter,
 LinkedIn, and Instagram. Moreover, it was directly shared within the
 professional networks of all co-authors and we encouraged people to share
 the survey in their institutions and networks. We also asked international
 coral reef organisations to share the survey on their platforms.
 The survey was launched in November 2023 and responses were
 collected over four months (until March 1<sup>st</sup> 2024).
 Overall, we received 138 responses, but our analysis was constrained to
 105 respondents who provided complete and comprehensive responses on the
 selected analytical variables.
description: # Towards inclusive global collaborations in coral reef science
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.d2547d89w](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.d2547d89w) ## **Overview** This dataset contains responses from an international survey on collaboration and authorship practices within the coral reef science and conservation community (published article: [https://doi.org/10.1038/s44183-025-00120-x](https://doi.org/10.1038/s44183-025-00120-x)). The study explores how researchers across academia, NGOs, government, industry, and tourism collaborate, the challenges they face, and ethical concerns related to authorship, inclusion, and research integrity. A key focus of the survey was to assess ethical challenges in international collaborations, including parachute science (where foreign researchers conduct studies in lower-income nations without engaging local scientists) and tokenism (where underrepresented groups are included for optics rather than meaningful participation). The dataset also captures experiences with data sharing, funding accessibility, research leadership opportunities, and authorship disputes, providing a broad perspective on power dynamics and barriers in international research. To make the survey widely accessible, it was translated into eight languages and promoted across professional networks and social media. The responses have been fully anonymized to ensure participant confidentiality. The study received ethical approval from KAUST’s Institutional Biosafety and Ethics Committee (IBEC) under Protocols 23IBEC062 and 24IBEC024. ## Description of the data and file structure #### File: Responses_anonymised.xlsx **Description:** This file contains the anonymized responses from survey participants. Personally identifiable information (PII) has been removed or de-identified to protect participant confidentiality. **Note:** *DNR* (Did Not Respond) indicates that respondents did not provide an answer to the question. **Data structure:** * Columns: Represent survey questions and metadata fields. * Rows: Each row represents an anonymized participant’s response. * Data Types: * Categorical responses (e.g., multiple-choice answers). * Free-text responses (open-ended questions) anonymised. * Numeric responses (e.g., number of collaborations). #### File: Survey on International Collaborations in Coral Reef Science.pdf **Description**: This document contains the full survey questionnaire, including all questions that participants responded to. It provides context on the structure and purpose of the survey. ####