Introduction
After a successful collaboration on the MPA project (learn more about it here), we were honored to once again earn the trust of Mr. Peter Houk and his team for their next impactful initiative: Micronesia Reef Monitoring. Peter's deep commitment to science-led marine protection and his clarity of vision continue to inspire our team. His leadership has been instrumental in shaping digital tools that truly serve conservation goals.
As climate change accelerates, the Micronesia Reef Monitoring platform supports evidence-based policymaking and ensures sustainable management of vital marine resources. We brought this vision to life by modernizing their R Shiny and DigitalOcean platform into a robust React + AWS solution—resulting in faster performance, interactive visualizations, and a user experience tailored for field researchers and decision-makers alike.
Client Vision
Led by Mr. Peter Houk, the Micronesia Reef Monitoring Program applies ecological data to guide marine policy, protect biodiversity, and support Pacific island communities. Spanning 50+ islands, their work bridges science and real-world resource management.
Beyond the technology, the platform plays a unique role in advancing coral reef science across Micronesia. It allows communities, states, and countries to track and compare the percentage of coral reefs within and outside of protected areas, offering a tangible way to measure conservation effectiveness. This data-driven approach turns the Micronesia Challenge into a healthy competition—encouraging progress and shared learning as each stakeholder strives to be a regional leader in reef protection.
A particularly novel feature of the platform is its ability to address the issue of “paper parks”—marine protected areas that exist only on maps but show little real-world impact. By analyzing ecological data alongside MPA boundaries, the portal helps determine whether these protections are translating into actual marine life recovery. In doing so, it reinforces accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement across the region’s conservation efforts.
Our renewed collaboration reflects his continued trust in atWare Vietnam—a testament to our reliability, technical depth, and shared commitment to conservation. Their clear vision and scientific approach enabled a seamless and focused development process.
Project Focus
To ensure continuity and improvement, we worked closely with Peter to assess the system's strengths and opportunities for modernization—enhancing performance and usability without disrupting established research workflows.
- Unified R Shiny (visualization) and Angular (data entry) into one streamlined platform
- Improved responsiveness for large ecological datasets
- Transitioned from DigitalOcean to scalable AWS infrastructure
- Translated domain-specific R logic to web-native processes with scientific accuracy
- Enhanced UX to better serve researchers and practitioners
Solutions Delivered
Platform Modernization
We transitioned two separate applications—R Shiny for visualization and Angular for data entry—into a unified React SPA.
Tech Stack: React, Vite, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, echart
Why: React's ecosystem allowed seamless integration of visualization and form workflows.
Cloud Infrastructure Upgrade
Migrated from DigitalOcean to AWS for better scalability, cost efficiency, and long-term flexibility.
Tech Stack: AWS ECS, ECR, RDS, CloudFront, Route 53, Lightsail Containers
Why: AWS offered better scaling, security, and staging environment control.
Optimizing R Logic
Translated key R scripts to Python for faster backend processing and scientific consistency.
Tech Stack: Python, Django, PostgreSQL
Why: Asynchronous processing improved backend efficiency and significantly reduced query latency.
UI/UX Reimagined
Reworked the interface for clarity, accessibility, and field-readiness.
Tech Stack: Tailwind CSS, echart, ShadCN, Framer Motion
Why: Utility-first styling and interactive UI helped simplify complex data experiences.
Looking Ahead
The Micronesia Reef Monitoring platform stands as a testament to what’s possible when scientific clarity meets thoughtful engineering. By unifying tools, strengthening infrastructure, and prioritizing real-world usability, we helped UOG Marine Lab and Micronesia Coral Reef Monitoring deliver a faster, more intuitive website that empowers researchers to make timely, informed decisions for reef conservation.
This achievement reflects not only the dedication and technical depth of the atWare Vietnam team, but also the unwavering vision and leadership of Peter Houk and his colleagues. Their commitment to long-term ecological monitoring and open data continues to shape the future of marine science across Micronesia and beyond.
Client Feedback
Related Insights about MRM
How We Delivered Responsive Post-Launch Support and Field-Optimized UX Enhancements for the Micronesia Reef Monitoring Platform.
This case study shares how we modernized a marine data platform through thoughtful UI/UX redesign and performance upgrades—resulting in a faster, clearer, and more intuitive experience for researchers and stakeholders.
This guide walks you through migrating an application from Digital Ocean to AWS using infrastructure-as-code with Terraform and automated container deployments via GitHub Actions.
How we restructured a legacy R Shiny application into a scalable Django backend to support real-time marine analytics and a modern React frontend.
How we transformed a dual-stack marine research system into a unified, high-performance React SPA—with deep dives into frontend rewrites, backend API integration, and analytical logic migration.
This case study explores how we modernized legacy systems and migrated to AWS to support scalable, data-driven marine conservation.
This case study explores how we modernized a marine data platform through cohesive UI/UX redesign and targeted performance enhancements—delivering a faster, clearer, and more intuitive experience for researchers and stakeholders.
This case study explores how we modernized and unified two legacy applications—R Shiny and Angular—into a single React SPA to enhance performance, streamline workflows, and support scalable marine research operations.
If your organization is exploring modernization or building tools for impact, we’d love to hear your story.