Kevin Iro of the Cook Islands has been named the recipient of the 2022 Seacology Prize, which honours exceptional achievement in preserving island environments and culture. Iro is being recognized for his successful campaign to create the largest multi-use marine park in the world, Marae
Jon Day, previously one of the directors with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) —the agency tasked with overseeing the grandfather of modern marine-protected areas (MPAs)—says that while passing the Marae Moana Act is an important step on the journey to responsible ocean
Suwarrow Atoll, a necklace of remote Cook Islands landforms, has been renowned for many things over the centuries; a Pacific treasure trove, a hermit’s paradise and a birder’s wonderland. It would be perfect except for an invasion of rats. Across Polynesia, Pacific, Brown and Black
13th July 2017 The Cook Islands is now the largest multi-use marine park in the world. Marae Moana – spanning a total ocean area of nearly two million square kilometres – became a reality on Tuesday. A massive feat for a country with only a
Wednesday October 31, 2018 This week, Kevin Iro is representing the Cook Islands at the Our Ocean Conference in Indonesia, a meeting of prominent leaders, ocean advocates, scientists, businesspeople, funders, scientists, non-profit organisations, and advocates from all over the world. Recognisable names include Malcolm Turnbull,
Saturday, December 08, 2018 Prime minister Henry Puna speaks often at conferences and in the pages of international magazines about how the Cook Islands possesses the world’s largest marine-protected area. He’s not wrong; Marae Moana, the marine park legislated last year, covers nearly two million
Thursday December 20, 2018 Recently Cook Islands Chamber of Commerce president Tangata Fletcher Melvin, had a conversation with Marae Moana director Jacqui Evans that changed the way he understands the marine park. It was not, he realised, a marketing ploy, but a solid legal framework
Monday December 10, 2018 Some people accuse Marae Moana, the Cook Islands’ marine park, of being spineless. Others suspect it’s a marketing ploy to procure aid money. Most of these people will admit they don’t know a lot about what is arguably the country’s most
At the UN General Assembly meeting recently the United Kingdom’s government challenged the world to protect 30 per cent of all oceans before 2030. “It took my breath away,” said Lewis Pugh, a British maritime lawyer who once swam for 49 days to protest the
Thursday November 08, 2018 Alan Friedlander is currently chief scientist for National Geographic’s Pristine Seas Project, an initiative that focusses on marine protection and raising awareness about why it’s necessary. The project is National Geographic’s largest initiative dedicated to environmental preservation. Friedlander has produced more