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CI Muslim opens up about her faith and journey
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RAC to address mosque legality
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I don’t expect much change: PM Brown on US Elections
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Fifth weekly Sydney flight to Rarotonga announced
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CIIC directors seek $350,000 in damages over defamatory claims
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Man found guilty of rape, burglary
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Tenants face water bill burden
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Concerns over Minister’s role in inmate work releases: PAC
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Tourism contribution set to surpass half-billion dollar mark
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Parliament Clerk sparks outrage over deep sea mining statement
23 September 2024
Deep sea dilemma: Cook Islanders weigh the cost of mineral riches
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Anxiety on the rise: Cook Islands faces mental health challenge
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Cook Islands deep sea mining poll sparks controversy
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MCI rejects ‘dark fleet’ label
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Rising seas, rising costs: Climate impacts on Cook Islands economy
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Inflation eases but concerns remain
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Prime Minister defends $659,000 MPs travel bill
23 August 2024
Taxpayers foot $659,000 bill for MPs travel and allowance
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Corruption report exposes ‘bribe and sexual favours’
17 January 2023
PM Brown eager to hand over Forum chair role to Tonga
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Challenging ‘rape culture’
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Articles by Te Ipukarea Society
Te Ipukarea Society: Waste Wise Mangaia, Managing waste in the Pa Enua
Friday 23 June 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Effective waste management in the Pa Enua is near nonexistent with limited infrastructure and no funding made available to send recyclable waste off each of the islands.
Te Ipukarea Society: The Little Mermaid making a conservation splash
Saturday 10 June 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
This article is adapted and based almost entirely on a story by Elene Peradze, on the IMPAKTER Platform and Magazine website.
Te Ipukarea Society: Local lorikeets celebrated
Saturday 3 June 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
World Parrot Day celebrated on May 31 gives us a good excuse to bring more attention to a couple of our own brightly coloured lorikeets that come under the parrot family.
Te Ipukarea Society: Some concerning aspects around deep sea mining
Saturday 27 May 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Proponents of mining our deep ocean seafloor justify the need for this hugely destructive process, largely by claims that the minerals from the deep are needed for batteries for electric vehicles.
Te Ipukarea Society : Citizen science to assist turtle conservation
Saturday 20 May 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Rarotonga’s passages are key sites for spotting two species of sea turtles, the endangered green turtle and the critically endangered hawksbill turtle.
Te Ipukarea Society: 27 years of protecting our Ipukarea
Saturday 13 May 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
It has been almost 12 months since the last Te Ipukarea Society Annual General Meeting (AGM). As usual, before our AGM, we look back over the activities of the Society for the preceding 12 months.
Te Ipukarea Society: Community efforts to remove rats
Saturday 6 May 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Polynesian rats were introduced to the Cook Islands via early Vaka voyages. With time other species typically more dominant and destructive such as the ship rat and Norwegian rat were introduced via trading vessels arriving from far and wide.
Te Ipukarea Society : 'Rent A Plate’ back on wheels
Saturday 29 April 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
With tourism numbers back on the rise, there are now innovative opportunities to “build back better”. Opportunities that not only create positive visitor experiences but experiences where visitors can participate in solutions that “Protect our Little Paradise” whilst on holiday.
Te Ipukarea Society : Nurture nature for our future
Saturday 22 April 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Today is the last day of Earth week for 2023, celebrated from April 14th to the 22nd. It is a week set aside for communities to demonstrate their support for a healthy environment, and remind people that we all need to contribute to a sustainable planet.
Considering the possible impacts of deep sea mining in the Cooks
Saturday 15 April 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
In the recent Parliament opening, King’s Representative Sir Tom Masters spoke of the Cook Islands’ desire to develop a sustainable and environmentally responsible seabed minerals sector. This week, also in Parliament, Leader of the Opposition Tina Browne criticised Government for rushing ahead in regards to deep sea mining.
Te Ipukarea Society : Regenerative tourism – turning this new concept into reality
Saturday 8 April 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
The concept of Sustainable Tourism has been at the forefront of strategic and operational planning for decades. However the emerging paradigm shift is towards regenerative tourism.
Te Ipukarea Society: Navigating challenging waters at the ISA
Saturday 1 April 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
Te Ipukarea Society along with NGO indigenous representatives from Hawaii, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea and Aotearoa NZ participated as ‘observers’ in the recent International Seabed Authority meetings, which gave them the opportunity to intervene in matters discussed.
TIS: Protecting our turtles by being a conscious consumer
Saturday 25 March 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Editorials, Opinion
Travelling the seas by day and night are the ancient sea creatures known as onu, or sea turtles. The deep blue waters contain a variety of turtles from leatherbacks to loggerheads and several more.
Is the fate of our deep sea environment in the hands of the mining companies?
Saturday 18 March 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, Local, National
For some, the issue of seabed mining is not yet on their radar. For others, it’s a topic that’s too technical to understand so their interest drifts elsewhere. There are those who have already been convinced mining is the way to go. Then there are others who don’t want mining to ever go ahead. The truth is we simply do not know enough to make that decision.
Mitiaro Fan Palm Iniao making a come back
Saturday 11 March 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, Local, National
A simple search in the Cook Islands Biodiversity database shows the Cook Islands has 16 different types of Palms, with the majority being introduced for ornamental purposes. Two of the 16 have been identified as native. These are the common coconut palm, and the other, once thought to only be found on Mitiaro, the Mitiaro Fan Palm Pritchardia mitiaroana,locally known as the Iniao.
Te Ipukarea Society: Biodegradable FADs and the purse seine fishery in the Cook Islands
Saturday 4 March 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Opinion
A one-day stakeholder consultation at the Crown Beach Resort in Rarotonga was held to discuss an upcoming project related to tuna fisheries in the region.
Exploring our reef ecosystem
Saturday 25 February 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
We at Te Ipukarea Society are always interested in learning what we might discover whilst out in the field investigating various ecosystems, writes Itirangi Pennycook.
Making a global ocean impact
Saturday 18 February 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, National
The 5th International Marine Protected Areas Congress held in Vancouver Canada has provided an important global networking opportunity for nations to learn from one another about the challenges and success stories that come with establishing a Marine Protected Area (MPA). In addition, an important theme for this year’s congress has been a focus on indigenous leadership in ocean conservation.
E Tu’a Pukuruvaa Nui – Sharing ideas amongst one another
Saturday 11 February 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Environment, Local, National, Outer Islands
A two-day tourism conference was held at Tamanu Beach Resort on Tuesday and Wednesday this past week. Participants included tour operators, accommodators, retailers, Members of Parliament, Aronga Mana reps and the mayor and island council representatives of Aitutaki.
Te Ipukarea Society: What wetlands do for you
Monday 6 February 2023 | Written by Te Ipukarea Society | Published in Opinion
Since 1971, February 2 has been marked as the official World Wetlands Day. This is the day environmentalists from around the world celebrate the significant benefits that wetlands provide for our planet and its biodiversity, and raise awareness about wetlands on a global scale
