Environment
Celebrating our biodiversity
Wednesday 19 May 2010 | Published in Environment
The annual Environment Week runs from May 31 to June 4 with the theme this year, ‘E Tango Maori Te Ao Ora Natura’ Our Biodiversity Our Foundation. Competitions and fun days will be held throughout the week with events such as the popular ‘lagoon day’. The aim for the week is to help create awareness […]
Lagoon Day is on again
Monday 17 May 2010 | Published in Environment
Planning for Lagoon Day is well underway and this year the event is set to kick start National Environment week. Thursday and Friday May 27-28 will see around 1000 school students and the general public converge on Nukupere Park to interact in a hands on learning experience, with booths spilling over with information on the […]
Renewable energy no longer a choice for Pacific countries
Wednesday 12 May 2010 | Published in Environment
Renewable energy is no longer a choice but a vital necessity for all Pacific Island countries, including the Cook Islands, given the pressing issue of climate change, Fiji’s foreign affairs minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola said. He made the comment following a signing this week by the government on behalf of the University of the South […]
CITC takes the lead in industry training
Friday 7 May 2010 | Published in Environment
Cook Islands Trading Corporation (CITC) has taken the lead in the private sector to provide industry training in the Cook Islands. Last week the Department for National Human Resources Development (DNHRD) director Frances Topa-Apera and CITC general manager Gaye Whitta signed a memorandum of understanding formalising CITC as a training provider under the accreditation of […]
Evans appointed TIS manager
Thursday 6 May 2010 | Published in Environment
With the financial assistance of Birdlife International (BIL) and CEPFund, Te Ipukarea Society (TIS) has appointed Jacqui Evans as its programme manager. Evans, whose position becomes effective from May 17, has been involved with TIS since its inception in 1996, as a volunteer in both technical and practical roles and serving as president of this […]
Water project survey complete
Friday 16 April 2010 | Published in Environment
The initial survey for the $5 million European Union Muri Water and Sanitation Project has been completed and the project is now going into its next phase. The Muri Environment Care Group project team began the survey at the end of December. Over a period of four months, 10 surveyors interviewed and collected data on […]
Muri's Eco Warriors adventure next week
Friday 16 April 2010 | Published in Environment
The Muri Eco Warriors Kids Club two-day school holiday adventure on April 20-21 is a great option for kids who live in Muri. The programme is free for kids aged 4-13 years and is a great way for children to learn about pollution and the environment. The Eco Warriors environmental youth group started last year […]
Jewellery judging to begin soon
Friday 16 April 2010 | Published in Environment
Lots of waste materials used by kids to make their creations Thirty-three entries have been received for the Te Akatauira recycled jewellery competition with judging beginning this week. “The overall standard is very good,” competition organiser Paka Worthington said. Co-organiser Jacqui Evans says the entrants have been very resourceful in their use of waste materials. […]
McCully visits the yard
Thursday 8 April 2010 | Published in Environment
New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully and his entourage stopped off at the General Transport recycling yard yesterday to check on the status of NZAid-funded machinery. NZAid funded an excavator and a truck for the recycling venture that is currently being managed by Recycling Cook Islands, National Environment Service and the NZ government. RCI […]
Solar Bob says use the sunshine
Tuesday 6 April 2010 | Published in Environment
‘Solar Bob’ Riley says he hasn’t paid a power bill in over three years, courtesy of some grey panels and the natural resource that’s so readily available in the tropics – the sun. Riley, a solar energy consultant, is on a mission to convince Cook Islanders that solar energy ‘just makes sense’, he said. Solar […]
Shipping recyclables back
Tuesday 6 April 2010 | Published in Environment
General Transport (GT) wants to send recyclables back to where they came from. For a small fee GT collects imported metal items such as old vehicles, scrap steel, batteries and white ware and ship them overseas to be recycled. The programme is an effort to return imports to their country of origin, or to the […]
Money isn't everything!
Monday 29 March 2010 | Published in Environment
Money is not everything, and that was one of the messages from Earth House observation on Rarotonga on Saturday night. A successful and hardworking businessman on Rarotonga proved this during the one hour. Titikaveka’s member of parliament and cabinet minister Robert Wigmore walked the talk when he closed his popular supermarket for an hour. His […]
Earth Hour brings drop in power usage
Monday 29 March 2010 | Published in Environment
The drop in power supply readings by Rarotonga’s Te Aponga Uira almost doubled what was recorded last year during Earth Hour on Saturday. Rarotonga joined the global campaign to fight climate change for an hour with residents switching off all non-essential lights and electrical applicances. TAU’s general manager power station Nooroa Tupa said that for […]
Earth Hour action stations
Saturday 27 March 2010 | Published in Environment
Some examples of who’s doing what around the world: • National Park camps across Namibia will celebrate EH with candlelit dinners, and camps in Kenya, Botswana and Zambia will also be participating. • Piccadilly Circus will go dark for the only the 5th time since World War II, accompanied by amongst many others, Tower Bridge, […]
Switch off tonight – come to Matavera
Saturday 27 March 2010 | Published in Environment
If you are on Rarotonga tonight, find your way around the island to two key areas where villagers are inviting ‘anyone from anywhere’ to join them in the global campaign of Earth Hour from 8pm to 9pm. The newest cabinet minister and member of parliament for Matavera, Cassey Eggleton, will lead the Earth Hour candlelight […]
UN leader calls on world citizens to dim lights to combat climate change
Saturday 27 March 2010 | Published in Environment
By turning off our lights for one hour tonight, people around the world can take a stand and inspire the action needed to tackle climate change, says United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. During ‘Earth Hour’ which will take place between 8pm and 9pm here in Rarotonga, the world will be asked to turn off their […]
Fruition of global effort
Saturday 27 March 2010 | Published in Environment
The culmination of global efforts over the last few months will finally come to fruition tonight when a record breaking 125 countries and regions unite to take action on climate change, including 56 national capitals and 8 of the 10 most populated metropolises on the planet. The Great Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza, the ancient […]
Matavera MP among women leaders for Earth Hour 2010
Wednesday 24 March 2010 | Published in Environment
With just five days to go before the people of the planet switch off for Earth Hour, prominent women across the globe are leading the way to encourage the people of the world to show what can be done to fight climate change. The voice for Earth Hour in the Cooks is the newest member […]
Localising conservation
Saturday 27 February 2010 | Published in Environment
World Wildlife Fund hands over to Te Rito Enua As World Wildlife Fund (WWF) phases out of the Cook Islands, local NGO Te Rito Enua is gearing up to take its place. WWF, which will officially hand its operations over to Te Rito Enua next month, has been in the Cooks for over a decade. […]
Muri under survey
Tuesday 23 February 2010 | Published in Environment
The first phase of the Muri European Union Water and Sanitation Project is underway with a survey of 329 properties. The five-year project, worth about $5 million ($2.55 million Euro), began in April last year when government, the EU and the Muri community formed a partnership. There are three phases to the project – and […]