Building capability, not dependence | Why the Cook Islands works with international partners, and why that does not mean giving up control of our own decisions
Recent attention on one international science fellowship has raised a fair question: how should a small island State like the Cook Islands work with international partners while protecting its own decision-making authority?
As Seabed Minerals Commissioner, my answer is simple: we build capability, not dependence.
The upcoming Embassy Science Fellowship with the United States is one example of a much wider network of relationships the Cook Islands has deliberately built across the Pacific and internationally, with governments, universities, scientific institutions, regulators, indigenous organisations and technical experts.
None of this is about handing another country control over our resources or our decisions. It is about building the knowledge, people, systems and institutional capability we need to responsibly manage a large ocean space and a technically complex emerging sector.
The Cook Islands cannot build every area of specialist expertise alone. We need to be smart about where we access knowledge and experience while making sure the decisions stay ours. That means working with many partners rather than relying on one and building what we learn into our own systems and capabilities.
A network, not a single relationship
Our engagement spans the region and beyond, from regulatory exchanges with South Australia and knowledge-sharing with Kiribati and the Federated States of Micronesia to work with New Zealand research institutions and Māori iwi organisations on ocean governance and technical exchanges with Japan, China, Canada and the United Kingdom.
We take part in the Pacific's DSM Talanoa forum and work with the International Seabed Authority internationally. This is illustrative, not exhaustive. The point is breadth, not any single relationship.
Small island States routinely work with international partners to access specialist knowledge, technology and institutional experience that would otherwise be difficult and costly to build alone.
With a large ocean territory and a small public service, that isn't a choice unique to seabed minerals; it's how the Cook Islands has always operated. The real question isn't whether we work with international experts; it's whether the partnership leaves Cook Islands capability stronger than it found it.
The Science Fellowship
The upcoming US Embassy Science Fellowship with NOAA fits this approach. Dr Nicole Bartlett is expected to work with the Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) and the National Environment Service (NES) from late 2026 into early 2027, supporting each organisation in their respective roles.
With a clear focus on the analysis of existing environmental and mineral information to help bring that information together for an environmental action plan across agencies involved in seabed minerals governance.
This is a technical support arrangement. It confers no regulatory authority, changes no licences, and authorises no commercial minerals harvesting. The work is carried out under our direction, within Cook Islands law.
Public trust is strengthened when people can see the purpose, limits and safeguards of these arrangements clearly.
The question isn't whether we work with an American scientist, a Japanese institution, a Pacific neighbour or any other partner. It's whether the relationship strengthens our ability to make informed decisions in our national interest.
No single partner holds all the knowledge we need. Good governance comes from drawing on many sources, testing what we learn, and building our own capacity to judge the evidence. That is the approach we are taking, and it is how we exercise sovereignty, not how we give it away.
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