Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority
Runanga Takere Moana
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News & Press Releases

 
 

You can read all the latest news and updates on the Cook Islands seabed minerals sector here.

 
Posts tagged Science Partnerships
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
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.

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Perspective PieceDede MingiSeabed Minerals Authority, SBMA, Beverly Ataera, Cook Islands Government, National Environment Services, NES, NOAA, US Embassy, International Partnerships, Capacity Building, Regulatory Capability, Ocean Governance, Deep-Sea Science, Cook Islands Sovereignty, Knowledge Exchange, Science Partnerships, Marae Moana
Cook Islands–U.S. science partnership delivers new maps, samples and deep-ocean knowledge
Cook Islands–U.S. science partnership delivers new maps, samples and deep-ocean knowledge

More than 52,000 square kilometres of seafloor mapping, almost 500 scientific samples and extensive deep-sea imagery collected during the 2026 Cook Islands ROV Exploration are now supporting continuing research involving Cook Islands scientists and international partners. 

EX2605, the 26-day expedition aboard NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer from 19 July to 13 August 2026, was a partnership between the Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA), NOAA Ocean Exploration and scientific partners. Cook Islands scientists contributed directly to ROV operations, mapping, sample collection and processing, and science planning. 

For SBMA, the value of the expedition did not end when the vessel left Cook Islands waters.

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Media ReleaseDede MingiSeabed Minerals Authority, SBMA, NOAA Ocean Exploration, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, Cook islands, Rarotonga, Marae Moana, University of Hawai'i, United States Geological Survey, Smithsonian Institution, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, University of Rhode Island, National Museum of the Cook Islands, Deep-Ocean Science, Ocean mapping, Marine Biodiversity, Environmental DNA, Bathymetry, Polymetallic Nodules, Ocean Research, Deep-Sea Exploration, Science Partnerships