Pukapuka OCT – DEC 2025 Quarterly Report

by | Jun 24, 2026 | Pa Enua Report

PUKAPUKA OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2025 QUARTERLY REPORT

1. ICI/PUKAPUKA-NASSAU WATER CATCHMENT PROJECT

–  This was a major and comprehensive water project for Pukapuka-Nassau culminating in sufficient leftover building material to build 5 more water tanks and this would be the absolute completion of the project.

–  The allocation for the tanks are as follows;

   1 x SDA Church 1 x Catholic Church

   1 x CICC Church 2 x Cyclone Centre

–  The SDA and Catholic Churches have already had their tanks built and reported in previous quarterly reports. 

–  This report will focus on the 3 remaining tanks

–  The work was undertaken by our Government workers with help from the Community at large and various Community groups providing extra man-power and meals.

2. FINALLY!!! OUT WITH THE OLD AND IN WITH THE NEW

–  YEAH!!! Ngake Meeting House had finally had its old seats replaced with new ones.

– I made the suggestion a several years ago, during one of our fortnightly “changing-of-the-guard” meetings to have these heavy seat benches replaced due to their terrible state of wear and tear. It was already at a stage where it was unsafe to sit on one and to the point that someone was more likely than not liable to get hurt. 

–  So, it took 2days for the TawaNgake men to build 24 new bench seats and 10 minutes to throw out the old ones and replace with the new ones. These seats are mostly 2.5 meter long 

and painted red, the TawaNgake village colour. 

–  The funding for the purchase of the timber, nails and paint was provided by the Ngake Village CICC Ekalesia as proprietors/owners of the building.

3. CHRISTMAS, NEW YEAR FESTIVE SEASON AND ANNUAL SPORTS

–  On the 1st of November each year the Pukapuka CICC Ekalesia Executive and the Pukapuka Sports Committee members meet to deliberate on the Christmas and New Year festivities, as well as set the program for the upcoming Pukapuka Annual Sports.

–  The meeting covers the following events; 

–  Christmas Eve, 

–  Christmas Day, 

–  Boxing Day (the beginning of the Annual Sports),

–  New Year’s Eve and 

–  New Year’s Day

–  This group also determines the number and types of sports to include in each year’s competition (including traditional sports).

–  The Pukapuka Sports Committee members are elected 4 from each of the 3 Villages. They will take back and divulge all the information from the meeting to their respective villages.  

4. CEMETERY CLEANING – Noo Yolonga

–  The wordYolonga, in essence means, the place where one is to be interred or buried. Everyone is earmarked to be buried at either one of the major Village Cemetery plots of land or the lesser ones called “wakavae”. All the 3 Villages have them. It is Pukapukan custom that one’s place of burial is determined through patrilineal descent lines and not matrilineal. Meaning through your father or grandfather’s line or mother’s father’s line.

–  Unfortunately, in due time, these cemeteries and plots of land are overrun by bush, shrubs and weeds. 

–  The Aronga Mana (Island Chiefs) issued an Island-wide directive under their authority setting aside 1 month of each year for the Villages to clean all cemeteries. In the past a period of 4 weeks was set around June or July. Nowadays, this has been split into 2 weekly periods, twice yearly. One in April and the other around October. This lightens the work load from 12 months of overgrowth to be cleared to 6 months. Other than the cemetery-clearing work, sporting and fishing contest between the villages are also permitted with feasting throughout the duration of the clean-up. 

5. TARAMEA – CROWN OF THORNS CLEAN UP OPERATION

–  The Island Council instigated another crown of thorns clean-up operation on the reef and lagoon on 4 November. This coincided with Teina Rongo’s visit to the Island to do some research in the lagoon. He and his team were only too happy to participate in the clean-up

–  A week later Jackie Rongo joined her husband. In her spare time, Jackie offered volleyball coaching tips to the Pukapukan youth. When asked how her visit was going? She replied, she was actually thoroughly enjoying it, especially her time spent with the young people, saying “…for me, this is volleyball heaven…”

6. FEAST FOR THE ELDERLY, INFIRMED AND DISABLED

–  This is now an annual event hosted only by Lima Malie and Amala Kula, two of the 4 TawaNgake Village guard groups called pule. The purpose of the feast is to show appreciation to the elderly for their years of service and contribution to the community at large. It also includes acknowledgement and recognition of our most vulnerable members within our Island Community, whom are often overlooked and sometimes forgotten.

–  All recent visitors on the Island at the time were also invited to the feast as is our custom towards visitors or new arrivals.

–  Food was also set aside and delivered personally to the infirmed and disabled whom were not able to attend the feast. 

–  Two birthdays were celebrated on the day of the feast. One was Minister Tingika Elikana’s and the other Mama Neria Paulo, widow of the last Paramount Chief or Aliki-wolo.

7. PUKAPUKA HYDROPONIC PROJECT – ON AGAIN

–  The Pukapuka Hydroponics was a Climate Change Cook Islands project under the SRIC-CC program funded by the UNDP Adaptation Fund. Despite experiencing continued setbacks due to influences outside our control such as shipping delays and power outages.

–  The hydroponic is not operational when there is no power supply to the water-pump and when seeds run out. But when seeds are finally available again and our power back to normal, we are able to enjoy vegetables such as lettuce and bok choy or Chinese cabbage and others in our diet once again. Although the cost of vegetables on the Island has doubled in price due to rising costs to resources, services and freight, our people are still lining up demanding more than we can supply. 

8. ROAD WORKS – OVERDUE

–  Our Island Government and Administration is responsible for the maintenance and reparation of our Capital Buildings and Infrastructure works as part their routine maintenance program.

–  Our summer season is also our wettest time of the year, clearly exposing pot holes and partial flooding to various areas of roadways. Sand and aggregate are obtained from within the lagoon near the beaches to fill these pot holes and flooded areas.

9. SOME OBVIOUS IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

–  Soil Erosion by wave action and seawater inundation caused by rising sea levels, prompting our people to start replanting programs along the shore lines.

–  Flora and Fauna Seasonal behaviors have seen some land crab (tupa and kaipea) species change their time of releasing their eggs from full moon to new moon.

–  Weather pattern changes such as frequency and severity of High Tides, Tropical Depressions and Cyclones, as well as high temperatures causing proliferation of some marine species such as crown-of-thorns starfish or taramea.

Report compiled by; 

PATI RAVARUA

Pukapuka Island Facilitator

Moving with the times: The Cook Islands is embracing technology for climate action

Moving with the times: The Cook Islands is embracing technology for climate action

by | Feb 16, 2026 | CCCI

The Cook Islands is embracing technology for climate action with the installation of nine Automatic Weather Stations in the Pa Enua.

The Government of the Cook Islands is focused on filling the gaps and now, with the installation of automatic weather stations and a new online app, the Cook Islands Meteorological Service (Met Service) is modernising the capture, analysis, and distribution of climate information – a key piece of the puzzle in building a more climate-smart future.

For more information, click here.

Progress at COP30 but more required

Progress at COP30 but more required

by | Feb 16, 2026 | COP

JANUARY 2026

“Progress is being made – but not fast enough to keep up with the growing impacts of climate change.”

That’s COP30 in a nutshell according to Climate Change Cook Islands (CCCI) Climate Advisor Isaac Glassie-Ryan, who led our four-person Cook Islands delegation to the 30th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30). The conference was held in the Brazilian city of Belém – gateway to the Amazon – from November 10-21, with delegation costs fully funded by the United Nations Secretariat.

As at previous conferences, the Cook Islands had an active role at COP30 in shaping discussions on adaptation, climate finance, transparency and ‘loss and damage’ – which refers to irreversible harm caused by climate change despite mitigation and adaptation efforts.

The Cook Islands also continued to champion the priorities of our fellow Small Island Developing States (SIDS), participating as a member of the 39-country Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and as a representative of the wider Pacific region.

Although climate finance was not the headline issue at COP30, it strongly influenced negotiations across the board.

One key outcome was the launch of a two-year Climate Finance Work Programme, designed to maintain momentum and keep political pressure on developed countries to deliver on their commitments.

The conference also agreed on a new global target to triple climate adaptation finance by 2035, helping vulnerable countries like the Cook Islands prepare for worsening impacts such as floods, droughts and sea-level rise.

In addition, the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) was also launched at COP30 and is now in operation and ready to receive proposals. With the Cook Islands representing SIDS on the FRLD Board for 2026, discussions are taking place with stakeholders this month on what a proposal might look like.

Another major step forward was the agreement to develop a regular global State of Loss and Damage Report, aimed at improving our understanding of climate impacts already affecting communities worldwide.

Transparency remains a cornerstone of the COP conferences and the 2016 Paris Agreement on climate change, ensuring accountability and trust in global climate action.

At COP30, negotiations focused on supporting developing countries – particularly SIDS and Least Developed Countries – to meet complex reporting requirements under the Enhanced Transparency Framework. The Cook Islands plays an important role in this as AOSIS co-coordinator for transparency negotiations.

While all of these outcomes were significant, debates over funding levels and timelines highlighted ongoing challenges as developing countries stressed the urgency of immediate action to avoid delays. Deep divisions remain across most key issues – often between developing and developed countries, but also between large developing and small developing countries as well.

“COP30 delivered important institutional progress and kept key climate issues moving forward,” said Glassie-Ryan.

“But the pace of international decision-making continues to lag behind the rapidly escalating impacts.

“All parties are working under a system that operates by consensus, so the small steps forward are still valuable.

“Governments are building systems and processes to respond to climate change, but stronger political will – particularly from those legally required to – and faster action is urgently needed to protect communities, economies and ecosystems worldwide.

Step closer climate fund accreditation

Step closer climate fund accreditation

by | Jan 7, 2026 | GCF

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) board will consider Cook Islands’ application for accreditation of Ministry of Finance and Economic Management (MFEM) as a nationally accredited entity, deputy prime minister Mark Brown has confirmed.

Brown, who is attending the inaugural Global National Designated Authorities (NDA) Conference in Incheon, South Korea, said accreditation would mean the Cook Islands could apply directly to the GCF for climate finance.

He praised the Climate Change team at the Office of the Prime Minister and MFEM, especially leader Elizabeth Wright-Koteka, for the achievement.

Brown was invited to the meeting to speak on two panels about climate financing as it applies to the Cook Islands.

The meeting was to explore how GCF climate finance can help drive climate action around the world.

Around 30 ministers joined other government representatives in GCF’s largest gathering of developing country governments, to explore how developing country access to GCF financial resources can open up low-emission and climate-resilient “pathways”. National Designated Authorities, or focal points, represent developing country governments in their dealings with GCF.

During the discussions Brown laid a climate finance “lens” over the Cook Islands financial policies and budget.

Cabinet ministers on the panel were invited to discuss their perspectives on progress made in the mobilisation of financial resources for climate change mitigation and adaptation action taking into account remaining gaps and challenges. They also presented their vision for the GCF’s role within the broader climate finance landscape in the future.

Participants shared their views on the current climate finance scene and the status of international mobilisation of financial resources for climate change action.

Climate Change Cook Islands director Wayne King also spoke at the event.