Traditional Māori conservation methods help protect reefs in the Cook Islands

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Communities in the Cook Islands have turned to traditional Māori conservation methods, such as ra’ui, to protect their reefs and nearshore fisheries. In a ra’ui, chiefs and community leaders set aside an area for conservation where regulations are agreed upon and implemented by the communities. Ra’uis have been recognized as a locally managed coastal conservation method that protects coral reef areas to prevent overfishing or destruction of the reefs.

Maps

The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation produces high-resolution coral reef habitat maps of previously unmapped, remote coral reef systems around the world. The maps we create are a product of extensive scientific research. We use a process that involves …