Polynesian Voyaging Society joins World Oceans Day events in Tahiti

Pwo navigator and Polynesian Voyaging Society Chief Executive Officer Nainoa Thompson along with fellow representatives from the voyaging society traveled to French Polynesia earlier this month at the invitation of President Moetai Brotherson and Government of French Polynesia to participate in World Oceans Day events June 7-8 and support efforts to advance ocean protection throughout Oceania.

The small Polynesian Voyaging Society delegation joined government leaders, educators, conservation organizations and community members during the Tainui Ātea Festival. More than 35 organizations and public agencies hosted workshops and conducted presentations about their collective ocean protection efforts.

Brotherson named Thompson the first international ambassador of Tainui Ātea, honoring the pwo navigator’s lifelong commitment to ocean stewardship, cultural preservation, education and traditional navigation.

“It’s reassuring that someone like Nainoa Thompson, a true champion of the ocean, accepted that we offered him to be our ambassador for Tainui Ātea,” said Brotherson in a release from Polynesian Voyaging Society. “It means that he will now explain to the world what’s behind Tainui Ātea. What are the values that are carried out … values of protecting the environment, not just for the sake of protecting the environment, but because the environment is part of us and we are part of the environment, especially the ocean.”

The festival built on the momentum from the United Nations Ocean Conference last year, during which French Polynesia announced the creation of Tainui Ātea, the world’s largest marine protected area.

“The native people of French Polynesia base the definition of marine protection on long-term, 1,000-year-old traditional management and stewardship of the oceans driven by old, time-tested survival traditions of people living on islands,” said Thompson in the release. “Tainui Ātea is a massive undertaking. It’s a huge project. There’s a lot of work to do, and my role is just to help and support.”

Brotherson the next day also announced the creation of new fully protected marine zones northeast of the Marquesas Islands and south of the Austral Islands. The new protections bring French Polynesia’s total protected marine area to about 617,763 square miles, further expanding the largest marine protected area in the world.

The invitation extended to Polynesian Voyaging Society and Thompson to be part of Tahiti’s World Oceans Day events reflects a growing partnership between the voyaging society and French Polynesia’s leaders for ocean protection and reviving ancient cultural traditions and connections.

Thompson and the Polynesian Voyaging Society team also met with representatives from voyaging organizations, navigation schools, canoe builders and cultural practitioners to explore opportunities for collaboration and creation of a stronger Pacific-wide network of traditional voyaging communities.

Thompson also visited schools, navigation programs, cultural centers and communities throughout the week in Tahiti and Moorea. He also visited communities in Mataiea and Tautira, where the voyaging society’s traditional double-hulled voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa was welcomed during its historic 1976 maiden voyage.

Visit the Polynesian Voyaging Society website for additional information.