President Anote Tong of the Republic of Kiribati, signed an agreement with the United States that establishes a “sister site” relationship between the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, located in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and the Phoenix Islands Protected Area near the equator in the Republic of Kiribati.
It is informed that the managers of both sites will meet in November in French Polynesia to formalize the agreement. The partnership links the sites and is designed to enhance management knowledge and practices for these tropical and subtropical marine and terrestrial island ecosystems.
Eileen Sobeck, Department of the Interior deputy assistant secretary, signed the agreement on behalf of the United States. Elizabeth Moore, director of International Sanctuaries, represented NOAA at the signing. Sobeck also said that the United States is very pleased to engage in this marine conservation partnership with the Republic of Kiribati.
This agreement represents both the culmination and the start of the work with their colleagues in Kiribati and collaboration between NOAA and our colleagues in the State of Hawaii and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to demonstrate the benefit of collaboration to protect these valuable resources. Aulani Wilhelm, NOAA’s superintendent for Papahānaumokuākea, said that their sites are part of a growing trend globally in ocean protection – the establishment of large-scale marine protected areas.
