In April 2025, the National Environment Service (NES) engaged Muri Environment Care (MEC) under a service agreement to deliver the Riparian Restoration and Research Project in Rarotonga. This work is part of the Cook Islands Pilot Project: Financing Nature as a Solution for Flood Mitigation and Water Quality, developed with Stanford University’s Natural Capital Project, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management, and funded by the Moore Foundation.
MEC, an environmental NGO based at a nursery in Turangi and supported by Pa Ariki, has been building capacity in nature-based solutions. Over the past eleven months, MEC has supported riparian restoration in Muri through seed collection, nursery propagation, and streamside planting along the Parengaru and Ngatoe Streams. These efforts have attracted new volunteers and laid the foundation for an ambitious next step – a Tiny Forest planting along the Parengaru Stream.
Partnerships have been central to this success. MEC has worked with Cook Islands Taxonomic Botanist Anthony White and local legend Gerald McCormack to conduct field missions, collect new species, and propagate plants. Together, they are developing a Fruit and Flowering Calendar, supporting rare and endangered species research, and preparing new seedlings for streamside planting.
This restoration initiative is guided by a long-term vision: healthy streams that improve community wellbeing, restore biodiversity, and enhance lagoon and reef health. By combining scientific expertise, local knowledge, and community action, MEC is showing how nature can provide solutions to pressing environmental challenges.
Looking ahead, MEC is eager to continue working with NES and the University of Newcastle to expand Tiny Forest sites upstream, helping build resilience to climate change while protecting the natural heritage of the Cook Islands.
