Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) CEO and Pwo Navigator Nainoa Thompson and fellow PVS representatives traveled to French Polynesia earlier this month at the invitation of President Moetai Brotherson and the Government of French Polynesia to participate in World Oceans Day events held June 7-8, and to support efforts to advance ocean protection across Oceania.

The small PVS delegation joined government leaders, educators, conservation organizations, and community members during the Tainui Ātea Festival, a large public event held June 7 at Parc Paofai in Papeʻete.  The event built on the momentum of the United Nations Ocean Conference held in Nice, France in June 2025, where French Polynesia announced the creation of Tainui Ātea, the world’s largest marine protected area.

During the public celebration, more than 35 organizations and public agencies held workshops and conducted presentations about their collective ocean protection efforts.  During his remarks, President Brotherson named Thompson the first International Ambassador of Tainui Ātea, recognizing his lifelong commitment to ocean stewardship, cultural preservation, education, and traditional navigation.

On June 8, during an extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers at the Presidency of French Polynesia, President Brotherson 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 approximately 1.6 million square kilometers (approx. 617,763 square miles), further expanding the largest marine protected area in the world.

“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 President Brotherson.  “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 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.  “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,” he added in response to being named International Ambassador of the marine protected area.

The invitation extended to Thompson and PVS reflects a growing partnership between Polynesian Voyaging Society and French Polynesia’s leaders around ocean protection and reviving ancient cultural traditions and connections.  In 2022, Thompson joined then-President Édouard Fritch in signing a joint declaration supporting ocean protection.  In March 2025, Thompson welcomed French Polynesia’s Minister of Culture to Hawaiʻi for a PVS-organized ocean convening attended by Pacific ocean leaders and held as part of Hōkūleʻa’s 50th birthday celebrations.

With the support of the French Polynesian government, Thompson and the PVS team met with representatives from voyaging organizations, navigation schools, canoe builders, and cultural practitioners to explore opportunities for collaboration and the creation of a stronger Pacific-wide network of traditional voyaging communities.  Participants included individuals from Fa‘afaite,  Te Ao Mā‘ohi leaders, ‘Aimeho Va‘a Ta‘ie of Moorea, Haururu of Papenoo, Rapa Atea of Tautira, the Va‘a Ta‘ie School of Arue, Punua Tamaehu of Rangiroa, master canoe builders Teraupoo Richmond and John Rere, and other respected leaders in the voyaging community.

Throughout the week, Thompson also visited schools, navigation programs, cultural centers, and communities across Tahiti and Moorea, including the Arue Traditional Va‘a Ta‘ie School led by Teiva Veronique, the Rapa Atea School of Navigation led by Hinatea Lefay, and ‘Aimeho Va‘a Ta‘ie led by Poema Duprel. He also visited The Gump Station and Pu Atiti‘a in Moorea, as well as communities in Mataiea and Tautira, where Hōkūleʻa was welcomed during its historic 1976 maiden voyage.

Thompson and PVS’ visit came as Hawaiʻi and French Polynesia continued to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Hōkūleʻa’s historic 1976 voyage to Tahiti, a journey that revived traditional Polynesian voyaging and non-instrument navigation and helped spark a cultural renaissance throughout the Pacific. Today, that legacy continues through a shared commitment to indigenous knowledge, cultural pride, and caring for the ocean that connects Pacific peoples. The relationships forged during that historic voyage continue to deepen, reinforcing a shared commitment to voyaging, education, cultural preservation, and ocean stewardship throughout Oceania.

Photo Courtesy: Matahi Tutavae