Phoenix Islands: Paradise Found. This is the story of two scientific expeditions to survey the Phoenix Islands.

To view the entire movie, click here.


Key Facts

• With an area of 408,250 km2, PIPA is the largest MPA in the world

• Includes a large area of deep ocean

• Highlighted by National Geographic

• Nominated as a World Heritage Site

• Largest ocean conservation initiative of any developing country


Phoenix Islands Protected Area
A bathymetric view of the Phoenix Islands group

Click image to view larger image.

Join us on Facebook

 


News

Largest Marine Protected Area on Earth Created by a Nation that’s Among World’s Smallest
 A short article in the Journal Oceanography about the creation of the world's largest Marine Protected Area. Read more ...

World’s Most Isolated Coral Reefs Steadily Recovering from Bleaching
Scientists return from an expedition to the world’s most isolated coral reefs in the central Pacific... Read more ...

World’s Largest Marine Protected Areas Sign Partnership Agreement
Two of the world’s largest marine protected areas announced a historic alliance to enhance the management and protection of almost 300,000 square miles of marine habitat in the Pacific Ocean. Read more ...

Invasive Species Threatening Bird Life of Fragile Phoenix Islands
Press Release from Conservation International May 22, 2008 Read more ...

Amelia Earharts Bones and Shoes?
Report on the discovery of a skeleton and shoes on Nikumaroro atoll in the Phoenix Islands, possibly belonging to Amelia Earhart. Read more ...

Amelia Earhart, the final story.
Account of the search for Amelia Earhart in the central Pacific.
Read more ...


Quick Downloads

PIPA Fact Sheet
Download the PIPA fact sheet.
Research Application
Download our application for scientific research in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area.
Logo Description
Download our explaination of the significance of our logo.

 

Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA)  

2009 Scientific Expedition

(December 10, 2009) In September 2009 the fourth scientific expedition was mounted by the New England Aquarium to the Phoenix Islands, Republic of Kiribati in the South Pacific, and the first since the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) was legally established in 2008 to become the largest Marine Protected Area in the world, with a surface area of 408,250 km2. The expedition team of 14 people spent 11 days in PIPA from September 13 to the 23, completing over 400 SCUBA dives. Preliminary work on pelagic invertebrates and with a deep water ROV was conducted, while the main efforts focused on coral reef assessments, initiating a broader range of research projects on coral reef biota and terrestrial assessments with a management focus. Video footage was collected for further development of educational and promotional videos on PIPA, and a National Geographic Magazine photographer collected material for a future article on PIPA in the magazine. Timing of the expedition coincides with PIPA’s application for listing as a World Heritage Site, and the research expedition had as an additional goal to inform this process and support the application. Check out participating researchers' blogs here: 

 

New England Aquarium


Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution


Conservation International


President of Kiribati Visits Wins Conservation Award at New England Aquarium

(September 22, 2008) His excellency, President Anote Tong was presented with the prestigious David B. Stone Medal, an honor given to leaders in ocean conservation. The unanimous vote from the selection committee acknowledges the global magnitude of the PIPA and the unprecedented step that the Government of Kiribati has taken in declaring and then subsequently expanding the PIPA to an area the size of California. Past winners of this award include Oceanographer Jacques Yves Cousteau and Senator John Kerry. The trip also provided an opportunity for project team members to work more closely in person and this yielded positive results. President Tong also spoke at a forum on climate change at Harvard University's Center for the Environment, delivering a powerful speech on the impacts of climate change on small island states.

 

Photos from the David B. Stone Conservation Medal dinner


PIPA has enjoyed extensive media coverage from a wide variety of sources. Here are links to some of the articles:

New England Aquarium's Blue Magazine Winter 2010

Cosmos Magazine "World's Largest Marine Park: Size of California"

Smithsonian Magazine "Our Imperiled Oceans: Victory at Sea"

ABC News "Conservation Talks Highlight Need to Protect Island Environments"

Harvard Gazette "Island Nation President Plans for Extinction"

Living on Earth feature on the Phoenix Islands Protected Area

Science News "The presidents of two island nations draft escape plans, anticipating sea level rise"

ABC News "Kiribati's President: 'Our Lives Are At Stake'

National Geographic "Phoenix Islands"