Along with the nutrient-rich waters that flow through the Coral Triangle comes a rich tapestry of cultures and traditions that make this region unique.

8 – 19 August 201 S8 33.173 E125 31.634 – Dili S8 83.872 E125 60.340 – Maubisse When we were told days before that we were going to a place where salt was made, we imagined large, massive salt fields by the sea. There will be a lot of white ponds with salt crystals which […]

8 – 19 August 201 S8 33.173 E125 31.634 – Dili We hardly knew anything about Timor-Leste as we plunged in head first to photograph it. Upon arriving at the airport, we immediately noticed UN presence. There were a lot of men in uniform and loads of vehicles with the UN logo. And yet we […]

8 – 19 August 201 S8 33.173 E125 31.634 – Dili Sometime April this year, we attended ADEX in Singapore. Yogi & I were invited by John Thet, publisher of Asian Geographic Magazine as well as Asian Diver and ScubaDiver Australasia, to give a series of public slideshows on The Coral Triangle.  In one of […]

15 – 17 July 2010 S8 30.123 E158 00.957 – Chea Village, Marovo Island Still in Chea Village, Marovo Lagoon, we concentrated in photographing people. The weather had not eased up on us and with the rains and occasional bursts of sunshine, we did mostly indoors stuff. And the Solomon Islander children were absolutely beautiful. […]

15 – 17 July 2010 S8 30.123 E158 00.957 – Chea Village, Marovo Island After strong winds and rain throughout our stay in Tetepare, we were dreading the island crossing from Tetepare to Marovo Lagoon, New Georgia. We were bracing ourselves for big waves and made sure all our belongings were packed water tight and […]

10 – 14 July 2010 S8 43.279 E157 26.611 – Tetepare Island Tetepare is the largest uninhabited island in the South Pacific where a tiny portion of its massive land is a dedicated research field station and a cooperative ecolodge run by the Tetepare Descendants’ Association or TDA.  Many stories circulate why Tetepare Island (Tetepare […]

6 July 2010 S8 06.238 E156 50.637 – Gizo S8 01.776 E156 35.161 – Ranonga One morning in 2 April 2007, we woke up at home in Cairns. By force of habit, even before breakfast, I turned on the computer and checked BOM, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, for the day’s weather. There was a […]

28 – 30 July 2010 S2 22.915 E146 49.513 – M’Buke Island Betel nut chewing is a custom or ritual that dates back thousands of years from Asia to the Pacific, a tradition very much a part of modern life in many parts of the Coral Triangle. This custom is very much alive that it is […]

28 – 30 July 2010 S2 22.915 E146 49.513 – M’Buke Island S2 18.697 E146 51.595 – Anun Island S2 20.051 E146 51.725 – Champoin Island Last year in February, when I was still researching WWF Coral Triangle projects to cover for our expedition, I had heard of the traditional community canoe making project of […]

28 – 30 June 2010 S2 22.915 E146 49.513 – M’Buke Island S2 18.697 E146 51.595 – Anun Island Pronounced Bu-ke with a silent M, M’Buke are several islands off the south end of mainland of Manus, Papua New Guinea. Manus Province is the smallest and the least populated of PNG’s twenty provinces. Known also as the Admiralty Islands, this group […]