Cook Islands filmmakers Tiana Haxton and Byron Brown are dedicating their documentary project on the saving of an endemic native bird species, Te Tauranga O Te Kakerori, to the memory of Joseph Brider a champion of conservation in the Cook Islands whose sudden passing at the weekend rocked the community in Rarotonga.
Brider who was the director of the Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust is described as having had a wealth of knowledge and a real passion for the environment and his death is seen as a huge loss to the country.
Kia orana and welcome on Pacific Waves Tiana and Byron my condolences for your loss, tell us a bit more about this great man and your involvement with him in your own journey documenting this successful conservation project for the native bird the Kakerori?
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The Kākerōri Bird was almost extinct in the early 1990s with less than 29 birds remaining in the wild, today there are well over 600 in Rarotonga and Atiu. Photo: Te Tauranga O Te Kakerori/ Siva Gounder