Field Note 002 / Rarotonga, Cook Islands
Lokal — Living Local
Photography, film, and cultural storytelling in the Cook Islands.
Lokal was a UN-supported documentary project in the Cook Islands, created to celebrate traditional knowledge, local food, and the people keeping these practices alive. Working alongside a team of writers and editors, I photographed and filmed the people, places, and everyday traditions that became part of a magazine distributed throughout the islands.
This project changed the way I approached photography. Being present for the interviews, listening to people's stories, and seeing those stories come together in a publication made me understand how much more powerful an image can become when it's part of a larger conversation. It was an experience that continues to shape the way I tell stories today.
One of the things that stayed with me from Rarotonga was how much knowledge was shared through everyday life. Growing food, preparing meals, weaving with leaves from the land—these weren't simply traditions to photograph. They were skills people generously took the time to show us, explain, and share.
Working alongside the Lokal team, I began to understand how these stories connected food, health, culture, and the importance of keeping local knowledge alive.
Throughout our time on Rarotonga, conversations kept coming back to food, health, and the changes happening across the islands. The Lokal team was gathering stories about growing and preparing local food, the knowledge passed between generations, and the effects of increasingly relying on imported, processed foods.
What I loved about the project was that these conversations weren't going to disappear into someone's notes or a hard drive. They were becoming a magazine that people across the Cook Islands could take home, read, share, and return to.
The magazine eventually made its way into homes and schools throughout the Cook Islands. Years later, the people I met and the stories they shared still influence how I approach my work.
