From the Black Sea to the Pacific

TPVM were delighted to host Associate Professor Liviu-Daniel Galatchi from Ovidius University of Constanta, Romania from 2-6 February 2026.

Dr Galatchi is a lecturer in Ecology and Environmental Protection at Constanta with expertise in environmental risk assessment, water quality monitoring, and climate change impacts. He is also the coordinator of the Erasmus+ programme at his university, a European Commission programme which promotes mutual learning and exchange between teachers, students and volunteers.

In 2025, Dr Galatchi reached out to Cook Islands scholars to see if there might be interest in an exchange of academics from the Cook Islands and his university, funded by Erasmus+. The intention of the exchange is to explore potential research synergies and knowledge exchange focused on comparative questions related to environment and ecology. For Dr Galatchi and his team, this centres on the Danube river, its delta, and the Black Sea. And for us here in the Cook Islands, this focuses on our expertise in the cultural practices, innovative policy design, and coastal lifeways of our people here in the Pacific Ocean.   

During his time with us Dr Galatchi shared more about his university and the coastal city where it is located, the history of his country and the Danube river, and his work on ecological and environmental systems. His study of eutrophication – the process of how algae blooms and dies and the impact this has on fish and other living organisms – was particularly relevant given algal blooming had recently taken place in our lagoon just before he arrived in Rarotonga.

While geographically and culturally distant, Dr Galatchi’s presentation on the Danube highlighted many resonances with the environmental challenges we are facing in the Cook Islands: ocean governance, environmental management, and innovative policy approaches are also extremely relevant for the Danube delta and it became increasingly obvious during our conversations that there is great potential for comparative insights from our respective contexts, histories and experiences.

TPVM now looks forward to advancing engagement with the Erasmus+ mobility for ongoing conversations with Dr Galatchi and his team in Romania.   

TPVM Research Fellows, Selane Tairea and Lauren Turner, and University of Auckland PhD Candidate, Liam Kokaua, with Associate Professor Liviu-Daniel Galatchi from Ovidius University at Constanta, Romania following his seminar on the Danube Delta on 5 February 2026.