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There’s a tiny island in the Pacific that’s doing something big — and it’s something we could do in Hawaii, too.

Niue, one of the smallest countries in the world located about 375 miles northeast of Tonga, recently unveiled a plan to raise $18 million to protect its waters by selling sponsorship of its ocean to fund preservation and conservation efforts.

It will cost $148 to protect 1 square kilometer of ocean around the island nation from threats such as illegal fishing and plastic waste for a period of 20 years. There are 127,000 units available for sponsorship — not ownership — which represents the size of Niue’s marine protected area.

The money raised under the plan will be administered by a charitable trust.

“As a small island nation, Niue’s vast marine territory holds immense ecological, cultural and economic value to our people,” said Dalton Tagelagi, Niue’s premier, in a statement. “Its ecosystem services also provide regional and global environmental benefits.”

Niue is a raised coral atoll about 40 miles in circumference, with a population of 1,700 people, many of whom rely on the reefs for food. Though its economy is based mainly on agriculture, tourism is a growing sector, luring visitors with the island’s natural beauty and crystal-clear oceans.

Like Hawaii, Niue is vulnerable to the catastrophic effects of climate change, from rising sea levels to intense tropical storms. Unregulated fishing is also a problem, as it depletes fish stocks. Warmer oceans are altering marine ecosystems. The country hopes this new initiative will help.

Could this plan work here, too?

Imagine a program where we could sponsor a portion of Hawaii’s reefs, with the money funding conservation efforts. It wouldn’t be unlike sponsoring a native koa tree that’s planted on the slopes of Mauna Kea. You wouldn’t own the reef or the ocean; you would be pledging money to protect it.

Because something needs to be done.

Hawaii lawmakers failed to pass , which would have required visitors to pay a fee to support the protection of the state’s forests, parks, coral reels and wildlife. (The bill, which had widespread support, will likely resurface next year.)

Before the pandemic, 10 million visitors came to the Hawaiian Islands each year, lured by our unique natural environment. They want to relax on a golden-sand beach. They want to snorkel in aquamarine waters. They want to trek through native forests.

The proposed plan would generate revenue to protect exactly what draws visitors to the islands by making conservation their kuleana, too.

But taking care of our natural environments takes money. Taxing visitors is one solution. Sponsoring sections of our reefs, the way Niue has proposed, may be another.

Hawaii’s coral reefs are valuable, not just to marine ecosystems but to the state’s tourism industry. According to the global NGO , Hawaii’s reefs contribute over $800 million to the economy each year through tourism and provides shoreline protection to residents from storm surges and floods.

As the number of visitors to Hawaii climb back to pre-Covid levels — coupled with damaging effects of climate change — the need to protect and preserve our natural resources is extremely critical.

The money raised could support conservation research, fund more officers, restore ecosystems, protect critical habitats — the list goes on.

It could also support the , a new climate jobs training program proposed by the White House on Wednesday that could put 20,000 people — likely young people — to work on projects like restoring land, bolstering community resilience to natural disasters and advancing environmental justice.

The goal would be to create pathways to well-paying, clean-energy and climate-resilience jobs in the public and private sector for the participants who complete the program.

Some of the initiatives Niue plans to fund through its sponsorship program include enhanced community engagement and monitoring, compliance, and enforcement through building control and surveillance capacities.

“Even the smallest nations can make global waves,” said M. Sanjayan, CEO of in a statement. “We hope other island governments seize this historic momentum to protect the pristine beauty, and life-sustaining bounties, of our oceans.”

I hope Hawaii lawmakers are listening.