A Guam senator says her resolution that Micronesia's natural resources should be managed by Micronesians is about taking steps to move away from reliance on outside assistance.
The resolution says the Micronesian people are entitled to secure ongoing benefits from National Geographic, filmmaker James Cameron and others making expeditions in the Marianas Trench.
Senator Aline Yamashita says there is potential for charging fees for such expeditions in the way that Nepal charges people to climb Mount Everest.
While Guam is excluded from establishing a fee system because it is a US territory, Senator Yamashita says working together as a region might reduce Micronesia's outside dependency.
"That dependency can hurt us when we become too dependent, I think. It's a beautiful place and we have beautiful land, beautiful water, beautiful air and I think if we treat it right and cultivate it, there's a real potential economic engine here."
Aline Yamashita.
