In addition to her academic work, Paige West is the co-founder of the PNG Institute of Biological Research, a small NGO dedicated to building academic opportunities for research in Papua New Guinea by Papua New Guineans. For over a decade, she has worked in partnership with John Aini and the Indigenous marine sovereignty NGO Ailan Awareness. She is also the co-founder of the Roviana Solwara Skul, a school in Papua New Guinea dedicated to teaching at the nexus of Indigenous knowledge and western scientific knowledge.