Palau Congress paves way for Blue Prosperity funding
Members of the Olbiil Era Keluau Monday adopted amendments to the supplemental budget to pave way for the Blue Prosperity funding assistance, while Palau Congress gave approval to the marine spatial planning. The new
Access to finance ocean projects ‘very challenging’: Solomons MP Manele
While there are huge commitments being made and offered to assist countries to conserve, protect and manage their ocean resources, accessing finance for ocean projects is still a major obstacle for many Small Island
Oceans emergency declared
Updates from the UN Oceans conference The United Nations Secretary General has declared an “ocean emergency” at the 2022 UN Oceans Conference co-hosted by Portugal and Kenya in Lisbon. Addressing delegates attending
A call for more collaborative, science and grassroot involvement in oceans management
World Oceans Day saw a flurry of activity in Fiji’s capital, Suva, as people gathered to celebrate the ocean as an integral part of their lives. It coincided with a two-day Pacific Oceans Alliance meeting that
Is Lau the Next Galapagos?
A huge conservation effort that could be the South Pacific's answer to the wildlife park-island of Galapagos is gaining momentum in Fiji. Under the Lau Seascape initiative, nearly 336,000 square kilometres of land and
Micro plastics, macro problem
An estimated 150 million tonnes of plastic are circulating in our oceans, and that figure is growing by the equivalent of one-truckload every minute, the United Nations Environment Program says. Plastic pollution was a
2022: The Year to Stop the Decline of Ocean Health
OP-ED by Ambassador Peter Thomson, UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean NEW YORK, 10 MAY 2022 (UNRCO)— With every breath we take, we are connected to the ocean. The ocean gives us oxygen, provides
Fiji: WWF study shows fish decline on Fiji’s Great Sea Reef
Additional marine protected areas and new fishing limitations should be implemented if the steep decline in fish stocks on the Fiji Great Sea Reef are to be arrested, a latest study on the world’s third largest
Ocean action the rallying cry at Fiji Seascapes Symposium
“There is no climate action without ocean action” was the rallying cry from Fiji President, Ratu Wiliame Katonivere at the start of a three-day symposium on ocean conservation in Suva this week. “As we
Our Ocean Conference in Palau ends on high note
Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr has announced that 410 commitments were made at the ocean conference with the value of US$16.35
2022 UN Ocean Conference: Thomson on SDG14 Commitments
Despite environmental challenges, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean Peter Thomson believes there are viable solutions to reverse the decline in ocean health. The 2022 UN Ocean Conference which
Palau to host Our Ocean Conference next month
Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr said that Our Ocean Conference next month will be an opportunity for the Pacific region to highlight the role of Pacific Islanders as stewards of the oceans. In a virtual Our Ocean
High seas treaty talks fail to reach a deal
The clock ran out Friday at UN talks to forge a legally binding treaty to protect open oceans beyond national jurisdictions (BBNJ), with no schedule set for prolonging the discussions. This fourth round of negotiations
In our February issue
In this issue of Islands Business, lessons from Tonga where people continue to rebuild their lives after the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcanic eruption and tsunami. Kevin McQuillan looks at movement to reopen the
France, the oceans and seabed mining
Pacific leaders have joined a major oceans summit hosted by the French government in the port city of Brest, addressing climate change, illegal fishing, ocean acidification and plastics pollution.
“CLIMATE CHANGE IS OCEAN CHANGE” AT COP26, GLOBAL LEADERS SHOULD CONSIDER THE PACIFIC WAY
Climate change is ocean change. This is a reality that has escaped much of the world’s attention, but is daily life in the Pacific Islands. Today’s ocean is warmer and more acidic, sea levels are rising, and extreme
Fiji calls for sea-bed mining moratorium as Nautilus restructures
By Nic Maclellan in Funafuti, Tuvalu Fiji Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has again called for a 10-year moratorium on sea-bed mining, at a time that many Pacific island nations are preparing for new frontiers of
Traditional knowledge needs to be at the heart of the Ocean Decade
Harnessing traditional knowledge of the oceans in a way that isn’t exploitative or tokenistic is emerging as a strong theme at a regional ocean meeting currently underway in Noumea. Scientists, policy makers and
‘Failing but not yet failed’: we need to improve ocean health
“We are failing, but we have not yet failed. There is still time in the next ten years to turn things around. It’s our last chance. And our survival as a species depends on the health of the oceans.” This is
World Oceans Day – What it means for the Pacific
from the Acting Director General of SPREP, Mr Stuart Chape World Oceans Day has been celebrated each year since 1992. We have witnessed increasing world attention on our oceans, particularly in the face of extreme
Know our ocean
An Opinion-Editorial by Meg Taylor, DBE, Secretary General, Pacific Islands Forum and Pacific Ocean Commissioner This week we are all encouraged to know our ocean as the world marks World Ocean Day on the 8th June.
The world pledges to save our home
READING through the world’s pledges for the protection of our oceans during the first-ever Oceans Conference that Fiji and Sweden co-chaired at the United Nations headquarters in New York in June, one could easily be
Whales – starvation or not?
WHALES are likely starving and entering dangerously shallow water in a desperate search for food. Whales are not immune to starvation. The 650-plus pilot whales beached at Farewell Spit, New Zealand, provide ‘canary