USP will soon offer courses on waste management after initial needs assessment
Tag: Disasters
Climate Change can’t be ‘quarantined’: Taloiburi
Pacific Island Forum Secretariat finance adviser Exsley Taloiburi is worried that climate change may slip down regions’ agenda as Pacific ministers put focus on coronavirus. Speaking in the margins of the Economic Forum Ministers Meeting (FEMM) Taloiburi said while the deadly virus can be quarantined and worked around, the change in weather patterns can never […]
Vanuatu: A real test for local emergency response
Rated as the country with the highest disaster risk worldwide, Vanuatu is no stranger to severe tropical cyclones. When Tropical Cyclone Pam struck the country in 2015, it affected around 166,000 people and left a trail of destruction. Similarly, Tropical Cyclone Harold, a category 5 cyclone that hit Vanuatu on 6 April this year, affected […]
Solomon Islands private sector strengthens engagement in climate change resilience
A national mapping project has provided businesses in the Solomon Islands with increased understanding of climate and resilience financing. The project is seeking to strengthen private sector’s engagement and to promote public-private partnerships in this crucial area of financing. The mapping project was a joint undertaking by the Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry […]
Climate Change Projection Maps for Fiji launched
The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) in partnership with the Fiji Meteorological Service today presented a series of climate projection maps for Fiji to Permanent Secretaries at a function held at the Suva Business Centre in Suva. The maps provide projections, using models based on data collated by CSIRO, of the average […]
Samoa commits to enhancing e-Waste management
The Samoa Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) with the support of the European Union’s Pacific-EU Waste Management Programme (PacWastePlus) have selected electronic-waste (E-waste) as their priority waste stream and are now in the final stages of the development of their in-country project and related activities to further improve on e-waste management at the […]
Tonga needs half-a-billion for climate adaption – IMF
Tonga needs more than US$600 million to adapt to rising seas and more frequent cyclones, with the capital Nuku’alofa considered particularly vulnerable. An assessment was recently carried by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF said Tonga was one of the most exposed countries to natural disasters, which are forecast to get worse. The report […]
Meet the Innovator Protecting Our Oceans in Fiji: Misaeli Funaki
Misaeli Funaki is the Director of the Fiji Meteorological Service and he is always looking for innovative ways to predict what the ocean will do next. The work of his team is critical to saving lives and helping Pacific communities prepare for an uncertain future. Tell us about yourself. I am originally from a […]
Tropical cyclone season officially over
Eight tropical cyclones crossed the Exclusive Economic Zones of the South Pacific this 2019 – 2020 tropical cyclone season that officially ended in April. In Meteorological terms, this is known as a ‘near normal’ season. Tropical Cyclones Rita, Sarai, Tino, Uesi, Vicky, Wasi, Gretel and Harold wreaked havoc across the Pacific islands highlighting the need […]
The local hero protecting Papua New Guinea from DDT
When Joshua Wowo was a child, his uncle would take him on rambling walks through the lush forest surrounding their home in Papua New Guinea’s East New Britain Province. On these explorations, Wowo would be introduced not only to the beauty of his country, but also to the health risks facing its people. Joshua’s uncle […]