The foregoing quotations, those presented to or sanctioned by governments and inter- governmental agencies on the one hand, and those contained in magazines and newspapers (as well as in the local press and on radio) on the other hand, provide one of the contexts for the present study. The effects of such reports on island governments, officials, elders and not the least island residents themselves was, as several Tokelauans told us, one of uncertainty, bewilderment and genuine fear about the future for their families, lands and livelihood. This
Specifically the Community Vulnerability and Adaptation Assessment was conducted to make it possible for the people of Aitutaki to tell the CBDAMPIC project team what climate related
What is the nature of vulnerability and resilience to climate change at the community scale in Pacific island countries (PICs)? What approaches to climate change adaptation
Since the IPCC Third Assessment Report (TAR), understanding of the implications of climate change for coa systems and low-lying areas (henceforth referred to as 'coasts has increased substantially and six important policy-relevant messages have emerged.
Available online|(* NB these materials are also available on the workshop CDROM deposited with the IRC NBSAP workshop Nadi, Feb 2009)
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 43 p.
During the course of this century the resilience of many
ecosystems (their ability to adapt naturally) is likely to be
exceeded by an unprecedented combination of change in climate, associated disturbances (e.g., flooding, drought, wildfire, insects, ocean acidification) and in other global change drivers (especially land-use change, pollution and over-exploitation of resources), If greenhouse gas emissions and other changes continue at or above current rates (high confidence).
Report No. 1 presents preliminary results from fieldwork conducted with the Mangaliliu Lelepa Island community in mid 2008. This case study forms one of three assessments of community-based vulnerability and resilience to climate stress in rural Vanuatu undertaken as part of a PhD in Geography.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 28 p.
Climate change impacts will affect social and ecological systems in complex and broad-ranging ways as technological, economic, social and ecological changes take place across regions, groups and sectors. Many of these impacts, such as impacts on ecological systems, have cascading effects on social, economic and health outcomes. In order to respond to climate change, more vigorous actions are required to mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and to adapt to unavoidable consequences that are increasing vulnerability around the world.
Available online
The vulnerability issue is relevant for drawing up a panorama of the weaknesses and the strengths of a
territory in face of natural hazards, at the crossroads of various determinants (spatial configuration,
societal cohesion, environmental sensitivity, economic diversification, territorial coherence and level
of development). In parallel, we argue that because of the numerous and partly irreducible climatic and
anthropogenic uncertainties, it remains very speculative to try to directly measure the level of
While acknowledging their diversity, the IPCC Third
Assessment Report (TAR) also noted that small island states
share many similarities (e.g., physical size, proneness to natural disasters and climate extremes, extreme openness of their economies, low adaptive capacity) that enhance their vulnerability and reduce their resilience to climate variability and change.
Available online|(* NB these materials are also available on the workshop CDROM deposited with the IRC NBSAP workshop Nadi, Feb 2009)
Call Number: [EL]
There is now a consensus that there is a discernible human influence on global climate. The form these global changes will take in the Pacific is far less certain, but the most significant and more immediate consequences are likely to be related to changes in rainfall regimes and soil moisture budgets, prevailing winds (both speed and direction) and in regional and local sea levels and patterns of wave action.
Available online
Call Number: 341.7623[EL]
ISBN/ISSN: 982-04-0194-1
Physical Description: 84 p.
The present work is included in the research axes Geomorphology and natural hazards on the
coast and Vulnerability and quality of coastal areas of the team AGILE (Geographical
Approach of Islands, Littoral and Environment) of the research laboratory LIENSs (LIttoral,
ENvironment, SocietieS), University of la Rochelle-CNRS, UMR 6250 (France).
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 7 Pages
Vanuatu is among countries in the Pacific region that are most vulnerable to the risks of climate change, climate variability and sea level rise. With the livelihood of its people and economy interwoven, shaped and driven by climate sensitive
sectors, the effects of climate and sea level change are already very real and pose a tangible threat to the future socio-economic wellbeing of the country.
Available online|1 copy
Call Number: [EL],551.6 COM
Physical Description: 44 p.
Tongatapu coastal zone vulnerability assessment study was conducted to examine the degree of current and future risks of projected climate change and sea level rise on the coastal zone of the main island of the Kingdom of Tonga-Tongatapu. Inundation, and flooding hazards generated by tropical cyclone storm surges are the common threats to Tongatapu coastal towns and villages because of their low-lying settings.
The guide is a tool to understanding Pacific communities' vulnerability to climate change, variability and sea level change; and to determining what action needs to be carried out in order to adapt to these changes. In the CV&A process, the focus of data collection is the community that constitutes elders, men, women, youths and children. Their experience in relation to climate variability, change over time, and extreme events become very important. The assessment focuses on current
Irrespective of which part of the world one lives in, the environment now figures highly on most national agendas, be they economic, political or social, and among the many environmental
issues, one dominates. Global climate change hangs over all of us like the sword of Damocles, alarming because of the enormous scale of the phenomenon, our inability to delineate its exact
configuration, and our apparent incapacity to check its course.
Cook Islands holds 551.6
Call Number: 551.699612 NUN [EL],551.6
ISBN/ISSN: 9820400295
The climate of Tonga is tropical. It lies within the southeast trade wind zone of the South Pacific. Climatic parameters include rainfall, temperture. wind and sunshine hours. Tonga's annual rainfall can be defined by two seasons, the wet and dry seasons. Wet season is also known as the cyclone season and it is noticeable from November to April. Dry season runs from May to October. The wettest months are particularly January. February and March that may exceed 250mm of rainfall per month. During dry season, the amount of rainfall received per month is less than 250mm.
Vulnerable ecosystems- Sea?level rise
Increasing temperatures
Changes in rainfall
Ocean acidification
Coral reefs
Increased storm activity
Overall in Melanesia the central mountains of New
Guinea and the coral reefs and ocean life in the
outer islands of Papua New Guinea most impacted.
In the wider Pacific inundation is a major threat.
Available online
Call Number: [EL]
Physical Description: 22 p.
A Workshop on Regional Action to Combat Invasive Alien Species on Islands to Preserve Biodiversity and Adapt to Climate Change highlighted successes, deepened connections within regions and facilitated the exchange of experiences across regions.While discussions outlined significant obstacles to invasive alien species management2 on islands, they also showcased how targeted successes have led to major gains for conservation and development.Collaboration across developmental and environmental sectors and sustained support are critical to success in this field.Exciting new initiatives are dev
The Pacific region has benefited from a number of regional and national programmes to both assess the impacts of climate change on biodiversity and develop programmes to adapt to climate change. Such programmes are critical considering that the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 1/ states that the Pacific region has already experienced temperature increases of as much as 1°C since 1910.
The combined pressures of climate change and development will not only aggravate existing challenges to the conservation of biodiversity in the Pacific, but also introduce new difficulties. There are a wide range of historical, current and planned studies that examine specific aspects of the relationship between climate change, conservation and development in the Pacific.