The 11th Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas closed with an enhanced commitment, renewed purpose and a shared responsibility to carry the conservation work forward, together.
For 51 years the Conference has brought together the voices, knowledge, and leadership of the Pacific conservation community.
In Noumea, New Caledonia last week, at the PCNC11, a consistent message was loud and clear – Pacific leadership must shape Pacific conversation. Communities must help determine priorities, lead implementation and share in the benefits.
The Môo Mâ Awé Declaration, a Pacific Commitment to Nature Conservation and Protected Areas adopted at the conference is one of three tools to help guide the Pacific as it renews its commitment to protect and restore nature, uphold Pacific knowledge and cultures, and ensure that conservation supports the wellbeing of present and future generations.
“What we take away from this week can be summed up in one sentence,” stated Hon Christopher Gyges, Vice President of the Government of New Caledonia at the closing of the Conference.
“Commitments are made at conferences, but nature is protected on the ground, together with the people who live there.”
The Môo Mâ Awé Declaration recognises, endorses and commits to implementing 16 Regional Collective Priorities by 2030 to ensure the protection, restoration, and flourishing of both nature and people across our vast Pacific.
It is one of three significant tools resulting from the one-week conference that brought together over 400 delegates from across the Pacific Islands region, that helped build a shared course going forward for Pacific conservation.
The Pacific Islands State of Environment and Conservation Report 2026 strengthens our understanding and condition of our environment, the pressures it faces, and the responses required. Its value will be realised through the decisions it informs, and the action it inspires.
“The work does not end here. It continues when we return home. Let us return ready to turn our commitments into practical action,” said Easter Chu Shing, Deputy Director General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP).
“Let us strengthen the partnerships formed here, nurture the friendships we’ve forged, support community leadership, invest in our young people, and sustain the knowledge systems that have guided stewardship throughout generations. Across the Pacific, we understand that a voyage depends on shared effort.”
For the representatives of Pacific Island governments, development partners, and Heads of Organisations of Members of the Pacific Islands Round Table for Nature Conservation (PIRT) the one week conference was a resounding success.
It was the opportunity to bring all conservation stakeholders together, face to face, for the first time in over a decade. The 10th Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas was initially to be hosted in Noumea, New Caledonia however due to COVID-19, the event transitioned to a virtual event.
“As a delegate at this conference I feel there was a lot of good work being done across our region with incorporating our indigenous knowledge and ways into protected area management plans,” said Ms Aungas Olewale of the Piku Biodiversity Network Inc of Papua New Guinea.
“As a member of the greater Pacific, I feel hopeful that through this conference there is going to a much more progress with us all coming together, sharing our experiences and thoughts, we’ve gained confidence in doing more of this work in our community.”
The 11th Pacific Islands Conference for Nature Conservation and Protected Areas was held from 7 to 11 September 2026 at the Tjibaou Culturel Centre in Noumea New Caledonia.
It brought together over 400 delegates from across the Pacific, the conference was organised by New Caledonia, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme, and the Pacific Islands Roundtable for Nature Conservation with the support of partners.
