The Executive Committee of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts (WIM ExCom) is meeting in the Pacific for the first time, convening in Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) from 14 to 18 September 2026.
The meeting in Majuro comes at a particularly important time for international climate diplomacy. Held in advance of the Pre-COP31 meetings and COP31, it provides an opportunity to build greater visibility and momentum around the Pacific’s priorities on loss and damage, and reinforces the region’s call for climate action that is equitable, responsive, and grounded in lived experience.
“We are looking forward to sharing more about what makes the Marshall Islands who we are – our identity, culture, customs, ocean, and history. Understanding who we are highlights what is at stake in the face of climate change and why we continue to champion the 1.5°C limit, adaptation finance, and the adequate capitalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund. It is so very important to anchor the international work with lived realities, such as our own,” said Minister Jess Gasper, RMI’s Minister-in-Assistance to the President and Environment.
This historic meeting brings one of the key bodies established under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to a region on the frontlines of the climate crisis, establishing an important opportunity to place Pacific experiences, priorities, and perspectives at the centre of global discussions on addressing climate change impacts.
Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Baron Divavesi Waqa noted that hosting the WIM Executive Committee in Majuro, following the 55th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in the Republic of Palau, is more than a symbolic milestone.
“It is critical that we bring global climate decision-making closer to our Pacific island communities living with the consequences of climate change, while strengthening understanding of our countries’ specific challenges and priorities,” said Waqa.
Pacific Islands Forum Leaders endorsed the BELAU Declaration for Urgent and Inclusive Climate Action to Keep 1.5°C Within Reach at their meeting in Palau. Forum Leaders also reaffirmed their collective commitment to keeping the 1.5°C Paris Agreement temperature goal within reach, and to strengthening international action on climate change.
The presence of the WIM ExCom in the Pacific reflects the importance of ensuring that global mechanisms are informed by the realities of those most exposed to climate change. The meeting also provides an important platform for Pacific voices including governments, communities, civil society, and young people to inform international efforts to strengthen approaches to loss and damage.
“Climate change has already had a profoundly negative impact on Pacific families, communities, and nations,” observed Sefanaia Nawadra, Director General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme.
“When it comes to climate change-induced loss and damage, the threat to our cultures, languages, and ways of life is very real. This meeting must consider the loss and damage we are already living through in the Pacific.”
The convening of WIM Executive Committee in the Republic of the Marshall Islands was made possible through the COP31 Australia Pacific Partnership, and provides a fitting backdrop to the discussions on Loss and Damage.
The pre-COP31 is also to be hosted in the Pacific for the second time. The event will be held in Fiji and Tuvalu from 5 to 8 October 2026. This will be followed by the 31st Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC in Antalya, Türkiye from 9 to 20 November 2026.
