PINA

Last month, twin cyclones tore through Port Vila, the capital of the Pacific nation of Vanuatu. The category-four storms left corrugated iron roofs crumpled like leftover wrapping paper, flooded the streets with waste-ridden mud, cut residents off from water and electricity for several days, and sent many fleeing to hastily established evacuation centres. Devastation of this sort is becoming more common...

While stressing that the so-called treated water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant still contains radionuclides that are not able to be removed, a renowned Japanese environment economist said that we must persistently demand that the Japanese government and the Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) stop dumping the nuclear-contaminated wastewater into the Pacific Ocean. Kenichi Oshima, professor at Ryukoku University,...

Cook Islands Prime Minister and Forum Chair, Mark Brown has joined a growing list of Pacific leaders to object to the US$250 billion nuclear submarine deal between Australia, United Kingdom and the United States (AUKUS). The AUKUS project, which will allow Australia to acquire upto eight nuclear-powered submarines, has been widely condemned by proponents of nuclear non-proliferation. It has also fuelled...

Big picture conversations about the future of the Pacific islands should be happening, but they are not, said one of the region’s foremost commentators in an interview published this week in the Marshall Islands Journal. Breaking down barriers between Pacific islands to spur economic development, visioning 21st century skills that island youth must have for jobs locally or globally, action...

Vanuatu’s Foreign Minister says it would be “embarrassing” for both China and the United States if they fail to back the Pacific Island nation’s push to get the International Court of Justice to issue a ruling on climate change. The United Nations is expected to vote later this week on the landmark resolution which would ask the ICJ to rule...

Pacific leaders are not surprised by the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report that says current action and plans are insufficient to keep warming below 1.5 degrees. The report said more than a century of burning fossil fuels and unsustainable land use has had led to global warming of 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. Vanuatu's Minister for Climate Change...

Humanity’s survival depends on how people manage water, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Friday at the end of a three-day conference on global water resources during which developing nations made urgent calls for help with cleaner drinking water and better sanitation. “All of humanity’s hopes for the future depend, in some way, on charting a new course to sustainably manage...

Investment officials from the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus (PACER Plus) countries gathered in Sydney, Australia from 27-29 March to learn from investment experts and from each other on the investment component of PACER Plus. This workshop is the first opportunity for officials to meet and discuss the commitments and obligations all parties have made and share progress...

Last week the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a new report, bringing together seven years of research from hundreds of experts. With each line approved by 195 governments, there is no room for doubt in the findings that have been reported. One of the main messages of the Synthesis Report is that climate change is progressively becoming more...

The Fijian Drua is gearing up for a massive showdown this weekend against the Melbourne Rebels, and they’re ready to leave their fans cheering at the top of their lungs. With a disappointing performance last weekend, the team is determined to turn things around and show what they’re truly made of in round 6 of the Shop and Save Super...