PINA

UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell hailed nine countries as pioneers of transparency at COP29, recognising their commitment to the Paris Agreement through the first-ever Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs). “These nations are standing and delivering on a crucial commitment,” Stiell said at the event in Baku. Transparency under the Paris Agreement took a major step forward as Stiell acknowledged the...

A groundbreaking study conducted by Dynamic Planet and National Geographic Pristine Seas has revealed that to meet the global target of protecting 30 percent of the ocean by 2030, the world must create 85 new marine protected areas (MPAs) each day. This ambitious 30x30 goal, set during the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity Conference (COP15) in December 2022, has...

As COP29 unfolds in Baku, Azerbaijan, with world leaders engaged in critical discussions on climate finance, a groundbreaking discovery in the Solomon Islands serves as a stark reminder of the critical need for urgent action. A team of scientists aboard the National Geographic Pristine Seas research vessel in the Southwest Pacific recently found the world’s largest known coral, a sprawling...

Addressing the 29th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP29) for the first time as Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Feleti Te’o did not mince words when referring to the urgent need for course-correction to keep the hope of 1.5 alive. “I am acutely conscious of the greenhouse emissions trajectory we are on,” Prime...

University of Canterbury distinguished Professor Steven Ratuva presented findings from the largest study of climate adaptation in the Pacific region at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Led by Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha University of Canterbury (UC) and the University of the South Pacific (USP), the three-year study involved more than 100 scholars and community experts working across 16 Pacific Island...

Global diabetes cases have quadrupled since 1990, affecting over 800 million adults worldwide, according to a World Health Organisation (WHO) study released to coincide with World Diabetes Day. The published findings highlight the need for immediate global action to address this epidemic, said the UN health agency. The study was conducted by the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC), a worldwide network...

The international community is out of step with Pacific Island nations' needs on covering the costs of adjusting to a warmer world, the aid agency of the Catholic Church says. Economic modelling released at the COP29 climate conference on Thursday revealed Pacific nations need at least US$1.5 billion (AUD$2.3 billion) per year in climate finance. Despite some of Australia's closest neighbours...

Meeting on Thursday with non-governmental entities in Baku for the COP29 climate talks, UN Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted the crucial role that cities, regions, businesses and financial institutions must play in driving the worldwide effort towards reaching net-zero emissions by mid-century. “We need a massive global effort to steer our world onto a path to safety; you are out in...

The reality is that climate finance continues to be tied up in external interests, impacted by inter-organisation competition and overlapping mandates, and shaped by external preferences, concepts, and priorities. This has been highlighted by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad while speaking at the high-level meeting on climate finance during the COP 29 in Baku. Professor Prasad...

Award winning Pacific journalist Sera Sefeti is at COP29. In a series of Pacific State of Play Conversations screening on Pasifika TV, she shares some questions in talanoa mode with Pacific officials in Baku. She met with Finau Soqo, General Manager for the Pacific Resilience Facility. Below are the key threads of their QnA talanoa, which you can also view...