Rising seas and coastal erosion are threatening ancestral graves in the Solomon Islands, where communities are drawing on traditional knowledge to strengthen sea walls and fences. But what steps are Pacific leaders taking to confront these growing challenges?
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his delegation arrived in Honiara, Solomon Islands today for the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting.
Te Ao Māori News spoke with climate activist Belyndar Rikimani from the Solomon Islands, a nation already struggling to stay afloat and now facing the loss of ancestral sites and land to climate change.
“I got to go back early this year in April, and I saw what had happened. Now, half of the grave has already been taken out. Last year, I was there around Feburary and it wasn’t even half.”
The affected village, Lilisiana, is located on Malaita Island. According to ABC Pacific, around 40 graves were lost earlier this year, with locals using coconut trunks to create a barrier in an effort to slow coastal erosion.
Rikimani has seen significant success, with the Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change (PISFCC) earlier this year securing an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on states’ legal duties to address climate change.
The ICJ’s opinion clarified the extent of states’ obligations to reduce emissions and protect vulnerable communities, particularly in climate-exposed regions such as the Pacific.
Building on the success of this campaign, she hopes Pacific leaders will show real leadership at this year’s Forum meeting.
“There is a big need that our leaders need to represent what our people want. That is our hope that we see the leaders. They walk the talk of what’s happening.
“It’s a reality that’s happening to us and our generation and if we don’t do something to address this issue or to mitigate this issue, it’s going to affect your children and grandchildren in the years to come.”
What are Pacific governments doing to lessen the damage from climate change?
Te Ao Māori News spoke with Ben Rhodes, head of the International Climate Councils Network Secretariat, about the barriers governments face in adopting ambitious climate policies.
The network was first launched at COP26 in 2021 by climate councils from the UK, Chile, Finland, and Sweden. It supports climate councils on advising their governments on climate policy, covering both mitigation and adaptation strategies
He says for climate mitigation policy, there can public resistance to changing behaviours and adopting new technologies.
“Climate change is a multi-faceted complex issue. Making it harder for governements to adopt the right policy reponse.”
A key barrier is investment and making the case for public and private financing. Rikimani also says fair funding is a main barrier for the Islands.
“For me it’s about having fair funding. It needs to be given to us Pacific Island countries. In order for our people to adapt to these changes.”
Despite progress made by councils, Rhodes says more could be done to incorporate indigenous approaches into climate change adaptation strategies.
Pacific nations face mounting debt and often rely on aid from larger countries, such as New Zealand, to manage the impacts of climate change.
Academic Ella Henry (Ngātikahu ki Whangaroa, Ngāti Kuri, Te Rārawa) contributed to a paper on how indigenous peoples are using finance and investment entities such as trusts, funds, and corporations as tools for cultural, social, and economic revitalisation.
“Already we know is indigenous thinking is influencing buisnesses but not just in Aotearoa but around the world. Because a lot of the sustainability and sustainability goals in particular from the UN are predicated on the same kinds of values as indigenous cultures.”
She says that as tangata moana, more can be done to integrate indigenous mātauranga into our investment and business strategies.
While Pacific communities argue that those responsible should provide reparations, such support is rarely forthcoming.
“The unfortunate reality is a number of our tangata moana cousins are living on whenua that is vulnerable to climate change.
“What we are going to need to do as a continent, for us as tangata moana, our continent is the ocean, it’s not a hunk of dirt. We almost are having to work beyond our colonial hertiage.”
