This is a joint research symposium between the Polar Environments Research Theme and the Otago Climate Change Network, which will bring together researchers from multiple disciplines to share and discuss current research. We will have two sessions, one on polar research, and another on research related to climate change, open to all divisions and disciplines. There will also be a poster session. (Source: https://events.humanitix.co.nz)
There will be a session on ‘Climate Change in the Pacific’.
The three-day New Zealand Minerals Forum kicked off in Dunedin today. Conference delegates faced dozens of protesters assembled outside the Town Hall in Dunedin. Some of them built human blockades, aiming to prevent delegates to access the conference venue. Here some of the concerns raised by protesters:
As the writ of election was announced today, the Fiji Elections Office (FEO) will close voter registration today at 6pm.
Until the very last minute, a great number of Fijians used the final opportunity to register, update their details, or get their lost voter ID cards replaced:
Fiji Elections 2018, FEO Station in Suva, 1 Oktober 2018, 5:30pm (photo taken by Kim Andreas Kessler)
The Center for Global Development released its Commitment to Development Index (CDI) 2018. The Index covers 27 of the world’s richest countries and measures their support to poorer nations.
Overall, Sweden ranks first, followed by Denmark. Finland and Germany share the third place. New Zealand is ranked thirteenth, followed by Australia. Switzerland is ranked in the lowest third of the list while South Korea is at the very bottom.
The aid component of the index ranks New Zealand fourth and Australia ninth. New Zealand is ranked on top of the 27 countries in terms of aid quality. As announced in August by the Lowy Institute, Australia is by far the most significant aid donor to the Pacific region in terms of quantity.
The Marshall Islands announced its commitment to cut greenhouse emissions to zero by 2050. The atoll-nation is the very first Pacific island state making such an ambitions announcement.
The shipping industry poses the main challenge to achieve this commitment. Shipping is known as one of the world’s biggest polluting industries.
In the Marshall Islands, like in many Pacific island states, shipping is often referred to as the ‘lifeline’ of islands remotely located from larger markets.
The Pacific Islands Forum currently (3-6 September 2018) takes place on Nauru. Each year, the Forum brings together leaders from 18 member states (16 Pacific Island states, New Zealand and Australia) to discuss regional issues.
Australia’s new Foreign Minister, Marise Payne, will represent the PIF’s largest state, while newly appointed Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, travelled to Indonesia for his first overseas visit. The absence of Australia’s Prime Minister caused some concern about the importance the Australian Government gives to the Pacific Island region.
While climate change is on top of the PIF’s agenda, Fiji’s Prime Minister and COP23 President, Frank Bainimarama, is reported not to attend the meeting (Radio New Zealand, Sept. 3 2018; Fiji Sun, Sept. 4 2018, p. 10). Instead, Senior Minister Faiyaz Koya will represent Fiji in Nauru. Fiji’s Prime Minister stated in 2015 that he will not personally attend the annual PIF meetings “until the issue of the undue influence of Australia and New Zealand […] is addressed” (ABC, 6 May 2015). Voreqe Bainimarama is currently attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bangkok.
The Pacific Islands Forum convened on Nauru comes with reinvigorated calls for enhancing the conditions in Australia’s refugee detention centre on Nauru. While inhumane conditions and abuse of human rights have been reported since long, concerns about the mental health of children, including refusal to eat and suicide attempts, made headlines over the past weeks (see for example The Guardian or ABC Radio Australia).
Australia’s offshore detention centres are not on the PIF’s agenda, yet several humanitarian organisations are calling for action. So far, the Australian government and the Government of Nauru seem to make great efforts to silence discussions. The Nauru Government has banned ACB from attending the Forum. Marise Payne, being asked whether she will visit or meet any refugees while on Nauru, declined and stated that “the programme is fairly full in terms of the schedule that the forum itself provides” (ABC Radio Australia).
About Nauru
Nauru is one of the world’s smallest states. With a land area of 21 square kilometres, it takes less than 30 minutes to drive around the island. Nauru has a population of about 11,000 people. During the past century, Nauru exported phosphate (from bird droppings) predominantly to Australia, where it was used as fertiliser. This business made Nauru one of the world’s richest nations in terms of GDP per capita. However, phosphate mining was unsustainable, for Nauru’s natural environment as well as its finance. Today, the Australian detention centre is one of the state’s main source of income.
Nauru, photograph by Remi Chauvin for The Guardian
In Fiji, the plastic levy increased from 10 cents to 20 cents per bag on 1 July 2018. Studies or figures which track changes in consumer behaviour since July 2018 are not yet available. However, my personal observations at stores in Suva show that consumers are much more hesitant to buy plastic bags after the rise to 20 cents. They increasingly bring their own reusable shopping bags.
According to Fiji’s Minister of Economy, the island state aims to completely ban plastic bags by 2020. As reported by SPREP, plastic bag usage in Fiji has significantly reduced since 2010. However, there are still disastrous projections which estimate that there will be more plastic than fish in the Pacific Ocean by 2050. A recent SPREP study concludes that 97 percent of all fish species sampled in Fiji, Samoa, Rapa Nui and New Zealand had micro-plastics. This is 30 percent higher than the global average. For Fiji and other Pacific island states, where fish is one of the main protein source, this is of particular concern.
In the meantime, Fiji’s private sector becomes more engaged in the fight against plastic. This week, Raffe Hotels and Resorts announced that they will ban plastic straws across all properties in Fiji. By 10 October 2018, the group promised to replace all plastic straws with paper straws. Furthermore, straws will only be offered to guests upon request. The group operates the Fiji Gateway Hotel, the Plantation Island Resort and the Lomani Island Resort.
Some Cafes in Suva and other restaurants around the country already serve drinks with paper straws. However, straws often decompose after a short time. This is particularly a problem for fruit smoothies which seem to be popular among locals and tourists. So, why not stop using straws at all?
Movements toward a plastic free world seem to be on the rise globally.
In the Pacific, Vanuatu was reported to become the first state in the world to ban plastic straws. Since 1 July 2018, it is officially an offence in Vanuatu to sell single use plastic shopping bags, plastic drinking straws and polystyrene boxes. Import and local manufacture of these products are also illegal.
In Fiji, a plastic levy is in place since 1 August 2017. Businesses are required to charge a levy of 10 cents per plastic bag. The plastic levy is one source of the newly introduced Environment and Climate Adaptation Levy (known as ECAL). During the first year of implementation, over FJD 6 million have been collected by the plastic levy alone and over FJD 110 million by all ECAL sources. 60% of all ECAL funds have been utilised for infrastructure development while almost 30% has been committed to TC Winston rehabilitation projects.
In Vanuatu, one idea behind the plastic ban is that it would boost the production of traditional food baskets and stimulate the local economy. In Fiji, however, some shops have already started to sell manufactured non-plastic bags which are levy free. It will be interesting to see whether the business of traditional baskets will indeed flourish in Vanuatu or whether mass-produced non-plastic alternatives are able to satisfy customer demands at the cost of local production…
Land pollution in Fiji after a major festival on Viti Levu (Kessler, 2014)
