The Center for Pacific Islands Studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is organizing a three-day conference on April 4–6, titled Waves of Change: Climate Change in the Pacific Islands and Implications for Hawaiʻi. The conference will explore the environmental, social, cultural, political, economic and legal impacts of climate change in the Pacific Islands.
Pacific Island societies are already experiencing the impacts of climate change, and as islanders adapt to the changing climate, they encounter challenges to economic security and social welfare. There is also the potential for increased rates of outmigration. This conference will focus on climate change–related migration and the implications for Hawaiʻi, which is already home to many Pacific Islanders.
The keynote address will be delivered by President Anote Tong of the Republic of Kiribati. Kiribati is an island country at the forefront of climate-change impacts, and President Tong has played an important role in highlighting climate change-related issues at regional and international forums.
—Adapted from a UH Mānoa news release
—By Nicole Atienza
