Climate crises in post-Paris Pacific – conference tackles key realities

The science is clear, climate change is upon us and nowhere is the impact more serious than in the Pacific.

Next week, Victoria University is hosting its first climate change conference, In the Eye of the Storm, focused on the effects, challenges and possible solutions for countries in the Pacific.

A host of speakers from the Pacific region and beyond from a range of fields – science, politics, indigenous rights, media, arts and the environment – will come together to discuss the realities of climate change in the Pacific.

Keynote speakers:

• Anote Tong, President of the Republic of Kiribati
• Bill McKibben, 350.org founder
• Professor Will Steffen, Australian National University Climate Change Institute director
• Leota Kosi Latu, Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme director general
• Koreti Tiumalu, 350.org Pacific outreach coordinator
• Rod Oram, business journalist and commentator
• Dayle Takitimu, Indigenous rights and environmental lawyer
• Professor James Renwick, Victoria University of Wellington Professor of Physical Geography
• Professor Tim Naish, Victoria University of Wellington Antarctic Research Centre director

The conference, running from Monday until Wednesday, says on its website:

Climate change is the greatest global ecological threat to our generation and future generations.  There is a limit to how much ecological change our world can withstand without seriously compromising modern life, and scientists agree we are rapidly approaching that threshold.

The evidence of climate change is all around us – higher seas, extreme weather events, ocean acidification, species decline and loss of habitats.  We are experiencing disruption in other areas too, as the adverse climatological effects shape international relations, politics and public policy.  Climate change also has the potential to disrupt global economies, social dynamics and human health.

This conference will be divided into three broad themes:

• The climate situation
• The political-economy of climate crises
• The future of climate politics

View the full conference programme