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• A gap analysis is an analysis of how effective our current PA network is in conserving our biodiversity • Essentially the gap analysis is an overlay of the ideal set of conservation areas on the current PA network to see where the gaps are • Why do a gap analysis? I. To promote the strategic expansion of the existing PA network in order to meet agreed NBSAP and CBD commitments II. To strengthen and consolidate the management of existing PA networks III. To fill in the information gaps required to inform i) and ii).

Melanesia and Polynesia have seen an impressive increase in the number of marine protected areas over the last decade almost entirely due to the implementation or recognition of Community Conserved Areas based on regional assets in the form of traditional tenure and governance mechanisms. The same time period has seen the virtual demise of any other form of marine protected area in the independent countries of the South Pacific. CCAs account for over 500 sites covering over 12,000 km2 of which more than 1,000 km2 is no-take.

Each year, on average, almost 250 million people are affected by ‘natural’ disasters. In a typical year between 1998 and 2007, 98 per cent of them suffered from climate-related disasters such as droughts and floods rather than, for example, devastating but relatively rare events such as earthquakes. According to new research for this report, by 2015 this could grow by more than 50 per cent to an average of over 375 million affected by climate-related disasters each year. Any such projection is not an exact science, but it is clear that substantially more people may be affected by disasters in the very near, not just distant, future, as climate change and environmental mismanagement create a proliferation of droughts, landslides, floods and other local disasters. And more people will be vulnerable to them because of their poverty and location. Some of these environmental changes will also increase the threat of new conflicts, which will mean more people displaced, and more need for humanitarian aid. One recent report estimated that 46 countries will face a ‘high risk of violent conflict’ when climate change exacerbates traditional security threats. Already, there is evidence that the number of conflicts is again on the rise,5 while the threat of long-running conflicts creating vast new humanitarian demands was painfully shown by the upsurge of violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo in 2008. In short, by 2015, an unprecedented level of need for humanitarian assistance could overwhelm the world’s current humanitarian capacity. Already, many governments fail to cope with threats like storms, floods and earthquakes. They fail to act quickly or effectively enough in response to these events, or to take preventative action to reduce unnecessary deaths and suffering. Indeed, the very actions of some governments and their national elites place marginalised people at risk from disasters by discriminating against them, like those forced to live in flimsy slum housing so easily destroyed by floods and landslips. At the same time, international humanitarian assistance is often too slow or inappropriate, and the UN-led reforms since 2005 to improve it have only begun to make a difference.

This article reflects upon how gendered approaches to climate-change adaptation can be strengthened in the Pacific region. The article looks at what has been learnt in the region, surveys some examples of best practice in gender-responsive programming, identifies the challenges we face on our journey, and suggests future directions. It is a collaborative effort, comprising input from a number of agencies who have been proactive in the areas of gender, climate change, and disaster risk-reduction in the Pacific Region, including: the Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement in the Pacific region; the UNDP Pacific Centre; and World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Fiji Country Programme.

Throughout its history, Earth’s climate has varied, reflecting the complex interactions and dependencies of the solar, oceanic, terrestrial, atmospheric, and living components that make up planet Earth’s systems. For at least the last million years, our world has experienced cycles of warming and cooling that take approximately 100,000 years to complete. Over the course of each cycle, global average temperatures have fallen and then risen again by about 9°F (5°C), each time taking Earth into an ice age and then warming it again. This cycle is believed associated with regular changes in Earth’s orbit that alter the intensity of solar energy the planet receives. Earth’s climate has also been influenced on very long timescales by changes in ocean circulation that result from plate tectonic movements. Earth’s climate has changed abruptly at times, sometimes as a result of slower natural processes such as shifts in ocean circulation, sometimes due to sudden events such as massive volcanic eruptions. Species and ecosystems have either adapted to these past climate variations or perished.

As part of the RIF review process, a team of three independent consultants were commissioned to analyse, assess and validate the most appropriate regional institutional arrangements based on a range of options provided by the CEOs of SOPAC, SPC and SPREP. The key rationale underpinning the work was to optimise service delivery, in particular ensuring the SOPAC work programme continued without diminution and was potentially enhanced. This document presents the Final Report of Part One of the consultancy.

Natural tropical forests are enormously important for the conservation of the world’s biological diversity. They contain, for example, a very large proportion of the world’s species of mammal, birds and amphibians, and are equally – if not more important for plants and invertebrates. Some of this diversity will be maintained in effectively managed protected areas, but these cover less than 10% of the global tropical forest estate.

Community-based adaptive management (CBAM) has generally been accepted as an effective means to sustainably manage coastal ecosystems and small scale fishing activities. This particularly applies to areas where indigenous communities have significant control over their resources through customary marine tenure (CMT) such as the South Pacific. In Fiji CBAM is employed as a national strategy for coastal area management with over 300 communities involved. Activities are coordinated by the Fiji Locally-Managed Marine Area (FLMMA) Network which aims to integrate modern scientific knowledge with traditional management and governance systems for improved coastal area management. The use and degree of natural science required to support CBAM, however, is not well defined and viewpoints vary greatly between stakeholders and managers. This thesis highlights the actual and the potential use of natural science to be integrated into CBAM and support sustainable management at various levels of governance. Particularly, existing approaches such as participatory community-based biological monitoring are discussed. Statistical analysis of generated data was used to review the quality of this key scientific input to CBAM. Interviews were conducted with managers, scientists, government personnel, and community members to determine different stakeholder priorities and information needs for the CBAM approach. This allowed to examine how current efforts are addressing these priorities and needs at various governance levels and where potential use for future science interventions lie. Existing biophysical data from Fiji were compiled to propose suitable methods for predictive coordinative planning such as modelling approaches. In addition, alternative monitoring and evaluation methods are discussed. The study suggests that the supporting function of natural science to CBAM has not been fully exploited to date. Current procedures to generate site based scientific knowledge tend to be limited in their scope, and appear to be having limited direct impact on management of coastal resources. The main issues that prevent effective use of existing scientific knowledge are a lack of clearly defined objectives, a lack of capacity, deficient communication of scientific outputs, and a need for increased community education and training. These limitations combined with the degree and capacity to which communities can effectively benefit from the collection and interpretation of data based on scientific methodologies without continuous external input, need to be revised. At mid and national level and for improved project facilitation, there is potential to use novel approaches. This however, will require the amelioration of capacity and support functions.