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Climate change impacts will affect social and ecological systems in complex and broad-ranging ways as technological, economic, social and ecological changes take place across regions, groups and sectors. Many of these impacts, such as impacts on ecological systems, have cascading effects on social, economic and health outcomes. In order to respond to climate change, more vigorous actions are required to mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and to adapt to unavoidable consequences that are increasing vulnerability around the world.

The Basel Convention was created to respond to increased public concern about toxic wastes in the 1980s. Tighter environmental regulation in industrialized countries resulted in sharp increases in the cost of hazardous waste disposal in these countries. Traders started shipping hazardous waste to less developed countries in Africa, Eastern Europe and other regions. There were concerns about toxic ships sailing from port to port trying to offload their poisonous cargo. In some cases, toxic waste shipments were dumped indiscriminately, spilled accidentally or managed improperly, causing severe health and environmental problems. Such incidents received international attention, and as a result the Basel Convention was negotiated under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Sea turtles of today have changed little from their ancient reptilian ancestors that appeared on earth millions of years ago before humans. For many years, humans have been exploiting turtles for food and decorative ornaments. In the last 200 years or so, the uncontrollable harvests of adults and juveniles and turtle eggs have caused sea turtle population worldwide to drastically decline. The remaining population are critically endangered and very close to extinction.

The goal of the Children’s Perception of the Environment Toolkit is to help children living in coastal and island environments in Asia to become responsible stewards of the environment through a better understanding of coastal and marine ecosystems. The Toolkit also seeks to improve understanding of how coastal and marine ecosystems can be managed in order to create a more sustainable human economy. The Toolkit supports the efforts of teachers to do this through the provision of up-to-date information on important coastal and marine ecosystems as well as by suggesting practical hands-on activities that allow students to explore and understand their local ecosystems and the issues affecting them. The teachers are provided with a framework for teaching local history and ecology in a way that complements science and social studies in line with the national school syllabus.

Asia’s robust economic growth in the past decades has lifted millions out of poverty. From an estimated 1.4 billion people living in extreme poverty in 1990 the number had gone down to about 903.4 million by 2005.1 Still, rapid economic growth and pervasive poverty have continuously degraded the region’s natural resources. The quality of the environment has deteriorated, and climate change has had an impact, threatening the productivity and integrity of natural systems as well as people’s health, safety, and livelihoods.

This document presents a brief overview of humanitarian and short term needs three weeks after the tsunami struck Samoa on 29 September 2009. Following the disaster, the Government of Samoa, Samoa Red Cross and other national and local organizations and international organizations and bilateral partners responded to the needs with great effort. As a result operations moved rapidly from response to recovery. The government of Samoa requested within a week the UN to take the lead in the formulation of an early recovery framework. Following discussions in the IASC meeting of the Pacific Humanitarian Team, OCHA was requested to provide the IASC an overview of humanitarian and/or short term needs that would not necessarily covered in the Early Recovery Framework and planning.

Climate change impacts will affect social and ecological systems in complex and broad-ranging ways as technological, economic, social and ecological changes take place across regions, groups and sectors. Many of these impacts, such as impacts on ecological systems, have cascading effects on social, economic and health outcomes. In order to respond to climate change, more vigorous actions are required to mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and to adapt to unavoidable consequences that are increasing vulnerability around the world.

In preparation for the upcoming meeting of the Pacific Climate Change Roundtable (PCCR), to be held in Majuro in October, 2009, the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) commissioned a stocktake of the progress made in implementing the Pacific Islands Framework for Action on Climate Change (PIFACC) in terms of its principles and expected outcomes, with an emphasis on adaptation and the associated enabling environment. SPREP also sought recommendations on how to strengthen the PCCR in its functioning as a mechanism for improved regional coordination of climate change activities related to adaptation initiatives and the associated enabling environment. In addition, SPREP requested that the PCCR be provided with substantive technical and related advice based on an assessment of relevant current and ongoing climate change initiatives in the region.

This paper presents a summary of progress to date made in implementing the Forum Leaders’ 2008 Niue Declaration on climate change, and proposals for how to further this implementation in light of the 2009 Cairns Call for Action on climate change.