Pacific voices unite at COP30 science for justice, action for survival

As COP30 opens in Belém, Brazil, the Pacific stands united in solidarity as Pacific Small Island Developing States supported by OneCROP and amplified by friends of the region including the Special Envoy for Oceania, Dame Jacinda Ardern, as appointed by the COP Presidency. 

In the heart of the Amazon, far from their island homes, Pacific leaders, officials, negotiators, experts and scientists, carry a clear message: the fight for 1.5°C is both a legal obligation and a fight for survival. Within the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are calling for urgent and equitable climate action rooted in evidence, obligation and grounded in lived experience.  And together with many other states, Pacific SIDS are strongly calling for Australia to be supported as host of COP31 to be held in the Pacific region in 2026.

Pacific Leaders, Ministers and Heads of Delegation meet in the Leaders’ Summit 6-7^th November drawing attending to the critical issues of the region. Special Envoy for Oceania, H.E. Dame Ardern also meet with Pacific Leaders and delegations to help amplify their voices, commending the Pacific’s moral and informed leadership on the global stage.

“Pacific priorities should be global priorities. The Pacific is not only on the frontline of climate impacts but also at the frontline of solutions from the Pacific Resilience Facility to leadership on the 1.5°C goal”

“Loss and damage is critical, but it’s also time to think not just about the lungs of the world our forests but the heart, our oceans. The Pacific has led on ocean protection and restoration. Now is the time for a COP 31 dedicated to oceans.”

In the days leading up to COP30, SIDS representatives from across the Pacific, Caribbean, African and Indian Ocean regions met for intensive strategy sessions to align positions on key priorities: protecting the 1.5°C temperature limit, ensuring fair and accessible climate finance, and advancing support for loss and damage amongst other priorities.

Together as the block of AOSIS they   expressed growing concern that global efforts are falling short of what is needed to keep 1.5°C within reach. AOSIS has called on countries to close the ambition gap by treating the 1.5°C limit as a legal and scientific obligation, not an aspiration as was articulated clearly by the International Court of Justic (ICJ) legal opinion issued this year

AOSIS Chair, Ambassador Ilana Seid of Palau, said this was a critical issue as the world’s current trajectory toward climate catastrophe is unacceptable morally, scientifically, economically and legally.

 “COP30 must respond to the reality that our collective commitments are far off course. Small islands are paying the highest price for inaction.”

These are not abstract policy debates they are matters of daily life for communities where rising seas, drought, increasingly intense cyclones, and coral loss are reshaping economies, communities, cultures and ecosystems. And pose existential threats to the lowest lying atolls and communities.

Regional coordination has been central to this effort. Under OneCROP  a coordination arrangement of the Council of Regional Organisations of the Pacific  agencies, lead by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), and supported by The Pacific Community (SPC), Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS),Forum Fisheries Agency ,  the University of the South Pacific (USP) and the Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner are combining scientific, policy, and technical expertise to ensure Pacific advocacy at COP30 is underpinned by evidence and regional priorities from the various sectoral convenings of the region..

Dame Jacinda Ardern, Special Envoy for Oceania for COP30 and former Prime Minister of Aotearoa New Zealand (2017–2023), attended the COP30 Heads of State Summit discussions in Belém,

Ms Coral Pasisi, Director of Climate Change and Sustainability at the Pacific Community (SPC), said the Pacific’s collective presence at COP30 reflects both the urgency of the science and the strength of regional unity.

“Climate change is the greatest security threat to the well-being and security of Pacific people, and this is something that Pacific leaders have been reiterating for the last 17 years every single year in their annual communiqué. And that’s because we are already facing the impacts of climate change as small island nations on the front line of climate impacts,”

The COP30 Heads of State Summit, held on 6–7 November, set the tone for negotiations ahead, as world leaders acknowledging in their ‘Call of Belem for the Climate’ they have made progress but not enough.

They highlighted the need to accelerate the fight against global warming and strengthen multilateralism in combatting climate change   

In their call, they cited the urgent need to address the shortcomings: in climate commitments (ambition gap); what they are doing to reduce greenhouse emissions (the implementation gap); and the necessary financial, technological, and capacity building support for developing countries to carry out their transition ( the means of implementation gap)

For the Pacific, these are not distant policy targets but essential steps to safeguard lives, livelihoods, cultural identity and for many, their very existence.

As COP30 continues, the Pacific’s message remains unwavering: the survival of small islands is the world’s test of solidarity and its measure of leadership in turning science into justice.  SPC together with OneCROP will continue to support Pacific Island States through COP30 including communications throughout.

For more information contact:

Ameila Rigsby, Digital Media Assistant Producer & Storyteller, Pacific Community (SPC)[email protected]

Sunayna Nandini Information and Communications Officer, Climate Change and Sustainability Division, Pacific Community (SPC)  [email protected]

The 30th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is taking place from 10-21 November 2025 in Belem, Brazil.

It is being attended by Pacific leaders and their delegations, who are advocating for the survival of Pacific communities who continue to be at the forefront of climate change impacts.

Support for our Pacific Islands at COP30 from members of the Council of Regional Organisations of the Pacific (CROP) is through the One CROP mechanism led by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme. 

Members of one CROP include: The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) – Lead, Pacific Islands Development Program, Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency, Pacific Island Forum Secretariat, The Pacific Community (SPC).

A key part of amplifying the One Pacific Voice at COP30 is the Moana Blue Pacific Pavilion and the Pacific Delegation Office. The Moana Blue Pacific Pavilion at COP30 is a Pacific partnership with the Governments of Australia and New Zealand managed by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP). The Pacific Delegation Office at COP30 is a Pacific partnership with the New Zealand Government managed by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP).

The Moana Blue Pacific Pavilion, and the Pacific Delegation Office for the Pacific Islands Delegations is at the Thirtieth Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change hosted in Belem, Brazil from 10 - 21 November 2025. To learn more about the Pacific Delegation Office please visit: https://www.sprep.org/cop30