As Pacific governments prepare for COP31, residents in Fiji are urging major emitters to cut emissions, The Independent reported, while regional data underline the islands’ exposure to coastal hazards.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says Pacific islands account for 0.02% of global emissions. Across the region, average elevation is one to two meters above sea level, 90% of the population lives within 5 kilometers of the coast, and half of infrastructure is within 500 meters of the sea. For the South-West Pacific, WMO puts the average yearly sea-level increase at 3.7 ± 0.03 millimeters over 1999-2025—a regionwide estimate.
The Independent reported that a resident of Yavusania said flooding swept away four neighboring homes. She said her own home near the Nadi River faced further flood risk. The outlet said residents it interviewed worried about their homes, family safety and the loss of heritage, and considered available climate project funding inadequate.
Asaeli Moce, a taxi driver, told The Independent: “Those countries overseas cause it. We are victims of it.” Fiji Environment Minister Lynda Tabuya told the outlet that “The 1.5 degrees Celsius is a matter of survival for us.”
The United Nations reported that Tuvalu announced plans in 2022 to document its territory digitally and move government functions online in response to the risk of losing habitable land.
The United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) 2026 Emissions Gap Report projects 2.8°C of warming by the end of the century under current government policies. UNEP also says the world is likely to exceed 1.5°C in the next few years.
Fiji, Tuvalu and Australia partnered on the Pacific Pre-COP, held in Nadi from Oct. 5-8. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) said around 4,000 people from more than 100 nations attended. The meeting’s stated priorities included climate finance, the ocean-climate connection and keeping 1.5°C within reach. COP31 is scheduled for Nov. 9-20 in Antalya, Türkiye.
