General News
4 September 2014, Apia, Samoa - An event to help enhance collaboration among SIDS members in the area of climate change data and information management components took place during the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States.   Hosted by the Government of Vanuatu, the National Advisory Bureau of the island nation is striving for greater collaboration among SIDS member countries on strategies for sharing climate change and disaster risk reduction data and information.

Minister Vanuatu
Hon. James Bule, Minister of Climate Change and Natural Hazards, Vanuatu

"The effective management of climate change data and information is critical for supporting decision makers, researchers and practitioners to identify the data and information they require for climate change adaptation and resilience planning," stated Hon. Minister James Bule, the Minister of climate change and natural hazards of Vanuatu.

"Although this concept is well known, SIDS members could benefit from greater guidance on strategies that enhance the discovery, accessibility and usability of key climate change data and information."

Vanuatu recently developed a national portal for storing and accessing climate change and disaster risk management data and information online.  Vanuatu is also working with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP).and Griffith University on a project that is implementing a regional approach for sharing climate change data and information in the Pacific.

Known as iCLIM, it is funded by the Australian Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade. 

iClim

The side event set the scene through statements from the co-facilitators, Dr. Netatua Pelesikoti of SPREP and Professor Brendan Mackey of the Griffith Climate Change Response Program.  Different perspectives of portal work was shared starting with an overview of the Pacific Climate Change Portal and the SPREP approach for regional climate change data and information management by Ms. Makelesi Gonelevu of SPREP. 

Country perspectives in developing national climate change portals were presented from Vanuatu by Ms. Rebecca Iaken, Fiji by Ms. Talei Kocovanua and by Mr. Sione Fulivai who shared the experiences from Tonga.

The event took place on Tuesday 2 September at the UNSIDS Conference Venue.