12 June 2025, Nice France - Pacific communities, including villages in the chain of volcanic islands and coral atolls of the Republic of Marshall Islands, are on the frontline of a crisis they did not cause.
And as the world searches for answers to address the impacts of the triple planetary crisis, the President of RMI, Her Excellency, Dr. Hilda C. Heine, says Pacific countries also have the solutions.
“Traditional knowledge brings great value to our region, especially when linked with modern science,” President Heine said. “Pacific nations have used traditional knowledge in meteorology, fisheries, navigation, and agricultural planting cycles, to name just a few. I urge financing institutions to respect and understand the value of this approach.”
President Heine was speaking during Ocean Action Panel 7 (OAP7) on leveraging interlinkages between ocean, climate and biodiversity, at the ongoing third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, France.
UNOC3 is bringing together world leaders, government officials, scientists, private sector representatives, civil society, indigenous peoples and local communities to find solutions given the increasing pace of human ravage inflicted on the Ocean.
“Climate change is already having devastating effects on the Pacific, as ocean acidification, eutrophication, marine heatwaves, sea level rise and extreme weather events worsen,” she said.
“Oceans can meet sustainable development needs, but only if they are protected and restored to health.”
President Heine is amongst Pacific leaders and officials who have travelled far and wide to be in France to amplify their collective voice to protect the Ocean.
On the work to leverage interlinkages between Ocean, climate and biodiversity, Pacific countries are calling on the international community to invest in Pacific-led Ocean and climate action that protects biodiversity, and secures livelihoods.
On the floor at OAP7, President Heine said what is commonly referred to as Ocean-based climate solutions is a “nebulous term.”
“It could include geoengineering, which is opposed by the region,” she said.
“But there are solutions that we do want to pursue: Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion and tidal and wave energy systems are very much of interest, but there’s a major finance and technology gap.”
National climate targets, or NDCs, need to be more ambitious to ensure we keep the 1.5-degree target alive, she added.
“They must address the energy commitments, including to transition away from fossil fuels, that we all agreed to in Dubai,” said President Heine.
UNOC3 is expected to adopt an intergovernmentally negotiated political declaration, which, along with a registry of voluntary commitments from across sectors, will be referred to as the Nice Ocean Action Plan – outcomes aimed at catalyzing urgent, inclusive, and science-based action to safeguard the Ocean for present and future generations.
“Pacific climate plans are already highly ambitious. Ocean-based adaptation measures and ocean energy systems can be part of these plans. But again, we’ll need finance to make this happen,” she said.
“We must collectively enhance our understanding of the Ocean; ensure science is driving our policy decisions; and focus on effective implementation of commitments, to ensure a thriving Ocean now, and for the future.”
The Nice gathering, co-hosted by France and Costa Rica, builds on the previous conferences hosted by Sweden and Fiji in 2017 in New York, and Portugal and Kenya in 2022 in Lisbon.
The third UN Ocean Conference is co-hosted by France and Costa Rica and held in Nice, France, from 9 – 13 June 2025. The overarching theme of the Conference is “Accelerating action and mobilizing all actors to conserve and sustainably use the ocean”.
The Pacific Islands are represented by a strong contingent, which includes Leaders from the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, French Polynesia, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa and Tuvalu.
Also present and engaged are Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.
The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) is providing support to Pacific delegations as part of the One CROP support.
SPREP will provide more Pacific news from the UNOC2025. For further information on the UN Ocean Conference 2025, please visit: https://sdgs.un.org/conferences/ocean2025
PHOTO CREDIT: IISD/ENB - Kiara Worth