20 June 2025, Vanuatu - A pioneering two-week mission across Santo’s remote Big Bay Coast has led to 16 communities being equipped with tools to document environmental wisdom, using both traditional methods and digital innovation.
Funded by the Green Climate Fund’s Climate Information Services for Resilient Development Planning FP035 (VanKIRAP) project and implemented by the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geo-Hazards Department (VMGD) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), the mission from 11-23 May 2025 trained locals to monitor climate indicators through paper forms and the ClimateWatch app – a citizen science platform tracking species behavior as early warnings for weather extremes.
Divided into two teams, facilitators engaged communities from Malovuko to Pelvus, installing billboards showcasing hyperlocal Traditional Knowledge (TK) indicators and tropical cyclone maps, while training 35 dedicated volunteers – including 18 women like Ms. Grolyn Dolcy (Piavot community) and Ms. Linda Huru (Piamaito community) – as TK monitoring focal points.
Notably, women formed nearly half of all participants, with communities like Tolomako seeing 65% female attendance, underscoring their critical role in resilience-building.
The mission overcame significant challenges such as inaccessible shorelines like Piavot’s required billboard transport by foot and local football teams, while patchy internet hindered app demonstrations.
In alignment with the project’s GEDSI plan, evening sessions boosted participation as residents returned from gardens, particularly among women. At Aore Adventist Academy, students mapped species like mango trees for climate tracking despite phone-use restrictions, establishing a permanent traditional knowledge monitoring trail as part of the VanKIRAP citizen science program.
Communities celebrated unprecedented access to VMGD resources.
Pelelau’s Chief Nason Tavue, noted it was their "first-ever visit" from VMGD, finally receiving a long-awaited billboard and tropical cyclone map.
"This is a significant event for our community, and the TK board and resources provided by the project ensures the knowledge stays."
Pelvus Community Chief, Mr. Robak Ova said: “In my role as a senior member of the community, I am happy to receive refresher training on TK and the new VMGD weather app."
‘I am keen to impart my knowledge and skills to the younger generation, encourging the youth to take part in TK weather and climate monitoring,” Mr. Ova added.
This grassroots work amplifies Vanuatu’s national framework for climate services and community engagement strategy, integrating ancestral cues (like bird behavior predicting storms) with VMGD’s scientific forecasts. As youth explore meteorology careers, the mission seeds resilience rooted in tradition, amplified by science.
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The Vanuatu Klaemet Infomesen blong Redy, Adapt mo Protekt (Van-KIRAP) project is a five-year, USD 22 million project which aims to support climate resilient development in Vanuatu through the development, communication, and application of climate information services to benefit agriculture, fisheries, tourism, infrastructure, water sectors and communities.
It is funded by the Green Climate Fund and implemented by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme in partnership with the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geohazards Department, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australian Bureau of Meteorology, and APEC Climate Center.
For more information on the Vanuatu TK program visit: https://www.vmgd.gov.vu/climate/traditional-knowledge and for real-time alerts: visit: www.vmgd.gov.vu