Preparing for a Climate Change Report by Shea et. al. 2001. Cover of the report Preparing for a Changing Climate. The report summarizes the key findings and recommendations of the Pacific Islands Regional Assessment of the Consequences of Climate Variability and Change. A vital part of the Assessment was the two workshops organized to encourage and accommodate broad-based regional participation.

The Pacific Islands Regional Integrated Science and Assessment climate program (Pacific RISA) was founded on a commitment to sustained, interactive dialogue with decision makers and communities in climate-sensitive sectors to:

• enhance understanding of regional vulnerability,
• explore potential response options,
• identify critical information needs, and
• develop local and regional strategies for climate risk mitigation and adaptation. 

To effectively involve stakeholders from many islands spanning thousands of miles and six time zones, it has been important for the Pacific RISA program to take opportunities to engage communities in a variety of ways, including teleconferences, side meetings at conferences, email and internet dialogues, and workshops.  Using participatory methods, the Pacific RISA strives to ensure that stakeholders throughout the region are involved in the process of identifying and addressing risks from climate variability and change.

Several significant dialogues that helped shape the Pacific RISA and provide direction to it programs include the following:

• Preparing for Climate Change: Pacific Islands Regional Assessment on the Consequences of Climate Variability and Change, 2001.
• Workshops on Climate Variability and Change in the US Pacific Islands: Challenges and Opportunities. The East-West Center, the University of Hawaii, the National Weather Service Climate Services, and the Pacific ENSO Applications Climate Center, hosted a series of workshops with local sponsors from each of the island jurisdictions. Representatives from government, businesses, academic institutions, non-governmental organizations and communities were invited to participate in discussions of the impacts of year-to-year climate variability associated with El Niño and long-term climate change for the communities, natural resources, and businesses.
  Power Point presentation: Climate Variability and Change Workshops in the US Pacific Islands
  (Please download the presentation to your computer to view Notes with the presentation slides.)

• Review of the Pacific ENSO Applications Climate Center.  From 1-3 June 2004, the East-West Center hosted a Pacific ENSO Applications Center (PEAC) Regional Workshop: A Look to the Future as part of the PEAC review. The findings and recommendations from that Workshop have been used to help guide PEAC operations and services.  One of the new requests from workshop participants was the development of sea level variation forecasts, which PEAC now provides in its quarterly newsletter, the Pacific ENSO Update.