Conference organizer and Pacific RISA co-lead investigator Laura Brewington described the profound impacts of invasive species on the Pacific Islands region, while pointing to the need for regional collaboration to address the issue. “This first PESC has reminded us that invasive species impact every aspect of Pacific Island life and security. While we have many of the tools we need for their prevention, control, and eradication, we also recognize that no country can do it alone,” said Dr. Brewington.

Participants shared stories from across the region about the multi-faceted and devastating impacts of invasive species on climate resilience, food security, and ecosystem sustainability. Dr. Brewington, as a co-founder of the Pacific Regional Invasive Species and Climate Change management network, gave a keynote presentation focusing on three main interactions between climate change and invasive species in Pacific Islands:

• Climate change is expected to alter mechanisms for invasive species transport and introduction, by creating new tourism or shipping opportunities, or by increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme events like storms and flooding.
• Climate change will alter the distributions of invasive species that already exist on islands, allowing them to spread into new areas, especially under warmer conditions.
• Climate change will alter the effectiveness of our current methods of controlling invasive species, so much so that restoration may not even be possible under new climate regimes and conservation strategies will have to be dynamic.

High-level conference outcomes

• Participants at the PESC acknowledged the importance of invasive species work to building and maintaining the climate resilience and adaptability of Pacific Island ecosystems, as well as food security, biodiversity, sustainable livelihoods, and the protection of native traditions and cultural resources.
• Participants developed three Strategic Action Plans to address the issues of coconut rhinoceros beetles, invasive ants, and biocontrol needs. The Plans are living documents that are intended to be modified as milestones are achieved and new needs are identified.
• Statements, backed by conference, recommended that the Pacific Community (SPC) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) collaboratively take on the PESC outcomes, and the issue of invasive species itself, as a joint effort.
• A second PESC must be convened in two years to address other critical invasive species issues, such as biosecurity, invasive vertebrates, and marine invasive species, as well as to report on progress in implementing Plans from the first PESC.

Momentum initiated at the PESC has already been translated into concrete legislative outcomes: At the Association of Pacific Island Leaders (APIL) meeting in mid-October, Resolution 39-GA-15 was passed to endorse and support invasive species management, control, and eradication in Micronesia. For more information about the PESC, conference resources, and outcomes documents, please stay tuned to the Conference Website!

“In this assessment of the state of the Pacific environment and conservation using endorsed regional indicators, we seek to lay the groundwork for sustained monitoring that supports action and measures Pacific success as well as our shortfalls in achieving environmentally sustainable development.”

This report is the first of its kind with coverage for the entire Pacific region, and it uses regional environment indicators to assess the status, trends, and data quality and availability for the endorsed Pacific environmental priorities. It also includes an update of the State of Conservation in Oceania report produced in 2013, which was endorsed and published in 2017. Viewers can use the interactive report website to navigate through the thematic sections of the report, which include up-to-date snapshots on land and marine resources protection, biodiversity, climate change, and the built environment. Scorecards and trends evaluate and present the level to which the region was meeting, exceeding, or failing to meet the state of the environment indicators.

During a virtual panel hosted by SPREP in April, 2021, island leaders said they were excited to use the report and its resources because it gives them a way to track their country’s progress toward meeting environment and conservation goals. By comparing achievements through time, and with their neighbors, they can set better targets for the future and set policies in motion to ensure that they meet them. Under the resources page, users can download a media kit with factsheets, interactive GIFs, and charts and graphs that are included in the report. Individual country reports are also available on this page, along with core data resources and monitoring tools for the region and worldwide.

Explore SPREP’s excellent resource today.

Featured image: Conducting forest research in Papua New Guinea as part of a carbon credit program. Credit: UN REDD.

For years, Pacific Island leaders have declared that the greatest threat to security in the region is climate change, because it dramatically alters the ecosystems that Pacific peoples depend on economically, culturally, and socially. This non-traditional concept of security is not new, and must be integrated into future frameworks for adaptation and response, not only to climate change but to other threats to global sustainability. Furthermore, as the impacts of the pandemic have reached nearly every country and sector worldwide, it has become more clear how intertwined our health is with the global environment. The Planetary Health framework specifically focuses on how human-caused disruptions to ecosystems can have negative and unpredictable health effects.

To learn more about ecological security in the Pacific and the concept of Planetary Health, check out Pacific RISA’s Dr. Laura Brewington recent video interview with Doug Parsons, host of the Adaptation Channel at Cimpatico Studios, where they discussed the Covid-19 pandemic, Pacific RISA’s work throughout the region, and more. She has also published an East-West Center Wire on the topic. The Planetary Health Alliance contains numerous print, video, and audio resources for more information on the Planetary Health Framework.

Cover photo source: Upsplash.

On May 5, the working group coordinated an online workshop that was attended by over 100 managers and researchers who wanted to learn more about the survey results and help identify next steps for coordinated research and product development. Laura Brewington from the Pacific RISA presented the survey results, followed by an expert panel discussion with invasive species specialists who helped answer participants’ questions about the limitations and availability of existing climate information products for natural resource applications. Toni Lyn Morelli, a USGS research ecologist with the Northeast Climate Adaptation Science Center, then described their processes for establishing a Regional Invasive Species and Climate Change network, and the remainder of the discussion centered around next steps for creating such a network for invasive species managers and climate change researchers in Hawaii and the Pacific.

Attendees participating in the “Where Do We Go Next” discussion segment of the workshop demonstrated unanimous support for the development of a climate change and invasive species network. The top three hopes for what such a network could achieve were: 1) Improved communication between researchers/managers/landowners; 2) Better sharing of and access to resources in a centralized location; and 3) Better alignment of research with management goals. For next steps, the majority of participants suggested: 1) Collecting information and data resources into a centralized platform for access and communication; and 2) Prioritizing gaps and setting research priority areas. The working group will develop a formal listserv to share information, updates, and announcements, and establish a webinar series beginning this summer focused on the nexus between climate change and invasive species. We will continue to identify pathways to build this network and make it a success, based on the input from the workshop. Watch the recording of the workshop here.

Featured image credit: the Maui Forest Bird Recovery Project.