Features Archive February 2021

Waning gibbous Earth taken by the GOES-16 satellite on Sept. 11, 2020. Smoke from fires in the Amazon and Pantanal of Brazil dominates South America. A vast vector of smoke expands across North America and the Pacific from West Coast wildfires.

Climate Change: Now is Not the Time to Mince Words

By U.S. Ambassador to Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu Erin E. McKee
There is no greater long-term challenge confronting the United States and the world than climate change.
Miss Solomon Islands with the rest of the group on the occasion to mark World Scouts Day.

"Everyone Has a Responsibility to Promote Our National Identity:" Miss Solomon Islands

By Georgina Kekea
The national anthem, citizenship, work, values and national symbols are the five sets of elements to national identity, says Miss Solomon Islands, Gladys Habu.
The pandemic has reminded us that a reliable and uninterrupted energy supply is critical to managing this crisis.

Sustainable Energy Key to COVID-19 Recovery in Asia and the Pacific

By Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana
The past year is one that few of us will forget. While the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have played out unevenly across Asia and the Pacific, the region has been spared many of the worst effects seen in other parts of the world.
"Various independent commentators have pointed out that the scale of the damage to USP is enormous and unprecedented, and raises serious questions about the broader, longer-term impacts on regional unity, academic freedom, respect for human rights and the rule of law."

The Future of the University of the South Pacific

By Biman Chand Prasad
The whistleblowing Vice Chancellor at the University of the South Pacific (USP), Professor Pal Ahluwalia, has described the illegal deportation of he and his wife, Sandra Price, last Wednesday as a ‘surreal’ experience.
The 2019 Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting in Tuvalu.

Regionalism in Retreat

By Tess Newton Cain and Stefan Armbruster
Prophesies of the end of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) as we know it are close to being fulfilled after a virtual and very tense leaders’ meeting last week.
The descent into sub-regionalism within PIF has the potential to not just undermine regional unity, but have the knock-on effect of hindering the tackling of important issues that the region faces collectively.

A Tiff at PIF? Pacific Islands Forum Leadership Change Triggers Frustration

By Grant Wyeth - The Diplomat
Within the PIF, leadership has typically rotated between Polynesian, Melanesian, and Micronesian states. Until now, it seems.
Dr. Rex Maukera introduces a fresh style of training for agriculturalists addresses topics from creativity to financial literacy.

Changing Mindsets, Boosting Farmer Spirits in the Solomon Islands

The 200 or so taro and cassava farmers in the Solomon Islands had likely not encountered this sort of workshop before. Neither, for that matter, have most people.

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