BY LORETTA B MANELE
One global challenge that looms largely for the Pacific region is climate change.
Delivering the 2026 Academic Opening Address, Solomon Islands National University (SINU), Vice Chancellor, Dr Transform Aqorau voiced the above sentiment.
Addressing educators, stakeholders and SINU students last week at SINU’s Panatina campus, he said we are on the front lines of a climate crisis.
Aqorau said stronger cyclones as we are experiencing, rising sea levels and disruptive weather patterns are not abstract predictions for us but rather our lived reality.
He said the tragic ironies of our small island state, like ours, contribute the least to global emissions.
Aqorau emphasised that while we contribute the least to global emissions of climate change, we face the harshest consequences.
He said climate change threatens villages and livelihoods, and it will test our resilience as a nation.
The Vice Chancellor said at the same time, we must also prepare for climate change by strengthening disaster preparedness, building climate-preserved infrastructure, and educating our people in adaptation strategies.
He highlighted that our region’s traditional wisdom about living in harmony with nature is a precious asset.
“Combining it with modern science, it will help us navigate this period,” he noted.
Photo credit: Loretta B Manele
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