Pacific leaders open pre-COP summit in Fiji ahead of Antalya climate talks

Pacific island leaders opened a four-day pre-COP summit in Nadi, Fiji, on Monday to shape the agenda for the UN's COP31 climate conference scheduled for November in Antalya, Turkey. COP31 President and Turkish Environment Minister Murat Kurum will chair the preparatory talks, which run through 8 October.

Delegates will spend Tuesday in Tuvalu, a nation of roughly 10,000 people, to witness sea-level adaptation projects and solar-energy installations first-hand. About 4,000 delegates are expected to join the negotiations in Fiji before the Antalya summit.

“The influence of the Pacific on global climate action has always been greater than its size.”

Fijian Climate Minister Lynda Tabuya said the Pacific's three priorities are keeping the 1.5°C warming limit alive, delivering finance to frontline communities, and securing a central role for oceans in the climate regime. Australian Climate Minister Chris Bowen echoed the call to harness indigenous and local knowledge.

A UN report released in August warns that record sea-level rise could displace 1.2 billion people globally by 2050, with small island states facing double the global average rate. Developing nations needed $310–365 billion for adaptation in 2023 but received only $26 billion.