Pacific Climate Change Science Programme (PCCSP)

  • Cook Islands,
  • Federated States of Micronesia (FSM),
  • Fiji,
  • Kiribati,
  • Nauru,
  • Niue,
  • Palau,
  • Papua New Guinea (PNG),
  • Republic of Marshall Islands,
  • Samoa,
  • Solomon Islands,
  • Timor Leste,
  • Tonga,
  • Tuvalu,
  • Vanuatu,
  • Pacific

ENTRY DATE: 09.03.2012 | LAST UPDATE: 09.03.2012

SCALE:

  • Sub-regional Level

TARGET AREA:

BEST PRACTICE IN:

  • Capacity Building
  • Research and Development

KEY SECTOR:

  • Agriculture

FUNDING AMOUNT:

Description of Intervention

Many people living in the Pacific Islands and Timor Leste report their climate is changing. Climate variability and change present challenges to economic activities such as agriculture and tourism, as well as individual livelihoods. These changes are being felt in a variety of ways, as described by a representative from Timor Leste attending a climate science workshop in 2010: “People in agriculturally-dependent rural areas suggest the rainfall pattern has changed. Those living in the highlands report increased winds, and fishermen in coastal areas say they are noticing more frequent large waves”.

Only limited scientific research about climate variability and change has been undertaken in the region. The Pacific Climate Change Science Programme (PCCSP) is helping 14 Pacific Island nations and Timor Leste better understand their current and future climates and is providing information critical to adaptation planning. The PCCSP is part of Australian Government’s International Climate Change Adaptation Initiative, which commenced in 2008 to help meet high-priority adaptation needs of vulnerable countries in the Asia-Pacific region, especially Pacific Island countries and Timor Leste.

Problems to be Addressed

Climate Variability and Change in the Pacific Islands and Timor Leste

Aims

Enhanced understanding of the nature and magnitude of climate change for robust sector-specific adaptation measures

Objectives

• The PCCSP is working with partner countries to improve the understanding of the current and possible future effects of the climate features: the South Pacific Convergence Zone, the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone and the southwest Pacific Monsoon.
• The PCCSP is working with National Meteorological Services to collate and analyse historical climate records. This work is improving the scientific understanding of past changes and underpins analysis of future climate change.
• The PCCSP is working with regional organisations and partner countries to improve understanding of oceanic changes, including temperature, salinity, circulation, sea level rise and acidification.
• The PCCSP are developing projections for how climate in the region may change in the future. This information will be provided to partner countries to inform their adaptation initiatives and development planning.

How it fits into the EbA concept

Informed adaptation initiatives and development planning