The Pacific Community (SPC) supports Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) in addressing, minimising and averting climate change-related Loss and Damage throughout the work of its divisions. 

SPC’s work is based on a foundation of scientific research in areas of critical importance to PICTs. A target of the 2050 Blue Pacific Strategy is for the Council of Regional Organisations in the Pacific (CROP) agencies to provide increased capacity and opportunity for Pacific governments and communities. to effectively address economic and non-economic loss and damage brought on by rapid, extreme and slow onset events.  

SPC is also providing demand-driven support for member countries to develop the scientific basis that will underpin the processes required to access climate finance through the Loss and Damage Fund.  

As the principal scientific regional organisation in the Pacific, SPC not only conducts research but also plays a crucial coordination role between various key stakeholders. This role is instrumental in increasing the understanding of loss and damage through engagement in working groups, convening workshops and bilateral exchanges. This approach supports PICTs to be well-positioned to access Loss and Damage funding. 

• Loss and Damage support from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) 

As a Pacific nation, Aotearoa New Zealand seeks to support their neighbours in ways that help countries and communities to build resilience on their own terms. The country brings a readiness to take risks, break new ground, and forge wide-reaching partnerships that can make a real difference to the people and communities most acutely affected by climate change. 

Therefore, the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) supports Loss and Damage as an anchor investment in the SPC Climate Change Flagship Programme (CCFP) and has enabled the establishment of dedicated support for understanding Loss and Damage in the context of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). 

SPC provides member countries with technical and strategic advice during UNFCCC convenings including the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage, comprising the WIM Executive Committee and its Expert Groups work, the Santiago Network, as well as Loss and Damage Fund, the Conference of the Parties (COP) and COP serving as the Meetings of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA) and other international events.  

• Denmark’s Support to the Pacific Community (SPC) on Loss and Damage in Pacific Small Island Developing States 

Committed to tackle climate change, the Government of Denmark supports PITCs in supporting the evidence base of types, locations, scales, affected assets, and communities impacted by climate-induced Loss and Damage in the Pacific. 

The Green Diplomacy and Climate Department of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and SPC signed an agreement for four years (Jan 2024-Dec 2027) with the support of 5 million EUR.  This Agreement is dedicated to supporting the comprehensive gathering of evidence on the nature and scale of both potential and actual loss and damage in selected communities. This work is conducted through case studies and household data collection.  

It also aims to collect data on potential losses at the household-level through surveys. With this information as the baseline, the project aims to strengthen the capacity of PSIDs in key areas, including planning, policy development, and readiness.

• Espen Ronneberg: Senior Adviser, Climate Change Multilateral Agreements, Pacific Community's (SPC) Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability Programme | Email: [email protected] (location – Suva, Fiji)
• Pasha Carruthers: Climate Change Loss and Damage Advisor at SPC | Email: [email protected] (location – Suva, Fiji)
• Michelle DeFreese: Loss and Damage Funding Coordinator - Danish Funds at SPC | Email: [email protected] (location – Noumea, New Caledonia)