ISLANDS is assisting SIDS to move towards low chemical development pathways. Chemicals (and POPs specifically) are everywhere. PFAS, recently listed in the Stockholm Convention, has properties that make fabric coated with them water resistant. PFAS has recently been the subject of a class action suit relating to underwear in the USA: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/20/well/pfas-thinx-period-underwear.html

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has arrived in Cabo Verde for the Ocean Race Summit.

Guterres highlighted the risk that the SIDS-country is facing due to climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss - in particular droughts and loss of livelihoods.

He added that he was "profoundly frustrated by the fact that world leaders are not taking the necessary action and making the investments needed to face this life and death emergency."

Cabo Verde is one of the SIDS working under ISLANDS to manage waste and fight chemicals pollution. The activities of the ISLANDS Atlantic Ocean project will start soon and regular updates will be provided on this community.

More news from the Pacific on the work of the Collection Pillars of Recycling, published on FBCnews.com in Fiji. Amitesh Deo, the founder and CEO of the Pacific Recycling Foundation, expands on the need for further support for those who collect recyclables from public places or dump sites, and the work being done with the government to transition the work of the Collection Pillars of Recycling into formal employment opportunities.
The ISLANDS Programme fully supports initiatives of this kind that bring opportunities and security to those who work and make their living in this sector, especially when there is an emphasis on the well-being of women and other marginalized groups.

How can innovation and the digital economy make an impact in SIDS and SID-like territory?

What could be the benefits, in terms of waste and pollution, of diversifying the economy, moving away from the dependence of the tourism sector?

Zanzibar is launching Silicon Zanzibar, a programme that will offer incentives to boost local digital services and reduce the country’s dependence on the tourism sector.

Read the article to find out more!

For those missed it, the Guardian UK has began focusing attention on PFAS, a persistent organic pollutant (POP) or "forever chemical." The latest article focuses on PFAS in freshwater fish: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/18/freshwater-fish-con…

But a previous article also focused on PFAS in orcas tested in Canadian waters: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/14/endangered-orcas-fo…

In ISLANDS - we are focusing on reducing all POPs covered under the Stockholm Convention - many of these, like PFAS, people don't know much about. Over the next few years we will be sharing and learning together in ISLANDS about how to reduce PFAS and other POPs chemicals.

Greetings!

I am new in this group, so let me introduce myself - I am Anastasiya from Uzbekistan and serve as a Senior Project Assistant to GGKP. I will be supporting
"Implementing Sustainable Low and Non-Chemical Development in Small Island Developing States (ISLANDS)" Programme funded by GEF.

I am very excited to join Green Forum, share and learn from experience of other members!

Pacific Large Ocean, Small Islands Developing States (PSIDS) Raise their Voices at the UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon.

During the first interactive panel on marine pollution, Prime Minister of Tonga, Hon. Siaosi Sovaleni, who spoke on behalf of PSIDS, stressed the need of tackling plastics pollution through a global agreement covering the whole life cycle of plastics.

“We are deeply concerned about compounding risks due to the accelerating rate of toxic plastic production and consumption and we strongly urge support for the development of National Plastic Prevention Plans with measurable and time-bound targets and consider supporting legislation to phase out problematic plastics,” said Prime Minister Sovaleni.

The Pacific islands region is grossly and disproportionately affected by the impacts of plastic pollution - but plastics is a threat everywhere on the planet. To all our community members:
- How is plastics pollution worsening your quality of life?
- How do you think we should address this issue globally?
- Which actions you take on your daily life to reduce plastics consumption?

What could be the consequences of deep sea mining in the Pacific?

Blue Peril is a film providing a visual investigation of the waste and sediment that deep sea mining operations would create, and of how they will affect marine life and livelihoods for costal communities in Pacific Islands.

At present, contractors are only authorised to “explore” large areas of the seabed, but the mining could begin very soon - under the promise of extracting precious material useful for the green energy transition (e.g. for batteries). However, the governments of Palau, Fiji, Samoa, and Micronesia as well as many civil society organisations in the Pacific have been calling for a ban on deep sea mining.

“How can a few minorities decide what’s good for the whole of humanity when the majority are locked outside the door? We need space for dialogue and to be heard,” said Tita Kara from the Civil Society Forum of Tonga.

Community members in the Pacific, what's your take on deep sea mining?