Our People, Our Journey: nurturing Pacific resilience from home
The Pacific Pavilion was a collaborative learning and engagement space that showcases the scientific and technical innovations that have been created to reduce disaster risk in the Pacific. It supported increased learning on disaster risk reduction strategies for Asia-Pacific delegates from all stakeholder groups.
The Pacific’s integrated approaches to address climate change and disaster risk management have much to teach the rest of the region and the world. Pacific peoples have practiced resilience to natural hazards for generations: reading the weather on voyages across thousands of miles of ocean; looking to frigate birds to provide a warning when bad weather is impending; and preserving food in case of disasters.
This ongoing approach to resilience in the region underpins the Pacific Pavilion. The space outlined science-to-action initiatives showcasing learnings from the region in how to make the Pacific genuinely resilient now and into the future. These learnings and indigenous knowledge are critical for the survival of Pacific peoples and the resilience of our planet.
The Pacific Pavilion Activities were:
- Learning discussions on Pacific issues including women, youth, government partners, scientists, and cultural knowledge holders
- Interactive science to action space
- Interactive cultural sessions including discussion, storytelling, performance and indigenous voices
Pacific Pavilion Agenda
Tuesday 20th September |
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Pacific Culture and Traditional Knowledge space |
Pacific Learning Lounge |
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8.30-12.00 |
Pacific weavers, tapa and carving circles activated.
Pavilion space open for delegates to walk around and interact. Artwork and heritage art installations placed around the pavilion. Pacific artists and cultural knowledge holders from the Pavilion protocol in costume to facilitate and discussions and questions. |
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10.30-11.45am Resilient Infrastructure and inclusivity |
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12.00-1.00 |
PACIFIC PAVILION SPACE CLOSED |
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1.00-1.30 |
Oceanic Storytelling: on the mat. Discussion on resilience being ‘preloaded’ into Pacific traditions and values. Discussion on traditional fish traps and resilience practices. |
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1.30-3.00 |
Pacific weavers and heritage art circles. Pavilion space open for delegates to walk around and interact with Oceanic Storytelling team. Artwork and heritage art installations placed in the pavilion. |
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3.00-3.30 |
Oceanic Storytelling session and music from the Pacific |
3.00-3.45pm |
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3.30-6.00 |
Pacific weavers and heritage art circles. Pavilion space open for delegates to walk around and interact with Oceanic Storytelling team. Artwork and heritage art installations placed in the pavilion. |
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4.00-4.45pm Inclusive DRR and Climate Policies from a Pacific perspective
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Wednesday 21st September |
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Pacific Culture and Traditional Knowledge space |
Pacific Learning Lounge |
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8.30-11.00 |
Oceanic storytelling: on the mat with our women. Women’s knowledge and keepers of the land |
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10.30-11.15am COVID-19 and business Recovery in the Pacific |
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11.00 -1.00 |
Oceanic storytelling: the issue of water in Oceania, resilience through indigenous knowledge systems |
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12.30-1.15pm Learning from Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha’api eruption experience Tonga |
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1.00 -3.00 |
Pacific weavers and heritage art circles. Pavilion space open for delegates to walk around and interact with Oceanic Storytelling team. |
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3.00 -3.30 |
Drums of the Pacific |
3.00-4.00pm |
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3.30-5.30 |
Oceanic storytelling: stories of Pacific resilience through the pandemic |
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5.30-6.00 |
Pacific performers in the Pavilion |
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6.00-8.00 |
Pacific Pavilion closed |
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Thursday 22nd September |
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Pacific Culture and Traditional Knowledge space |
Pacific Learning Lounge |
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8.30-11.00 |
Oceanic storytelling: stories of Pacific resilience through the pandemic |
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Oceanic Storytelling: On the mat discussions on Arts activism - Rise for Climate justice - Art is a powerful tool for advocacy, adaptation and resilience |
10.30-11.15am Resilient projects to support communities |
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11.00-11.30 |
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11.30-12.30 |
Oceanic storytelling: stories of Pacific resilience through the pandemic |
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12.30-1.30 |
Oceanic Storytelling: On the mat with Simi Sevudredre and Letila Mitchell - Cultural resilience beyond the perception that culture is just handicrafts. |
12.30-1.15pm Leadership and learning: improved incident management for improved response |
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1.30-4.30 |
Pacific weavers and carving circles. Pavilion space open for delegates to walk around and interact.
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3.00-3.45pm Access to action: ensuring access to finance for communities and driving resilience building broadly |
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4.30-5.30 |
Oceanic Storytelling: On the mat for Music for Social Change |
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5.30-7.00 |
Pacific Pavilion closes |
The Pacific Resilience Partnership
The Pacific Pavilion was hosted by the Pacific Resilience Partnership (PRP). The PRP brings together voices from across the entire Pacific region to drive genuine, holistic, and inclusive resilience actions from communities to senior government and regional levels.
The PRP is driven by a Taskforce, which includes representatives from governments, civil society, gender and youth organisations, persons with disability, multilateral agencies, donors, local and regional organisations, private sector and international non-government organisations. This partnership implements and advocates the Framework for Resilient Development in the Pacific.
This work was underpinned by Pacific guiding values which include:
- Prioritising the needs of the most vulnerable including women, children, youth, the elderly, and persons with disability in planning and implementation of all activities.
- Ensuring that resilient development is sustainable and aims to alleviate poverty and hardship. Incorporating ecosystem-based services and functions in resilience building.
- Strengthening and developing partnerships across countries and territories including sharing of lessons learnt and best practice but without compromising sovereignty and related considerations.