Pacific climate expert calls for action on sea level rise

University of Auckland Pacific climate expert Dr Christina Newport has taken Pacific voices to the global stage on 6 May, calling for urgent action on sea level rise at a high-level United Nations (UN) science forum in New York.

Newport (Rarotonga, Mangaia/Cook Islands) spoke at a side event of the 2026 UN Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Forum, alongside Pacific scientists, policymakers, and climate negotiators. The event focused on the real and immediate impacts of sea level rise on Pacific communities - from drinking water and food security to livelihoods, culture, and identity.

“Climate change in the Pacific is not a future threat; it is a present and irreversible loss,” Newport told the forum.

“Not just of land, but of language, identity and the continuity of who we are across generations.”

Drawing on her experience as a researcher at the University and Principal Researcher at Akairo Consulting, Newport highlighted how rising seas are already contaminating freshwater supplies, damaging crops, and threatening reef fisheries that many Pacific families depend on. Around 70 percent of Pacific households rely on agriculture for their livelihoods, making water security a critical issue for the region.

While the science behind sea level rise is well established, Newport stressed that too often Pacific knowledge and lived experience are sidelined in global decision-making.

“Research that doesn’t speak to lived experience stays on the shelf,” she said. “Policy that doesn’t align with research causes harm. The bridge between them is community.”

The event, titled At the Water’s Edge: Sea Level Rise, Water Security and Livelihoods in the Pacific, brought together Indigenous and Pacific researchers who are already working with communities on practical solutions – from local water management to coastal adaptation and food system resilience.

Despite this, speakers warned that many Pacific led solutions remain underfunded and disconnected from international climate finance systems.

Dr Newport and fellow panellists Awnesh Singh and Arunima Sircar emphasised that with key global moments ahead - including major UN meetings on sea level rise, water security, and climate action - Pacific voices must be central, not symbolic.

The event was co-hosted by the International Science Council, its Regional Focal Point for Asia and the Pacific, and several Pacific and international partners. It forms part of a broader effort to ensure Pacific scientists and communities are directly represented in the global conversations that shape climate responses.

For Dr Newport, the message was clear: the Pacific is not waiting to be saved - it is already leading.

“Our communities know what works,” she said. “What’s needed now is for global systems to listen, invest and act alongside us.”