Pacific women call for climate action that begins with their communities

For the women who gathered in Tuvalu this September, climate justice reaches into the everyday work of keeping communities safe. It concerns the water families drink, the food they grow, the safety of women in their homes and the connection to land that carries generations of belonging.

These concerns shaped the Tuākoi Lei – Faith, Gender and Climate Regional Convening, held in Funafuti, Tuvalu from 5-10 September. According to its draft outcome statement, the gathering brought together 40 women leaders from across the Blue Pacific, including Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, to strengthen women’s leadership in the climate decisions affecting their communities.

Convened at the invitation of the Government of Tuvalu through its Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, in partnership with the Pacific Conference of Churches, the gathering was supported by the hospitality of the Ekalesia Kelisiano Tuvalu (EKT).

Uniting Church in Australia President Rev Charissa Suli joined the women leaders in Tuvalu, continuing the Church’s engagement with its Pacific neighbours.

The Uniting Church’s participation sits within its commitment to live out faith through care for creation, justice and relationships with partner churches. Through UnitingWorld, the Church works alongside Pacific churches on disaster preparation, sustainable livelihoods, gender equality and leadership. These are closely connected concerns in the communities represented at the convening.

There is also a responsibility to listen in ways that allow others to shape our direction. Speaking at the Pacific Church Leaders’ Meeting in Fiji in April, President Suli raised the concern that Pacific and Indigenous people are too often invited to share their stories without being given the opportunity to influence what follows. Her call for humility and deeper listening helps explain the importance of being present in spaces such as this one.

At the heart of the Tuvalu gathering was Tuakoi lei, the understanding of being a good neighbour, grounded in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan. The draft outcome statement, titled Kalaga ke Fakatino : Call to Action, draws on the instruction in Luke 10:37: “Go and do likewise.”

The women gave that call practical meaning through accompaniment, action and accountability: coming close enough to listen, responding to what communities need, and following through on commitments.

Their shared accounts show how deeply climate pressures are woven into other parts of life. Women from Solomon Islands described coastal erosion and the loss of ancestral ground. Contributions from the Marshall Islands connected climate concerns with the continuing legacy of nuclear testing. In Vanuatu, disaster preparedness and the role of churches in helping communities respond were central concerns.

The statement also confronts violence against women and girls. Drawing on experiences shared from Papua New Guinea, Kiribati and Tuvalu, it describes how displacement, disaster and economic strain can deepen existing dangers. It calls on churches and governments to make women’s safety an essential part of climate responses, alongside food, water and shelter.

This has implications for the decisions ahead.

Fiji will host the official pre-COP preparatory meeting, with a leaders’ event in Tuvalu from 5–8 October. COP31 will follow in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9–20 November, with Australia serving as President of Negotiations. These meetings offer an opportunity to carry the priorities raised in Tuvalu into international decisions.

Meaningful participation by Pasifika women could help leaders examine whether their proposals will work in the communities they are intended to serve. Women leading food production, preparing families for disasters and sustaining cultural knowledge bring experience that should inform how funding is allocated and how success is measured.

The draft statement is specific about what is needed. It calls for direct support for women working in agroecology and organic farming, educational resources in local languages, and the preservation of cultural knowledge. It asks governments to support women, young people and people with disability to participate in decisions, and to include their perspectives in climate strategies.

Taken seriously, these proposals would ask more of leaders than an invitation to speak. They would require resources for participation and a clear place for women’s recommendations in the work that follows.