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The authors argue that the upcoming UN General Assembly resolution to operationalize the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) Advisory Opinion on climate change is a critical test of global climate leadership. They assert that the resolution reflects existing legal obligations to prevent climate harm, provide reparations, and ensure a just transition from fossil fuels. While noting resistance from major emitters and oil producers who seek to weaken the text, the authors maintain that the resolution complements existing UNFCCC processes by closing an 'accountability gap' that the treaty regime has failed to address.

The Tassiriki Call, adopted in April 2026, outlines a vision for a Fossil Fuel Free Pacific based on 100% renewable energy and the 1.5°C temperature limit. It advocates for a global Fossil Fuel Treaty, scaled-up grant-based finance, and the creation of an Inter-Governmental Taskforce for a Just Transition to a Fossil Fuel Free Pacific. The statement emphasizes the need for a managed decline of fossil fuel production and warns against the use of carbon capture and geoengineering to justify continued production.

The report details the Climate Adaptation Investment Planning (CAIP) framework, a five-step process designed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to bridge the gap between national adaptation planning and financial implementation. Piloted between 2022 and 2025 in Armenia, Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Mongolia, and Nepal, the framework emphasizes aligning adaptation with national fiscal cycles, using systemic climate risk diagnostics, and grouping priorities into comprehensive investment packages. Key findings indicate that while most adaptation packages yield high economic returns, financial viability for private investment remains limited and sector-dependent. The report advocates for a country-led, iterative approach that integrates ministries of finance from the outset to ensure adaptation is embedded in public financial management systems.

The High Seas Treaty, formally the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ agreement), enters into force on January 17, 2026. It establishes a global framework to protect biodiversity in international waters, which cover roughly two-thirds of the ocean and previously lacked comprehensive governance. The treaty is built on four pillars: area-based management tools (including marine protected areas), rules for sharing benefits from marine genetic resources, capacity building and technology transfer for low-income countries, and standardized environmental impact assessments for activities like marine carbon dioxide removal. While it does not replace Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) for setting quotas, it aims to influence fisheries through ecosystem-based management. As of January 15, 2026, 83 parties have ratified the agreement. Implementation now depends on the BBNJ Preparatory Commission and the first Conference of Parties (BBNJ COP) to finalize governing structures, financial mechanisms, and operational logistics.

Palau is developing its first stand-alone national adaptation plan (NAP), expected in 2026, to address critical vulnerabilities including sea level rise, coastal erosion, and saltwater intrusion. The process, led by the Office of Climate Change (OCC) and supported by the Green Climate Fund, employs a "whole-of-society approach" across 10 priority sectors. Adaptation strategies combine high-tech monitoring—such as LiDAR and drones—with traditional ecological knowledge and community-led initiatives. Key actions include nature-based coastal protection via mangrove conservation and reforestation, the use of climate-resilient taro varieties in agriculture, and community-organized sea wall repairs in Melekeok State. The framework emphasizes that durable resilience must be rooted in local stewardship and the intergenerational transmission of environmental knowledge.

The BBNJ Agreement, or High Seas Treaty, aims to regulate 64% of the ocean's surface through four pillars: marine genetic resources, area-based management, environmental impact assessments, and capacity building. While the African Group of Negotiators helped shape the treaty, ratification among African states remains low, with only seven of 55 countries having completed the process. Non-ratifying states risk exclusion from the Conference of the Parties (COP) decision-making and benefit-sharing arrangements for marine genetic resources. The document highlights the potential for designating marine protected areas near Africa, such as the Walvis Ridge and Saya de Malha Bank, and suggests that African states coordinate ministries and adopt cost-effective surveillance technologies, like uncrewed vessels, to manage these areas.

Between 2020 and 2024, climate change increased the number of 'pregnancy heat-risk days'—days exceeding the 95th percentile of local temperatures—in every analyzed country. In 90% of countries and 63% of cities, these risk days at least doubled compared to a world without climate change. The most significant increases occurred in developing regions, particularly the Caribbean, where 15 countries saw an average of at least 60 additional risk days annually, representing roughly one-fifth of a typical pregnancy. Beyond heat, the report notes that climate-driven air pollution, flooding, and infrastructure damage further threaten maternal health and birth outcomes.

A group of 16 children from various nations filed a communication to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, alleging that Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, and Turkey violated the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) by failing to prevent and mitigate climate change. While the Committee recognised the 'extraterritorial application of human rights obligations' and the 'victim status of the authors', it ultimately deemed the claim inadmissible. The decision rested on the 'failure to exhaust domestic remedies', as the claimants had not initiated internal legal procedures in the defendant states before approaching the Committee.

The document defines 'loss and damage' as climate change consequences that exceed human adaptation limits, categorizing them into economic losses (e.g., infrastructure damage) and non-economic losses (e.g., cultural loss). It details the evolution of UN negotiations, from the 1991 proposal by Vanuatu to the 2023 operationalization of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD), which had pledges totaling $768.4 million as of April 2025. The text emphasizes that this funding is far below the estimated $580 billion needed by vulnerable countries by 2030 and argues for a 'mosaic of solutions' combining public, private, and innovative funding sources to support activities such as humanitarian aid, relocation, and livelihood restoration.

The Regional Tuna Programme (RTP) addresses two primary climate threats in the Pacific: the loss of coral reef fish as a protein source and the eastward shift of tuna biomass away from national exclusive economic zones (EEZs). The programme will deploy 333 anchored Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) to help coastal communities catch tuna, improve the distribution of industrial tuna bycatch to urban areas, and develop an Advanced Warning System (AWS) to provide high-resolution forecasts of tuna redistribution. This AWS is intended to serve as an economic planning tool to help tuna-dependent nations negotiate the retention of fishing license revenues. The project targets 790,000 direct beneficiaries and 2.5 million indirect beneficiaries across 14 participating countries.

The report argues that Australia is a 'fossil fuel behemoth' whose exported emissions are projected to be 3.3 times larger than its domestic emissions within five years. It highlights that despite IEA warnings against new developments, Australia has approved 30 new coal and gas projects since 2021. The document asserts that a conservative selection of planned projects could consume 6.2% of the remaining global 1.5°C carbon budget. It further criticizes the Australian Safeguard Mechanism as insufficient because it does not manage exported emissions or prevent new project approvals. Finally, it contrasts Australia's fossil fuel expansion with its public commitments to Pacific nations and its bid to co-host COP31.

The Gender Action Plan (GAP) for the "Adapting Tuna-dependent Pacific Island Communities and Economies to Climate Change" programme aims to ensure women and men benefit equitably from climate adaptation efforts in 14 Pacific Island Countries. The plan focuses on increasing women's capacity in post-harvest tuna processing and marketing, raising awareness of gender roles in coastal fisheries, and enhancing women's leadership in decision-making. Key activities include gender-responsive training for FAD fishers, improving hygienic working conditions for fish sellers, and integrating gender considerations into national disaster response and high-level negotiation training. The programme is managed by the Pacific Community (SPC) and Conservation International (CI), with dedicated Gender & Environmental and Social Safeguards (GESI) officers overseeing implementation and monitoring through sex-disaggregated data.

The report assesses gender dynamics in the Pacific fisheries sector, noting that while fishing is viewed as a male domain, women play critical but often invisible roles in post-harvest processing and marketing. It identifies risks such as the potential for FAD investments to overlook women's needs and the high prevalence of gender-based violence in the region. The document proposes regional objectives to increase recognition of women's roles, improve working conditions for fish sellers, and provide training in tuna processing. It includes detailed gender profiles for participating nations, highlighting specific bottlenecks like limited women's representation in decision-making and the impact of climate change on coastal resources.

DASD Caroline Baxter describes the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) efforts to integrate climate literacy into professional military education (PME). She argues that climate change acts as a "threat multiplier" affecting installations, mission demand, and budgets. The DoD's approach focuses on making climate information mission-relevant, integrating it into existing curricula to avoid task saturation, and emphasizing readiness and lethality over political terminology. Key initiatives include the Climate Literacy Sub-Working Group, a new outcomes-based PME instruction, and a dedicated online portal for authoritative climate information.

The 2023 Clean Air NDC Scorecard reveals a significant gap in the integration of air quality and health into national climate plans, with an average score of 3.5/15 across 170 analysed NDCs. Low- and middle-income countries generally outperform high-income countries, with Colombia and Mali achieving the highest scores (12/15). Conversely, several high-emitting nations, including Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, scored 0/15. The analysis highlights a critical disconnect in countries with high air pollution mortality, such as North Korea and the Solomon Islands, where NDCs fail to recognise the links between climate action and healthy air.

The document assesses gender dynamics, legal frameworks, and socioeconomic baselines in Palau, FSM, and RMI to ensure that ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) interventions are gender-responsive. It identifies significant gaps in sex-disaggregated data and highlights high rates of gender-based violence across the region. The report proposes a Small Grants Facility (SGF) with specific gender screening tools and quotas to ensure women's equitable access to finance, decision-making, and technical training. It emphasizes the value of traditional knowledge held by women in managing coastal and terrestrial resources to build climate resilience.

The document argues that greenhouse gas emissions constitute pollution under UNCLOS, thereby obligating State Parties to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement's temperature goals. It examines the request for an advisory opinion by the Commission of Small Island States (COSIS) to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), asserting that the duty of due diligence must be informed by the best available science to prevent ocean warming, acidification, and sea level rise.

Climate Central's global analysis using the Climate Shift Index (CSI) found that 96% of the world's population—7.6 billion people—experienced daily temperatures made warmer by human-caused climate change between October 2021 and September 2022. The study identifies the strongest influences in regions near the equator and on small islands, with Lagos, Mexico City, and Singapore emerging as the highest hotspots of human exposure when accounting for urban population. The analysis also pinpointed peak continental CSI days, noting that these do not always coincide with major heat waves.

The High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, including leaders from 16 nations, advocates for a transition to a sustainable ocean economy to close the emissions gap. The Panel identifies six key action areas—nature-based solutions, renewable energy, industry decarbonisation, sustainable food, carbon capture and storage, and research—noting that these actions could provide up to 21% of the annual emissions cuts required to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2050. Member nations commit to developing Sustainable Ocean Plans to manage 100% of their national waters sustainably within five years.

The report examines how gender norms and power dynamics influence vulnerability and adaptive capacity in the ocean economy of SIDS and coastal LDCs. It highlights the undervalued roles of women in small-scale fisheries and tourism and analyzes how climate change, market shifts, and COVID-19 disproportionately affect women due to socio-economic structures. The document advocates for the systematic collection of sex-disaggregated data, the implementation of gender-transformative policies, and the alignment of international finance, such as Official Development Assistance (ODA) and climate risk insurance, with gender equality goals to enhance overall community resilience.