1 . Executive Summary

The Analysis of Disaster Response Training in the Pacific Island region was commissioned by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Regional Office for the Pacific.

The primary aim of the analysis was to provide guidance for future disaster management training and capacity development initiatives by Pacific Island Countries (PICs), international and regional humanitarian and developmental organizations and donor partners. The analysis as such focuses on disaster preparedness and response.

As experience with both disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) grows, there is increasing recognition that these two fields share a common focus: reducing the vulnerability of communities and contributing to sustainable development. The high level of climate-related risks in the Pacific, make DRR and CCA key policy goals. The objective of this study is to provide an analysis of the current level of integration of DRR and CCA in the region, with an emphasis on the policy and institutional environment.

Climate Change in the Pacific is a rigorously researched, peer-reviewed scientific assessment of the climate of the western Pacific region. Building on the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, this two volume publication represents a comprehensive resource on the climate of the Pacific.

Introduction and Background

This brief has been prepared for the UN Convention on Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen, December 2009, to raise awareness of the imminent impacts of climate change on food security in Pacific island countries and territories and to urge participants to consider the importance of mainstreaming food security in climate-related policies, strategies and programmes.

By providing a snapshot of the imminent impacts of climate change on food security in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), this report illustrates the need to mainstream