Talanoa Consulting

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climate change, disaster risk
reduction & resilience

In the Pacific, climate change, natural hazards and environmental degradation are ever-present threats, undermining, livelihoods, security and human rights. Pacific peoples are determined to build their resilience, adapt to, as well as mitigate their growing realities to protect their land and homes. Focusing on people centred and integrated solutions.

We have undertaken the following projects in this area:

Pacific Island Students Fighting Climate Change (PISFCC) Strategy Development

March - April 2025 | Client: PISFCC | It was a privilege to work with the Pacific Island Students Fighting Climate Change (PISFCC) in convening a three-day workshop focused on reflecting on key lessons learned, strengthening partnerships, and shaping future actions to fully realize the potential of the ICJ Advisory Opinion on climate change as a driver for climate action and justice across the Pacific. Talanoa Consulting was honoured to contribute to this process, supporting the workshop’s preparation and facilitation, as well as collaborating closely with PISFCC in drafting a forward-looking five-year strategy that builds on this important momentum.

Pacific analysis for the Resilient and Sustainable Islands Initiative (RESI) of capacity strengthening initiatives in SIDS, focussed on climate change

November 2024 - April 2025 | Client: ADB and ODI | Lead researcher and author for the Pacific in a study commissioned by the Resilient and Sustainable Islands Initiative, for the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). The study examines whether current ways of supporting capacity strengthening in Small Island Development States are fit for purpose and offers recommendations for rethinking initiatives to lean into the strengths of small administrations in the Pacific. https://odi.org/en/publications/fit-for-size-rethinking-capacity-strengthening-in-small-island-developing-states/

Development Bank Learning Exchange

January 2025 - March 2025 | Client: SPC | Lead rapporteur for a learning exchange between development banks in the Pacific. Rather than a workshop report, a lessons piece was developed to share the learning more broadly. We were delighted to support the first draft which was further refined internally at SPC. The lessons reveal that these institutions hold forms of capability that are rarely acknowledged sufficiently in global climate finance processes: customer-centric grievance redress mechanisms, trusted community relationships, culturally rooted understandings of land and gender systems, and fit-for-purpose financial structures refined through decades of lending to micro and small businesses across dispersed geographies. https://www.spc.int/updates/news/media-release/2026/01/pacific-development-banks-navigating-access-to-climate-finance

Consultancy services to provide support to the Kiwa Initiative on Gender Equity, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) and human rights-based approaches in Nature-based Solutions for climate adaptation projects

April 2023 - January 2025 | Client: SPREP | Talanoa Consulting provided support to the Kiwa Initiative on Gender Equity, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) and human rights-based approaches (HRBA) in Nature-based Solutions for climate adaptation projects. Our support includes the design and delivery of toolkits, training, facilitating a community of practice, hosting online learning events, and technical support to regional projects funded by the Kiwa Initiative. Resources can be found here: https://kiwainitiative.org/en/news/download-now-our-freely-available-resources-on-gedsi-and-humanrights

Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECMs) in the Ocean

April 2024 - May 2025 | Client: Oregon State University | Provision of strategic guidance and recommendations on the development of a new tool aimed at identifying, understanding, and tracking the conservation outcomes of other effective (area-based) conservation measures and (OECMs) and other effectively conserved areas in the ocean beyond marine protected areas.

NAP Process Workshop Facilitation

April 2024 - May 2024 | Client: IISD | Support to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change to commence the National Adaptation Plan process through a NAP Process workshop design and facilitation.

Fiji Climate Finance Writeshop Training

December 2021 | Client: The Commonwealth Secretariat | Facilitation and technical input to the Fiji Climate Finance Writeshop Training with the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Climate Change Section.

Support to GGGI Planning Meeting

November 2021 | Client: GGGI | Develop sessions and facilitation tools for a hybrid in-person and virtual planning retreat; facilitate sessions and track outcomes from each session.

SME business continuity planning guidance

August 2021 to April 2022 | Client: UNDP | Undertake consultations with SMEs and Chambers of Commerce in Fiji, Vanuatu, Tonga and Palau on revising business continuity planning tools in light of the private sector response to Covid-19; and revise materials appropriately.

Fiji Marinas Sustainable Benchmarking

June 2021 to September 2021 | Client: BMT Commercial (IFC) | Assist the IFC to prepare a decision-making tool to evaluate whether potential marina proposals in Fiji are sustainable from an environmental, economic and social perspective to enable the bank to consider investment decisions.