SUVA, June 26 (Xinhua) -- The Fijian government said Monday it recognized the importance and impacts that geo-science has played in engineering strategies to mitigate the unrelenting and imminent threats of climate change from the perception of geoscientists.
Faiyaz Koya, minister for Industry, Trade, Tourism, Lands and Mineral Resources, highlighted this while opening the 2017 conference of Pacific Science, Technology and Resources (STAR) Network in Nadi.
The week-long conference will allow regional experts and stakeholders to strengthen collaboration and reach concrete resolutions to outline the value in refreshing and animating scientific alliances to showcase useful work, techniques and instrumentation that may be adapted to address development issues of the Pacific region.
"I urge you all to contribute positively to allow for concrete resolutions being reached to outline the value in refreshing and animating scientific alliances to showcase useful work, techniques and instrumentation that may be adapted to address development issues of the Pacific region," Koya told regional participants at the workshop.
"This is by no means a small undertaking. It requires collaborative efforts to ensure that the Pacific realizes opportunities for sustainable ocean development focusing on targeted growth that can be measured upon scientific principles and data."
Founded in 1984 by South Pacific Applied Geo-science Commission (SOPAC) and UNESCO, the forum is an annual gathering of the region's experts in geo-science.
The forum plays a vital role in mapping out local and regional adaptation programs to further the region's collective struggles against the unforgiving effects of climate change.
With Fiji presiding at the COP23 (Conference of Parties) in Germany, Koya said there is a need for a collective focus on showcasing climate action initiatives and innovation was all the more relevant here and now.
"The future of the whole Pacific rests on all of our shoulders and we need to manoeuvre ourselves to ensure that viable advancements are experienced now, tomorrow and onwards to effectively address this world threatening risk," Koya added.
