How Two Pacific Researchers Are Bringing Ancestral Wisdom and Climate Justice to the World’s Shipping Stage
For decades, Pacific voices have been missing from global shipping negotiations, despite the ocean being the lifeblood of these island nations. In 2023, two researchers and advisors from the Micronesian Centre for Sustainable Transport, John Taukave from Rotuma, Fiji, and John Kautoke from the Kingdom of Tonga, stepped into the halls of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in London to change that. Their mission was clear: to ensure that the perspectives, vulnerabilities, and wisdom of Oceania are heard in one of the most powerful arenas shaping global shipping, a sector responsible for over 80% of international trade and around 3% of all annual greenhouse gas emissions.
This was covered in Holomui Ki M’ua: Finding Futures Through Ancient Practice, an online event where Flotilla4Change interviewed Taukave and Kautoke about how they are challenging the IMO to improve climate justice outcomes.
The IMO and the Climate Challenge
The IMO, headquartered in London, has long set the rules for international shipping, but its policies rarely account for the human and environmental toll of emissions. In the Pacific, rising seas, acidification, and intensifying climate disasters are not distant threats but everyday realities.
Kautoke knows this firsthand. His home was destroyed by a tsunami in 2022 – a stark reminder that climate change isn’t a distant threat; it is already here. Across Oceania, communities face the compounded effects of vulnerability, inequity, and environmental degradation, yet they have had little say in shaping the policies that impact their lives.
Story-Living: Culture Meets Climate Diplomacy
What makes John Taukave and John Kautoke’s approach so remarkable is their use of “story-living” practices – the performance, cultural ritual, and ancestral presence brought into climate diplomacy. Taukave performed Rotuma Ki, a traditional Rotuman chant, in negotiation rooms to challenge dominant narratives, draw attention, and demand that Pacific realities be recognised.
Through weaving, chants, and ceremonial acts, Taukave and Kautoke remind negotiators that climate discussions aren’t just technical exercises. They are about people, culture, and the survival of communities whose ancestors navigated the vast Pacific with knowledge, skill, and respect for the ocean. Their perspective is that small islanders should never be defined by the size of their land, but by the vastness of the oceans they inhabit, reshaping how global decision-makers see both the Pacific and its people.
Talanoa
Taukave aims to bring the traditional practice of talanoa into international meetings and negotiations. Talanoa is a Pacific method of participatory, transparent dialogue that fosters open, respectful conversation. Often accompanied by kava, a root harvested, dried, pounded into powder, mixed with water, and shared from wooden bowls, talanoa creates space for trust, understanding, and honest discussion, whether between a few people after fishing or entire villages resolving disputes. Taukave hopes to bring the practice of talanoa to international forums like COPs, the UN, and even the IMO in London, inviting negotiators to sit on the woven mat, share a drink, and engage in open, respectful dialogue.
Shaping Global Policy: Net Zero by 2050
The work of Taukave and Kautoke contributed directly to a historic revision of the IMO’s strategy on shipping emissions. The goal: net zero by 2050. While this commitment has been decades in the making, Pacific voices were finally pivotal in increasing ambition, highlighting the inequities of a fossil-fuel-reliant global shipping system, and advocating for solutions that respect indigenous knowledge and local realities.
Yet the challenges remain immense. Fuels and technologies required for decarbonisation are largely unavailable in the Pacific. Countries with large shipping economies will implement strategies differently, often leaving island nations dependent on global supply chains vulnerable. This is why the presence, performance, and advocacy of Pacific leaders is essential.
Lessons from the Pacific
What emerges from this story is more than a policy achievement. It is a reminder that climate justice, sustainability, and diplomacy must be inclusive. The Pacific teaches that solutions aren’t only technical; they are cultural, ancestral, and deeply human. By bringing their voices, their rituals, and their lived experience to the IMO, Taukave and Kautoke have challenged the dominant narratives of climate negotiations and insisted that the global stage recognise those most affected.
Join the Movement
Flotilla4Change’s Stories of Solidarity event series amplifies voices like John Taukave and John Kautoke, connecting frontline communities to the wider world. Through these events, the realities of climate vulnerability, the wisdom of indigenous knowledge, and the urgent need for justice are shared with a global audience.
You can get involved:
- Attend live events: Join the mailing list for updates here.
- Follow the Micronesian Center for Sustainable Transport (MCST): https://mcst-rmi.org/
The Pacific is not just a series of small islands on a map. It is a vast ocean of knowledge, resilience, and culture – and through the voices of Taukave and Kautoke, the world is finally beginning to listen.
Author: Alfie Amadeus