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ABSTRACT. Understanding how social-ecological systems are and can be resilient to climate change is one of the world's most crucial problems today. It requires knowledge at local and global scales, the integration of natural and social sciences, and a focus on biocultural diversity. Small Pacific Islands and the knowledge-practice-belief systems of their peoples have a long history of resilience to environmental variability and unpredictability, including in areas with marginal habitats and with periodic, severe disturbance (e.g., drought, flood, storms, and tsunami). We review the state of research on these knowledge systems as it pertains to resilience and adaptation, and we highlight critical research needs to address the interrelated areas of: (1) local-scale expertise and observations of change with regard to weather, life-history cycles, and ecological processes; (2) customary resource management institutions and practices (i.e., with agroforests and the nearshore marine environment); and (3) the roles of leaders, social institutions, and social networks in the context of disturbance and change. We conclude that these knowledge systems can contribute high-resolution observations, benchmark data, and insights into practices that enhance resilience and adaptive capacity in integrated terrestrial and marine systems. Community-based and participatory approaches can complement and ground-truth climate models and direct culturally appropriate resource management, research, and adaptation measures. Although most islands in the Pacific are small, their knowledge systems include valuable insights on seasonal cycles, ecological processes, and the management of biocultural diversity that are relevant at a broad scale for understanding resilience and adaptability to the social-ecological effects of climate change.

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Purpose Drawing on qualitative fieldwork on a remote outer island in Fiji, this paper aims to address a shortcoming in the literature on climate adaptation in the Pacific. Internationally community-based adaptation (CBA) is recognised as a promising approach to help vulnerable populations adjust to climate change. However, with pilot projects in their infancy documented experience for Pacific Islands remains scarce. This limits the ability of the region – faced with persisting development challenges and predicted significant climate impacts – to learn from and build on previous experiences and develop robust responses to climate change. Design/methodology/approach By using a community-based initiative in response to environmental challenges and unsustainable development as a proxy, the paper interrogates the potential usefulness of the CBA framework for the Pacific and identifies potential strengths and weaknesses. Sketching out the process and its outcomes, it shows how the initiative has resulted in a diversity of strategies, ranging from pollution control measures, to improved governance of resources and community participation in decision making, to livelihood and income diversification. Findings Findings indicate that CBA could have a lot of potential for building more resilient communities in the face of climate change and other pressures associated with modernising Pacific societies. However, to be effective, interventions should pay attention to people’s development aspirations; immediate economic, social and environmental benefits; dynamics of village governance, social rules and protocols; and traditional forms of knowledge that can inform sustainable solutions. Originality/value The conclusions provide a reflection on the CBA framework in general and make concrete suggestions for practitioners on how the framework could be usefully implemented in the Pacific context.

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This paper presents findings from a species-by-species assessment of the collapse and recovery of a tropical mollusk fishery in Navakavu, Fiji. The results are based on field surveys, photo documentation, collection of voucher specimens, participant observation, and testimonies of past and current generations of female and male fishers. The results show the degradation of fisheries resources at almost all trophic levels over the past 40 years due to overfishing, destructive fishing techniques, and environmental degradation, as well as the positive impacts of the establishment of a locally managed marine area (LMMA) and associated marine protected area (MPA), known locally as “Vueti Navakavu.” Since its establishment in 2002, nearly 300 mollusk species, including gastropods, bivalves, and cephalopods, are either being seen for the first time in over 40 years or are clearly increasing in abundance and/or size class. There has been a particularly dramatic increase in the abundance of a wide range of cone shells (Conus spp.), cowries (Cypraea spp.), conches (Strombidae), murexes (Muricidae), auger shells (Terebridae), and turban snails (Turbanidae), as well as octopus, squid, and seahare, all of which are of economic, cultural, and ecological importance. The results show that sustained effective marine conservation can, in general, lead to the recovery of seriously degraded fisheries and, in particular, of tropical mollusk fauna. This assessment highlights the value of synthesizing up-to-date taxonomic and scientific knowledge with the knowledge of older fishers, who have long-term multi-species knowledge of changing fisheries.