The Pacific Climate, Local Knowledge and Adaptation Strategies (CLIPSSA) research action project is led by IRD (French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development), AFD (French Development Agency), and Météo-France (French national meteorological agency). CLIPSSA will deliver its initial results at a scientific and technical workshop, “Understanding, raising awareness about and communicating on climate change – CLIPSSA,” at the IRD Centre in Noumea on 21 and 24 March and at the Pacific Community (SPC) from 25-27 March 2025. These new data will contribute to co-building solutions – by scientists, public policymakers and the general public - to cope with a changing climate in the Pacific.
Participants will come from all the countries and territories involved in the project – New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna. The event will include science days, collaborative workshops for scientists and managers, extension activities and scientific outreach.
On Wednesday, 26 March, an outreach evening for the general public, titled “The Pacific in Transition: Diverse Perspectives on Climate Change,” will be held at SPC with the support of the Organisation. A roundtable will feature researchers and doctoral candidates in the human and social sciences (Maya Leclercq, IRD anthropologist; Samson Jean Marie, doctoral candidate in anthropology and geography, Ecole Doctorale du Pacifique and University of New Caledonia/IRD) and climate science researchers and engineers (Dakéga Ragatoa, climate/agriculture/water nexus modeller and Jérémy Guerbette, project engineer at the Météo-France Inter-regional Office in French Polynesia), who will share scientific findings.
Facilitated by moderator Soizic Fleury, the outreach evening will offer interactive exchanges with the public, who will be invited to participate in a Q&A session so that they can absorb this new knowledge. Last, film clips on the effects of climate change will be screened to close out the evening.
Practical information:
- Science days:
21 March (7:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.) and 24 March (7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.)
IRD centre in Noumea (101 Promenade Roger Laroque, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia)
- Collaborative workshops for scientists and managers:
25 March (7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.) and 26 March (7:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
Pacific Community (95 Promenade Roger Laroque, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia)
- Scientific outreach evening:
26 March (6:00 – 8:30 p.m.)
Pacific Community (95 Promenade Roger Laroque, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia)
- CLIPSSA steering committee meeting:
27 March (7:30 – 10:30 a.m.)
Pacific Community (95 Promenade Roger Laroque, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia). Based on the media’s needs, the evening’s speakers will be available for interviews before the event.
About IRD
IRD, a French international scientific research institute, contributes to strengthening the resilience of societies in the face of global upheaval. It is present in more than 50 countries in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, as well as in mainland France and the French overseas departments and territories.
Its research activities provide concrete responses to priority needs such as climate change mitigation and adaptation, combating poverty and inequality, preserving biodiversity, accessing health care, and considering social dynamics.
Research questions are developed in collaboration with actors in the field and local populations. Through long-term partnerships, the teams share multiple perspectives, disciplines, and knowledge to build robust, high-impact solutions.
IRD is committed to research that benefits the greatest number. It shares the results of its projects and harnesses science for action. It thus supports the transformation of societies towards more just and sustainable social, economic and ecological models.
About CLIPSSA
The goal of the CLIPSSA project is to co-build adaptation solutions at the scale of the Pacific Islands. It seeks to develop new scientific data on the climate future of the South Pacific (between now and 2100) and analyse the sectoral impacts on agricultural systems, water resources, and the production and transmission of new knowledge on each territory. These new data are the essential basis for facilitating the development of adaptation strategies and climate change action and adaptation plans in Wallis and Futuna, French Polynesia, New Caledonia and Vanuatu.
About the AFD Group
The AFD Group finances, supports and accelerates the transitions needed to achieve a fairer and more sustainable world. It thus contributes to the implementation of France’s sustainable development and international solidarity policy. With its partners, it is building shared solutions with and for people in more than 160 countries, as well as in 11 French overseas departments and territories.
As a leading financial and technical partner in the Pacific, AFD maintains an enduring relationship of nearly 40 years with local governments in New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna, and French Polynesia. In 2024, AFD opened three new offices – in Vanuatu, Fiji and Papua New Guinea – to fund multiple projects in the areas of education, climate, preserving biodiversity, and reducing vulnerabilities.
About Météo France
Météo-France, a public establishment under the French Ministry of Ecological Transition, is the national climate and weather agency. In addition to monitoring the climate in mainland and overseas France, it is also very involved in research programmes on climate change (global and regional projections) and its impacts (including climate change adaptation and changes in extreme weather events) through the work of its department of climatology and climate services, climate research teams (CNRM-GAME laboratory), and overseas interregional offices, including in French Polynesia and New Caledonia in the Pacific.
About SPC
The Pacific Community has been supporting sustainable development in the Pacific, through science, knowledge and innovation since 1947. It is the principal intergovernmental organisation in the region, owned and governed by its 27 member countries and territories.
Press contacts
IRD: Fleur Vallet | [email protected] | Cléophée Montizon | [email protected] | Tel:
04 91 99 94 87; 04 91 99 94 78; Tel: +687 26 08 04
Météo-France: Caroline Agier | [email protected] | Tel: +687 29 20 00
