Tuvalu: drowning or waving: the low-lying islands of the Pacific nation of have long been seen as the most likely first victims of global climate change. And already, several islands are experiencing regular episodes of flooding. But is there any truth behind the headline stories of an imminent exodus?
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] At the back of his house in Funafuti, the capital of Tuvalu, Manoa Tehulu is husking coconuts. One after the other, he methodically splits their tough coats on a metal spike embedded in the ground then strips away the thick chunks of fibrous husk. There's...

Tiny atoll in Pacific cries out for help.
Byline: Suchit Nair WELLINGTON/CHRISTCHURCH: World Environment Day may have been celebrated across the planet with some fanfare and lots of tree planting on Thursday but it was put in perspective by Anote Tong, president of the small Pacific Ocean nation of Kiribati comprising 32 atolls, when he...

New Zealand offers to host South Pacific Nurses' Forum.
NZNO is offering to host the 2012 South Pacific Nurses' Forum, following a decision at the May meeting of NZNO's board of directors. NZNO Last hosted the forum in 1992. A paper presented to the May meeting of the board outlined the role of the SPNF. It...

Aquatic identities, fluid economies: water affinities and authenticating narratives of belonging in East Timorese myth and ritual.
The recent spate of anthropological attention to water is a timely reminder not only of its salience in cultural representations of place and identity among many indigenous and local communities (Donahue and Rose 1998), but also of its likely prominence in future 'water wars' (Raines-Ward 2002; Shiva 2002). While...

Govt to use IT to simplify tax administration, increase collections.
Byline: Deepshika Sikarwar A World Bank-IFC-PricewaterhouseCoopers study called Paying Taxes, 2008, placed India 165 in the overall ranking. Though India's ranking, measured on the basis of ease of paying taxes, was marginally better than its neighbour China (168), the country is far behind Maldives, Singapore, Hong Kong,...

Govt to use IT to simplify tax administration, increase collections.
Byline: Deepshika Sikarwar A World Bank-IFC-PricewaterhouseCoopers study called Paying Taxes, 2008, placed India 165 in the overall ranking. Though India's ranking, measured on the basis of ease of paying taxes, was marginally better than its neighbour China (168), the country is far behind Maldives, Singapore, Hong Kong,...

What has happened to urban reform in the Island Pacific? Some lessons from Kiribati and Samoa.
Introduction The importance of towns and cities in the future development of Pacific island states is inescapable. Researchers have underlined many key features of the urbanization process, ranging from the high population growth rates found in Melanesian towns, (1) the importance of urbanization as a key driver...

Aid still needed in the aftermath of Solomon Island tsunami.
The Western Solomon Islands are still in need of aid two months after a deadly tsunami struck Choiseul and Western Provinces on April 1st. Remote islands were particularly hard hit and the last to receive assistance. Thirty-nine people were killed and nearly 6,000 made homeless on Remote Simbo Island,...

International Law Issues in the South Pacific.
INTERNATIONAL LAW ISSUES IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC Edited by: Geoff Leane and Barbara yon Tigerstrom Published by: Ashgate Publishing Limited, Aldershot, 2005, 284pp, 60 [pounds sterling]. The South Pacific is not an area that features prominently in commentaries on international law. Its geographical...

Island Ministers: Indigenous Leadership in Nineteenth-Century Pacific Islands Christianity.
Island Ministers: Indigenous Leadership in Nineteenth-Century Pacific Islands Christianity. By Raeburn Lange. Canberra, Australia: Pandanus Books in association with Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, 2005. 440 pp. AUD $31.78 cloth; $28.00 paper. Raeburn Lange's monumental study of Pacific Islander ministers fills a significant gap in the...