PACIFIC civil society groups have issued a stern warning to global negotiators at COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye: breaching the 1.5°C warming threshold is not an acceptable pathway for the survival of island communities.
The Pacific Islands Climate Action Network (PICAN), representing over 320 non-government organisations, is demanding an equitable fossil fuel phaseout and accessible climate finance grounded in the best available science.
PICAN International Policy Lead Dr Sindra Sharma expressed alarm over a growing willingness among major emitters to treat exceeding 1.5°C as an inevitable compromise.
“Every fraction of warming matters, and even temporarily crossing that threshold carries consequences that cannot simply be reversed,” Dr Sharma said.
“For Pacific peoples, those consequences are measured in the loss of our lands, ecosystems, livelihoods and cultural heritage. We cannot afford a COP that lowers ambition when the science demands greater urgency.”
Dr Sharma said that commitments made when global delegates visited Fiji and Tuvalu last month must now translate into concrete action on the negotiating floor.
PICAN principal adviser for strategy and regional affairs Dr James Viernes said the region had done its part in setting the agenda and it was time for the international community to match that leadership with action.
He said governments must move beyond declarations and deliver meaningful emissions reductions, accessible climate finance and a transition away from fossil fuels.
The Pacific could not continue negotiating the terms of its survival while the causes of the climate crisis were allowed to persist, he said.
