It all started when it was decided to offer half the village of Mango Island a lift on Infinity to the Friday church fundraiser in nearby Nomuka. By making a first friendly gesture to these people, we helped a community and came true to our principles. Moreover, we made friends with a bunch of incredible locals. Later on, we spent a lot of time together exploring their island and learning about their culture… we even had traditional Tongan feast organized for us… great!
During this “Nomuka church fundraising” dinner, Annie met one of the schoolmasters of the local government primary school, Kiny, while drinking kava. He was immediately interested in our environmental work and told her that it would be quite a good idea to do a painting about batteries for the community and targeting the Fishermen in particular. That was all the information we received.

After a few days at Mango, we had to say regretfully “bye bye” to its inhabitants and move on back to Nomuka. There, following on the faith of a kava-muddled conversation, it took us a little effort to find the school. God, there were two! And the teacher… we did not remember his name… Quite an adventure!!

When we entered the schoolyard, fringed with fruit trees, lawns well kept and white long functional buildings, we immediately became the center of the attention. So many children, some more timid than other, but all joyfully surrounding us. We were then introduced to the schoolmaster and to his colleague, Ilaise. Right away, we inquired about the painting project. From a previously talked about poster size, it changed suddenly to a 1.5 by 3m wooden sign. We then discussed the drawing itself, a mix of a previous idea and our own views. After getting the details, we agreed to take on the challenge.

This very first day, Annie and I begun painting the underlying white of the board. It didn’t dry quickly enough, the paint was bloody watery and the result was definitely quite poor…bad start… The situation did not get better, so we called the day off, defeated… and agreed we would come back the next day.

How many times, did I get asked “what is your name?”? What an experience to meet some of these kids outside the school calling me Ayack like some good old friends! Good Karma!!

And so we did against the odds, after an adventurous night on the island Nomuk-iki, a mile away where we had moved Infinity to have a wonderful fancy dress barbeque.

This second day, Aimee and I went back to tackle the core of task. Drawing on the white with pencil, we then mixed colors with a thick and almost creamy white we brought from the boat, for the texture. It worked fairly well and by the end of the day, exhausted and sore, we had just a little lettering and our logo in a corner left. Our host treated us well with cake, lots of bananas and coconut water, which I might have had a little too much of, causing one of my fastest sprints to the toilets ever… Children often went by and peered at us, some shy some almost cheeky, but all very curious.

So many “beautiful” flew in the air that day!

The third day, we went again, Aimee and I, to finish the job and have a amazing time at the school with all the kids and our two teacher friends. We took plenty of pictures, exchanged emails and promises of contact and left with a chorus of “bye bye” and “see you later”.
We left this island, full of a wonders on what we gave and received. I think our input was surely met back a hundred time stronger. Besides the fact that it was such a rich personal experience, I think that it is the very definition of Infinity’s mission to take any support and opportunities to pass messages. Back home, we use presentations but here it was a youthful quality painting on plywood, that is going to stand guard on the beach, saying in Tongan:

‘OUA ‘E FAKAKONAHI HOTA ‘ATAKAI ‘ETA KAI LELEI’ MO ‘ETA FANAU’
TANAKI HO’O VEVE KONA’

meaning aproximately: “Help protect our environment, our food and our children. Pick up your garbage”. Simple and direct…

Thanks you to the people of Mango island and Nomuka.

As one of the regional administrative centers of the Tuamotus, Makemo has a relatively large school system. In addition to the normal primary schools, Makemo has two colleges (for students 10-16 years old) that teach students from smaller neighboring islands as well as Makemo.

The main school counts around 180 students, 15 teachers, and more than 100 students from other Polynesian islands who are flown to Makemo to continue their studies after primary school. These students return to their home islands only during school holidays.

Infinity was lucky enough to be invited to give presentations on its mission by the local school director. The crew’s four fluent French speakers organised one hour workshops for four different classes, hoping to engage the students on environmental topics.

The school management and the teachers were highly supportive of the idea of bringing a discussion about the environment to the classes. Environment and “développement durable” are part of the school teaching programs. Awareness is already being taught to the present generation, and the students were excited to see an international community interested in their islands and taking time to talk with them.

Based on the discussions we had with them, it appears that they all know about the basic actions to take to preserve their environment: recycling, conserving water, using solar panels. However, most of them do not realise how rich their lands are in terms of biodiversity and that the South Pacific supports high numbers of fish and coral species in comparison to the rest of the oceans on the planet. As a result, they are not aware of the danger that their heritage is facing due to climate change and pollution.

After discussing coral preservation, over-fishing and climate change with the students, they all came up with very effective strategies for potentially halting these problems. An intricate understanding of the places they live in gives these students the knowledge necessary to create innovative methods for preservation. But without any awareness or understanding of the outside threats that face their islands, solutions will not be put in place until it is too late.

It appears that raising awareness towards kids is just a part of many actions that must to be taken to help to preserve the heritage of Pacific atolls. For example, most of the students know that even if they sort trash there is not recycling means on the island and everything is buried and burnt. Environmental awareness must be coupled with sustainable infrastructure.

While the children we spoke to seemed to be somewhat educated around environmental issues and basic actions they can take, we left the school with the feeling that climate change awareness towards the new generation is a crucial piece of the puzzle, but has to be accompanied by complementary actions that allow this awareness to be used in islanders day-to-day lives.

Many thanks to Xavier Barbin, the director of the school, who gave us the opportunity to spend two days at the school of Makemo.

The small size of islands in the Tuamotus, and relatively small electrical demands, preclude the need for any of the standard array of power generation options used on a large scale around the world. Historically, such islands have been limited to the use of fuel-based generators, though wind, solar and wave power are now also feasible options throughout the Pacific. With such renewable sources only becoming available recently and being associated with significant expense, most remote islands in the Pacific still rely on conventional fuel as their sole energy supply.

Fuel is delivered to the Tuamotus on a cargo ship that arrives roughly monthly on each island. Highly dependent on the whims of the sea and the French bureaucracy in Tahiti, this is anything but a reliable supply. Additionally, any increase in global oil prices is felt two-fold in the area- not only does the base cost per liter rise, but the transport costs increase significantly as the cargo ship uses more expensive fuel over the great expanses that separate these islands.

The importance of energy security in the face of the increase in global fuel costs is a particular issue that has been highlighted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC). The countries of the Pacific universally face extremely high energy costs due to the difficulties of transport. Electricity costs in French Polynesia are up there with the most expensive in the world. As a result the SPC aims to find the ‘best possible mix of energy solutions to cater for the energy needs of our members.

With these issues in mind, the island of Makemo in the Tuamotus decided in 2006 to use wind power to supply their electrical needs. The introduction of the six wind turbines was a joint government and private enterprise venture with each party having a 50% stake. The success of wind turbines in Europe (e.g. wind power accounting for 20% of Denmark’s energy etc.) inspired hopes for similar success in French Polynesia. However, numerous problems accompanied the implementation of wind power in Makemo.

Prior to the introduction of wind turbines, solar panels were a major source of power for the residents of Makemo. Throughout the tropical communities of the Tuamotus solar power is used as an extremely effective way of generating electricity. The French Polynesian government has subsidized solar panels, allowing many small settlements to implement solar as their main source of power. However, the introduction of wind power in Makemo was accompanied by legislation prohibiting the purchase and use of new solar panels. This effort to ensure that the newly-installed wind turbines remained economically viable is already a source of resentment for the island’s inhabitants. As the price of solar panels continues to fall and their efficiency continues to increase the ban on purchasing them may become an even greater point of contention.

No significant change in the cost of electricity occurred as a result of the introduction of wind turbines. However, the inclusion of private enterprise in the venture along with the government has drastically changed the way in which electricity is paid for. Previously, residents of Makemo were allowed to run up large debts with the government provider. Since the introduction of privately operated wind power, residents are required to prepay for their electricity each month. This has led to consternation among island inhabitants, the lack of flexibility in the system antithetical to all other aspects of life on their island.

Despite its theoretical freedom from the issues of fuel delivery, Makemo remains as reliant on the monthly cargo ship as before wind power was implemented. The six wind turbines on the island break down frequently, and islanders find that instead of waiting for fuel to supply their electricity they are waiting for parts for the wind turbines. This lack of reliability has led the school, shops and restaurants to purchase their own generators to meet their power needs.

While numerous issues plague the implementation of wind power in Makemo, none of these seem to shut the door on wind power as an important part of the SPC’s “best possible mix of energy solutions” in the Pacific. A future of steadily increasing global oil prices will increasingly render wind power an economically viable alternative to conventional fuel. In the meantime, government subsidies to increase the viability of wind would allow it to operate alongside the already effective and widespread solar power. Lessons learned from Makemo can help in designing an intelligent suite of renewable power sources for remote islands around the Pacific.

French Polynesia covers a huge area of the southern Pacific (2.7 million sq. km) with a total population of about 260,000 and is composed of some 120 islands grouped in five archipelagos – The Marquesas (les Marquises), the Society Islands (les Iles de la Societe), the Southern Islands (les Australes) the Tuomotos, (les IlesTuomoto), and The Gambier Islands (les Iles Gambier). These islands vary in their geology, their ecology and, as might be expected in such a far-flung community, in their history, customs and outlook. The Marquesas are volcanic, standing high out of the sea with several spectacular bays and anchorages formed from extinct craters. To their southwest lie the Tuomotos, where the contrast could not be greater. Hardly visible from a vessel as little as ten miles away, they rise no more that 3 or 4 metres above sea level, entrance is difficult and reefs abound to wreck the unwary. Climate change and natural disasters, though affecting both of these archipelagos, will menace them in rather different ways. For example, the northerly Marquesas lie in the path of any tsunami created by earthquakes or volcanic activity to the east in Chile and though these islands rise high from the ocean, the Chilean earthquake of early 2010 caused havoc in some ports, destroying a small number of boats which were unable to escape out to sea in time. Cyclones too threaten the Marquesas requiring better sea defences and improved buildings. The principle danger to the low-lying Tuomotus on the other hand, which lie slightly protected within coral atolls, is principally the rise in sea level and cyclonic activity, as the full force of tsunamis originating in South America passes to the north of them and the reefs provide some protection. Exceptionally high tides can, however, be devastating; in 1996 all the Tumotos were inundated. Understanding the detail of the nature of the dangers to all these communities is vital and the meeting that was to take place on Hiva Oa in March was both to inform the population of government measures and plans, and to take feedback and suggestions from local people. This meeting was the first of its kind in French Polynesia. Why was it taking place?

French Polynesia has been rather out of things as far as action on climate change is concerned. Not a signatory to Kyoto, since it is not an independent state and has special status in relation to France, nor a member of the UN Convention on Climate Change, where it is represented by France, it has never been invited by the international community, nor indeed by France, to provide evidence or directly participate in discussion. Also French policy statements on climate change have very largely been restricted to metropolitan France. This situation only began to be remedied in 2006 when France and Greenland together launched a call for consideration of the effects of climate change on the dependencies of European countries.

One outcome of this in French Polynesia was the Report on the Condition of Communities in French Polynesia in view of Climate Change by A. Avagliano and J. Petit, published in July 2009. The report was commissioned by the Ministry of the Environment of French Polynesia and carried out with the active involvement of the important climate observation station, the Richard Gump Station of the University of California, Berkeley. Several local agencies were among the 104 contributors providing evidence. As one might expect, this excellent and wide ranging report makes rather sober reading. Its general conclusions were that while French Polynesia is ideally placed for an expansion in green energy, too little is known about the area and too little is being done. The conclusions can be summarised as follows –

- Significant evidence of climate change has been observed and the projections by UNO agencies are troubling
- Projections of change require to be downscaled for the area
- The natural and social environments of FP make it very vulnerable. Threats associated with coral, cyclones, rising sea level, tourism, invasive species and diseases all threaten the life and economy.
- The inventory of greenhouse gas emissions which is given in the report does not include the considerable transport emissions that a place like FP engenders
- While the potential for renewable sources of energy is good, too little has been done and a strategy is required
- Information is lacking, and action to adapt to climate change is very slight. There are very few public or private actions of note to adapt ecosystems, communities, the economy.
- Research is required to provide pointers for adaptation to change
- Awareness raising is a key issue. Local associations exist and more leadership is required from the public sector

The report demonstrates how the islands of French Polynesia, though not particularly rich in the number of plant and animal species, are rich in uniqueness because of their remote location. For example, their coral, ‘virgin forest of the ocean’, 20% of world coral and essential for fish stocks, is among the most diverse in the world, five of the existing seven species of sea turtle live in the islands, French Polynesia has become since 2002 a ’sanctuary for sea mammals’, there are many unique species of gastropod, ‘one of the glories of French Polynesian fauna’, and plant life shows similar unique qualities. All are threatened and three of the species of turtle are on the list of those animals in danger of extinction. What the meeting in Hiva Oa made clear was that local people on that island were aware of the dangers to fauna and flora in a general way, but that the amount of information that had been collected about such things as breeding grounds, habitat, trends in decline, and so on, was sadly lacking.

The meeting was significant. It was run by high ranking officials from Tahiti, one from metropolitan France and attended by the locally elected mayor and deputy, fishermen’s representatives, representatives of local environmental organisations and the local paper. The Tahitian representatives also invited the marine biologist to attend who has been engaged by the World Wildlife Fund to work with them. It was she who provided input about the state of knowledge, by projecting maps showing aspects of marine life that are wholly or in part known about (e.g. the breeding areas of sharks, a protected species) and areas where nothing is known. This information had been gathered by direct observation and from scientists, local associations and individuals. The question marks on the maps were numerous. These maps and the discussion that followed showed the three aspects of government investigation – current practice, the condition of the natural heritage, the pressures that the environment was under. Such investigations would reveal priority areas for action. The government had identified five areas of environmental concern where attention was needed either in terms of protection or in terms of adaptation an change – tourism, agriculture, fishing, pearl culture and waste disposal.

It was clear from the discussion that the local representatives on Hiva Oa were well-informed and concerned both about sea fauna and terrestrial flora. They did not, for example, hunt the turtle, or fish lobsters in the close season. This was self-imposed restraint. They were very worried about the decline in fishing, – “we no longer catch tuna of 80 to 100 kilos” – and pointed both to the larger tuna fishing boats from within French Polynesia and the large vessels that came from as far away as Spain, Portugal and Korea, fishing illegally in FP waters. (FP has an agreement with Japan which allows fishing – resented by many fishermen.) Though such boats could be tracked by satellite, the officials pointed out that it was impossible to patrol such a large area to apprehend them. The locals understood this – they had had some success by detaining any sick fishermen from such boats, and thus detaining the boat, who sought medical help. They then could alert Tahiti where action was taken. Such instances were rare however. Local representatives also called for action to protect the Marquesan forests where some local people go at the weekends to take wood, for example, without permission. Why not have a system of sanctions? The officials pointed out that in order to do this wardens were required and a system of patrol and punishment. This cost money, and it was a question whether localities would be prepared to raise the necessary funds. In general people understood this and discussion centred on the need to create levels of local involvement in the management and co-ordination of information. Awareness was very important and should be promoted constantly. The meeting was calm with genuine interaction, in spite of the gravity of the situation for the fishermen. There was of course, some impatience, and one fisherman, the last to contribute, spoke movingly about how things had changed and that he could not wait twenty years for a solution – he was going fishing tomorrow.

Interviews conducted in Hiva Oa and in Nuka Hiva by some of he crew of ‘Infinity’ confirmed the general awareness of the need to take action on a range of aspects of the problem of climate change, several of which had been addressed. Taiohaie on Nuka Hiva had built a new primary school, cyclone-proof and out of the range of tsunamis, to act as a refuge in any natural disaster, the sea wall had been raised, builders were forbidden to take sand from beaches, street lighting was powered by solar panelling, efforts were made to educate the population is dealing with waste, no building permits were issued where the building could be in any danger, and so on. Were people pessimistic? The answer was usually noncommittal. They knew that problems would exist in the future. The mayor of one of the Tuomotu islands had written to the Nuka Hivan authorities to ask if the population of his island could move to Nuka Hiva when the sea made life impossible. The view among some Nuka Hivans to whom we spoke was, ‘Of course we must help, we have land, but bringing two communities together is not a simple thing from the point of view of culture, employment and settlement.’ With such requests the people of these islands cannot remain unaware.

‘Infinity’ left the Marquesas and sailed to the Tuomotos, about 600 miles to the southwest. Again the people were very welcoming. On the first island we visited, where the population was about 200, the writer was invited to lunch on the day of arrival and happily accepted with three other crew members. What were they offered? They were served turtle for lunch – ‘meat of the sea’ as their host said proudly. This depressing fact had to be looked into more closely – was it common, were there sanctions? A later interview with the mayor and other discussions showed that the mayor and the local policemen both took part, that there were no sanctions and that it was an age-old custom. Eggs were eaten too. The meat was not sold commercially – except by one or two people – and the frequency was not great. On Makemo, the second island visited, whose population is about 700, the deputy mayor was horrified. The delegate-mayor who takes all responsibility when the mayor is away, and who is charged with care for the environment, was shocked but acknowledged it did still go on and was an age-old practice. Here they tried to keep it well within bounds. My mind went back to self-restrained fishermen of Hiva Oa who had spoken at the meeting. Adapting to climate change is very much a cultural thing.

23 April 2010

Location: Mokil atoll lies within the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM).  It consists of three islands. Only one of the three, called the Home island, is currently inhabited. 

Infinity arrived on the island of Mokil on October 8th, 2009. Some of Infinity’s crew spent two days and a night on the island getting acquainted with the local population.

The chief of police, Benjamin, greeted us. He spoke fluent English, as he had lived for a few years in Hawaii.
Home island appeared to be a little paradise. The two streets were clean and the largest vehicle used on the road was a wheelbarrow. Occupied homes were all well-maintained, no trash was left lying around and the gardens were all beautifully tended. The islanders live a self sufficient lifestyle, growing bananas, papaya, breadfruit, taro and lemons.

Taro is widely used in the local diet, for example in a rich bread made from its flour. In addition to this, the islanders subsist on fish caught on the nearby reef. During the night we stayed on the island, we met a Indo-American man from Hawaii who had come to teach islanders how to enrich local soil and grow sweet potatoes. That very night, a big celebration was held as the training had been completed successfully. A supply ship comes once or twice a year to bring other necessities to the island. An air strip was recently built on the island but it remains unclear how often it is being used.

Surprisingly, copra production on the island ceased long ago and Jesse, age 20 nephew of Benjamin, reported that there just weren’t enough people on the Island to collect and process the coconuts.

Islanders practise Christianity and gather every Sunday in the church to attend mass. We were taken on a tour of the local school on the lagoon side of the beach with a library and a basketball court.

The island is currently inhabited by about 100 residents, with the whole middle generation appearing to be missing. There are children and older people, but very few teenagers and even fewer adults in their twenties or thirties. The population has decreased significantly, it was reportedly over 200 just a few years ago. The main reason for this seems to be that the school on the island stops after 8th grade. In order to continue children’s educations, families typically leave at this point and move to Pohnpei. Once exposed to modern life in the capital, few return.

The loss of over half the population severely impacts life on Mokil and is evident in the large number of abandoned homes. Adding to this loss may be the fact that the United States military recruits the best and brightest of young islanders. Unfortunately, this makes them even less likely to return. Or as an islander puts it: “US military is dangerous but offers them (Mokil’s teenagers) a better life maybe….”

When asked questions about climate change, most residents had heard about it (the result of an education campaign by the Japanese) but did not believe that they would see any changes in their environment in the future. One of the local residents, a retired employee of the US Geological Survey, told us about large storm waves building in the lagoon that were coming up higher on shore than ever before. He attended a few conferences on climate change and thinks that “They bring awareness to these problems, we don’t know if we can solve them, who knows, many years from now this island may sink”.

The island has no safe house to go to during a typhoon. There was talk of a library sponsored by the Japanese government that could serve a dual purpose,  i.e. safety building and community library.  It was to be built on the Island’s highest ground.  However, it appears that ownership disputes about the proposed plot have stalled the project.

Location: Pohnpei is one of the four states, as well as the capital, of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). It is located at 6 degrees 57 minutes North and 158 degrees 12 minutes East. Pohnpei is one of the extremely few high islands in FSM.

Members of the Infinity Sea Tribe arrived in Pohnpei aboard the sailing vessel Infinity on October 1st, 2009. Continental Airlines regularly flies to the island and there is a ferry that travels between Pohnpei and other Federated States including Chuuk. At least two supply ships stop at the Island on a monthly basis and immigration reported about 10 sailing vessels had stopped at the island during the first 9 months of 2009.

This island and its main city, Kolonia, is the largest in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Population is believed to be between 50,000 and 80,000. The majority of residents are native to FSM. Westerners represent a small but visible segment of the population. Many of the native residents migrated to the capital from outer atolls. These migrants tended to live in areas with others from the same atoll. For example one section of town was called “Kapi town” where most people came from the Kapingamarangi atoll. Another area was referred to as “Chuckies town” was composed of residents from the Truk atoll. [Tensions between the local and immigrant communities was apparent in both local graffiti and a bar fight that appeared to be between groups instead of individuals.]

As far as agriculture is concerned, in addition to bananas, coconut and bread fruit, avocado and mango trees were present. Few people seem to eat local crops like taro and papaya. Unfortunately, the African albesian tree is invading this island. It is apparent that some people recognize that danger of this tree and a few hillsides show that locals have ringed some of the large trees to kill them. Overall, however, it doesn’t look like a concerted effort and large sections of the natural forest are being overtaken by this tree.

The presence of a considerable fleet of large tuna boats was ample indication that fish are still present and plentiful in the surrounding oceans. The operational expense of these boats is very high and they must catch a huge amount of tuna to pay the basic bills. However, while tuna stocks so far seem to be keeping up with the fishing effort, given the huge number of ships present and fishing in the area, we wonder about the future of these stocks.

Interestingly, hunting and selling sea turtles is legal in Pohnpei, as long as they are above a certain size and taken at the right time of the year. Large turtle shells were displayed for sale at the local fish market.

Garbage along the streets was minimal. This said, the major garbage on this island is a fleet of obsolete fishing boats that appear to have been permanently parked and are just waiting to sink. Many sunken boats were in the harbor area and represent long term point sources of pollution.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that there is some attempt at climate change education in the capital, and we saw various educational posters on the subject posted around town. Conversations with the local population suggest that there is some awareness of the issue, but little belief that this will be a major problem in the future. This view may be compounded by the fact that as residents on one of the few high islands in the region, locals have relatively little to worry about.

Location: Oroluk Island in the Oroluk Atoll Federated States of Micronesia.

Infinity’s anchor point within the atoll and close to the island: 7º 36.6′N and 155º 9.8′E.   

Infinity arrived on the small island of Oroluk on 18 September, 2009 and spent five days getting acquainted with the local population. All four inhabitants originate from the atoll of Kapingamarangi, located 380 miles to the south of Oroluk, and have spent significant amounts of time in Pohnpei, the capital of the region. The chief’s two nephews (20 and 16 years old) were both educated there, and consequently speak English well and were able to translate for the chief. They are responsible for the bulk of the labor necessary to fish and grow crops.

Four more residents were reportedly in Pohnpei, and expected to return to Oroluk in another month. The island is one square mile, and approximately five feet above sea level. The islanders grow bananas, papaya, breadfruit, tobacco, taro, and copra. The copra crop is sold to a cargo ship that comes to island roughly biannually, in return for rice, sugar, coffee, canned meat and other necessities. In addition to these staples, the islanders subsist primarily on the fish caught by the chief’s two nephews on the nearby reef.

The chief first arrived on Oroluk in 1958 and has lived on the island off and on since then. He reports two major floods during this time- one in 1978, and a more severe one December 8, 2008. In response to questions about whether they had heard of climate change, global warming, or expected any significant changes to their environment in the future, the islanders responded no.