A teenager's fight to end single use plastics on her Scottish island
| | LONDON, UK, 24 September 2025 (Guardian) - Tabby Fletcher, a 17-year-old from the Isle of Jura, off the west coast of Scotland, lives in what many people would probably assume is a pristine wilderness. Yet she regularly sees dead birds, their bodies entangled in plastic, among piles of waste washed up on the island’s beaches after powerful storms. She decided to start a petition calling on the Scottish government to ban all single-use plastics. This has now received more than 26,000 signatures and the backing of MSPs in the Highlands and Islands. |
Vanuatu plans UN resolution on landmark climate ruling
| | WELLINGTON, New Zealand, 24 September 2025 (RNZ) - Vanuatu's Climate Change Minister Ralph Regenvanu says the country is drafting a UN resolution to turn a landmark climate ruling from the world's top court from words into "political action". Regenvanu said the resolution will likely come after COP30 in November, once governments' responses to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling have become clearer. The court found in July that countries can be held legally responsible for their greenhouse gas emissions]. |
Exploring Vanuatu's vibrant seascape in support of ocean protection
| | PORT VILA, Vanuatu, 24 September 2025 (Nat.Geog) - National Geographic Pristine Seas today launched a month-long expedition to study Vanuatu’s ocean, which is under threat from frequent cyclones, warming temperatures, and overfishing. By invitation from the Government of Vanuatu, the expedition will document the ocean’s stunning biodiversity and geology, providing data for the nation’s marine spatial planning efforts. |
Hobbits of Flores evolved to be small by slowing down growth
| | BELLINGHAM, US, 24 September 2025 (Conversation) - Until Homo floresiensis was discovered, scientists assumed that the evolution of the human lineage was defined by bigger and bigger brains. Via a process called encephalization, human brains evolved to be relatively more massive than would be expected based on corresponding body size. |
These Indonesian coral reefs are considered sacred - here's why
| | WASHINGTON, US, 24 September 2025 (Nat.Geog) - Raja Ampat, a remote region of Southwest Papua in far eastern Indonesia, comprises around 1,500 islands over 15,000sq miles and sits at the heart of an area known as the Coral Triangle. Raja’s marine stats are mind-boggling: some 75% of the planet’s corals are found here - 10 times the number of species in the Caribbean and more than is found at the Great Barrier Reef - and these forests of the ocean support more than 1,500 fish species. Some areas of Raja Ampat have 100% coral cover on the seabed. More than half the region is ring-fenced via a network of marine protected areas (MPAs). |
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SIDS |
 | | 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States 27-30 May 2024, Antigua and Barbuda |
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NAF |
| | North Atlantic Forum bi-annual international conference 17-21 June, 2024, Connemara, Ireland, |
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IWRA |
| | 1st Islands Water Congress 4-6 Sept, 2024, Torshavn, Faroe Islands |
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ANATOMY OF ISLANDS |
| | 12th Anatomy of Islands symposium 26-28 Sept, 2024, Jelsa, Hvar Island, Croatia |
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CIS |
| | Critical Island Studies 4th international conference 3-4 Oct, 2024, Manila, Philippines |
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CBD |
| | COP16 21 Oct-1 Nov, 2024, Cali, Colombia |
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UNFCCC |
| | COP29 11-22 November, 2024, Baku, Azerbaijan |
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ISLAND DYNAMICS |
| | DARKNESS II conference, 20-23 January 2025, Nuuk, Greenland |
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JICAS |
| | Islands And Island Studies conference 3-7 June, 2025, Jersey, Channel Islands |
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UNITED NATIONS |
| | UN Ocean Conference 9-13 June, 2025, Nice, France |
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UPEI |
| | 3rd international conference on SIS and SNIJs 16-20 June, 2025, Charlottetown, PEI |
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ISISA |
| | 20th Islands of the World Conference 7-11 July 2026, Shinan County, Jeollanam-do, South Korea |
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