2015 Conference

Full Presentation Panel

Madagascar, A Treasured Island

Toby Smith

A political coup in 2009 left Madagascar adrift – isolated from the international community, deprived of foreign aid and conservation funding. One of the planet’s most precious ecological treasures is home to one of its poorest nations and it raises difficult and complex questions about the relationship between necessity and luxury. Amidst political uncertainty, the island’s fragile and unique ecology is being smuggled out illegally, boat by boat, gem by gem. 

An AOSIS in the Pacific: Quenching Cooperation or Diluted Deals?

Michael Schwebel

The proposed presentation, “The AOSIS in the Pacific: Quenching Cooperation or Diluted Deals?” is part of my forthcoming dissertation on climate change policy and adaptation in Pacific Small Island States (PSIS). I use interviews and analyses performed with 18 PSIS in the Pacific Region which is composed of 13 independent states, 3 groups of territories, and 2 semi-autonomous islands via their UN Missions in New York City. Through 18 semi-structured interviews, I analyze and apply PSIS’ views on the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) regarding climate change policy and cross-boundary regional cooperation, where their ideological and physical frontiers are crossed and sometimes clash. PSIS work across their EEZs and customary boundaries on a daily basis, making them an embodiment of confronting frontiers, borders, and boundaries – no matter how small. As a political ad-hoc group at the United Nations, AOSIS advocates on behalf of small island states for policies that would protect them and create better global conditions for their continued survival in the face of global climate change. However, some members of AOSIS are neithersmall nor island states themselves, and some abut other small islands that are the domain of larger continental countries (such as EU Territories). These divergent legal and sociopolitical viewpoints cause jurisdictional boundary clashes among the concerted effort of regional associations within joint environmental decision-making. Because AOSIS purports to speak on behalf of all islands states as well as states that share so-called island state characteristics, some argue that by trying to please so many equates to minimally acceptable diluted responses that will not affect any meaningful change: an unacceptable final frontier for islands that may become uninhabitable in the upcoming decades or centuries. 

There Be Dragons: Human Impact on the Unique Environments of the Galapagos and Lord Howe Islands

Ms Lea Kannar-Lichtenberger, MA

This presentation that will be an exploration (including first hand research) and comparison of aspects of life relating to the islands of the Galapagos (Ecuador – Research Oct 2014) and Lord Howe Island (NSW Australia – Research April 2015).  These islands have waters rich in marine life whilst the annual ocean temperatures fluctuate significantly.  They are also home to unique terrestrial and aquatic species that have either become extinct or now struggle to re-establish a foothold on the landscape through various means including controlled breeding or restricted human access.

I am exploring the impact of controlled Tourism in its current form and how the Anthropocene may be considered with regard to both the aquatic and terrestrial flora and fauna on these islands; further extrapolating how future water temperature changes could impact on current marine life.

My investigation, which involves a studio art practice, looks to create awareness surrounding the alterations we make in nature that transforms not only the flora and fauna but also social, ethical and cultural values towards them.  Through this I create metaphors for our connection to these changes and the Anthropocene.  Through a visual reflection on the microscopic and macroscopic I use cellular, geographical and habitational images.

Lamont (Monty) Hempel, University of Redlands, hempel@redlands.edu

The Last Invasion:  Lessons from Palau 

For the past 19 years, I have been observing environmental, social, and economic change in the Republic of Palau.  Each year, I organize a month-long expedition with 10-12 undergraduate students to explore Palau's coral reefs, marine lakes, and limestone forests – all with an eye to understanding the relationship between ocean health, economic development, and changes in the matrilineal clan-based culture. 

A series of real and metaphorical "invasions" serve to dramatize the major forces at work in changing Palau's island ecology.  These include colonial legacies, devastating military invasions, commercial fishing pressures, the unprecedented arrival of three back-to-back supertyphoons, related issues of climate disruption, the emerging specter of ocean acidification, and, most recently, the sudden invasion of Chinese mass tourism. 

The cumulative impact of these and other driving forces on people and the environment is far more apparent in a small island state like this one than in sprawling superstates, such as the U.S.  My goal in this session will be to attempt to draw some vital lessons about sustainability from this microcosmic ecological civilization of 20,000 people.