Speaking during the general debate of the 66th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), Nauru, the Federates States of Micronesia (FSM), Kiribati, Barbados, Grenada, Tuvalu, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Cape Verde, Samoa, Vanuatu and Comoros underscored the need for the world to pay greater attention to SIDS' vulnerability to climate change.
24 September 2011: Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have stressed that sustainable development is not possible while climate change threatens to swamp SIDS, and they have called on the UN to assist SIDS in combating the effects of climate change.
Speaking during the general debate of the 66th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), Nauru, the Federates States of Micronesia (FSM), Kiribati, Barbados, Grenada, Tuvalu, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Cape Verde, Samoa, Vanuatu and Comoros underscored the need for the world to pay greater attention to SIDS’ vulnerability to climate change. They emphasized that the international community is not moving quickly enough to mitigate the effects of climate change or to support the poorest countries in their efforts to adapt to climate change.
Nauru proposed the appointment of a Special Representative on Climate and Security to analyze the projected security impacts of climate change. Tuvalu said it would seek a mandate to initiate negotiations on a new legally binding agreement for major greenhouse gas (GHG)-emitting States that have not made commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. [UN News Centre Press Release, 24 September 2011] [UN News Centre Press Release, 23 September 2011]