Meet 7 Pacific Climate Activists

Brianna Fruean is a Climate Activist, who has been leading environmental projects since the age of 11, when she started 350 Samoa. Growing up in the climate movement Brianna has been involved in all areas of climate justice, from grassroots to government.

What does being a FEMINIST mean to you?

Being a feminist to me means recognizing and fighting against the systems of oppression that hold women and marginalized people back. As a climate activist, I see the intersections between feminism and environmentalism, understanding that marginalized communities, particularly women, are disproportionately affected by climate change. So being a feminist means not only striving for gender equality, but also working towards a more just and sustainable world for all.

Cynthia Houniuhi, 
Solomon Islands

Cynthia Houniuhi is a law student and president of Pacific Island Students Fighting Climate Change. Cynthia and her peers were instrumental in driving a U.N. resolution calling on the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory opinion clarifying nations’ obligations to tackle climate change.

Koteka Wenda, West Papua Koteka

Wenda is the spokesperson for Free West Papua Campaign, Singer/Songwritter and activist from West Papua. She is active in the climate justice movement speaking out on ecocide in the Pacific. 

Kathy Jetnil Kijiner, RMI

Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner is a poet, author, community organizer and current Climate Envoy for the Marshall Islands. Kathy co-founded the youth environmentalist non-profit Jo-Jikum dedicated to empowering Marshallese youth to seek solutions to climate change and other environmental impacts threatening their home island.

Yolanda Joab Mori, FSM

Yolanda Joab-Mori works in climate change adaptation in the islands of the Federated States of Micronesia. In 2011 she co-created the first climate change focused education program in schools and communities across Micronesia.

Grace Malie, Tuvalu

Grace Malie is the director of “Fight For Tuvalu” and has been a voice for her people at international climate forums. When she is home in Tuvalu she is Youth Organiser for the Rising Nations Initiative, working to safeguard the rights of atoll nation populations in the face of the threats posed by climate change

Moana Tepano Contesse, Rapa Nui 

Moana Tepano Contesse is a Rapa Nui activist, committed to the preservation of the environment and her culture. Her activism has led her to present a self-sustainability project she designed, where she highlights the use of ancestral knowledge and methods of cultivation of the PÛ 'OKA (stone gardens)

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