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START Oceania Projects and Research

Funding from donor agencies has enabled a few global change and sustainable developoment projects to be managed and carried out in collaboration with START Oceania Secretariat, PACE-SD (USP) and other working partners. The following is a listing of projects that have been underway and some of which have been completed. There are also links to Short reports and some final reports available on this page for interested visitors.

Current Projects

Integrated Solid Waste Management

Design for Sustainability (D4S) in Fiji

Project Manager: Mr. Melchior Mataki
Project Assistant: Mr Damien Evrard/Mr William Lepercq
Project funded by: Fonds Pacifique

The first D4S project in Fiji started in 2007 with a French chargé de mission designing a backpack which is more environmentally friendly compared to its previous version.

The backpack has been designed by locally owned company, Wai Tui, which manufactures products such as garment, bags and caps.

D4S (Biodegradeable )Backpacks designed by Wai Tui

For more information contact Damien Evrard on email: evrard_d(at)usp.ac.fj

PACE in collaboration with Suva City Council(SCC) on the SCC Pilot Composting of Organic Waste Materials at the SCC Depot.

Project Manager: Mr. Fine Lao

Project Assistant: Ms. Daiana Taoba (START Oceania)

Project funded by: British High Commission, Suva is supporting the Technical component of the project.

Windrow 1 - SCC Workers turning the compost Windrow 2 - Preparation of Windrow 2

For more information please contact Mr. Leone Limalevu on email: leone.limalevu(at)usp.ac.fj

Piloting the Compostability of Green & Kitchen Waste at USP Campus

Project Manager: Mr. Melchior Mataki

Project Assistant: Mr. Rodney Lui

Project funded by: Faculty of Islands & Oceans

USP Nusery workers mixing the organic waste from USP

For more information on the project contact Mr. Fine Lao on email: lao_f(at)usp.ac.fj

Waste Wise USP

Project Manager: Mr. Melchior Mataki

Project Coordinator: Ms. Patrina Dumaru

Project Assistant: Ms. Stephanie Rambault

Project funded by: IAS & PACE-SD

Waste Seperation Bins

This project is part of a greater aim of " Greening the University of the South Pacific". The Green University concept involves incorporating a waste management system that is environmentally sustainable such as reducing, re-using and recycilng waste.

Dr. Fabrice Mathieux initiated the project and was implemented by Pacific Centre for Environment & Sustainable Development(PACE-SD) and Insitute of Applied Science(IAS) of the University of the South Pacific.

For more details contact Ms.Patrina Dumaru on email: dumaru_p(at)usp.ac.fj.

CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION & VARIABILITY

Climate Change Adaptation in Rural Communities of Fiji

Project Manager: Mr. Fine Lao

Project Coordinator: Mrs Lavenia Tawake

Project Assistant: Mr. Leone Limalevu/ Ms Patrina Dumaru

Project Funded by: AusAID

This project on community based climate change adaptation commenced in July 2006. This is a three year project. It is being implemented by the Pacific Centre for Environment & Sustainable Development(PACE-SD) and Institute of Applied Science(IAS) of the University of the South Pacific(USP), in collaboration with Fiji's goverment agencies and NGO's

Buretu village coastal foreshore Installation of new water pipes on Druadrua

Island.

For further information contact Mr. Fine Lao on email: lao_f(at)usp.ac.fj

Climate Change Variability

Communty Relocation Project

Project Leader: Associate Professor John Campbell

Project Team: Prof. John Campbell(UoW), Dr. Michael Goldsmtih(UoW), Mr. Isoa Koroiwaqa(IAS/USP), Ms. Daiana Taoba(PACE-SD/USP)

Project funded by: Asia Pacific Netework for Global Change Research (APN)

The Community Relocation Project as an option for Adaptation to the effects of Climate Change Variability in the Pacific Island Countries(PICs) project commenced in late 2005. The project is funded by Asia Pacific Network for Global Change Research(APN).

The project includes three main components:

A detailed survey of exisitng literature and other documentary sources of information on community relocation, particularly in PICs
A Participatory Research Activity in a village in Fiji that is being relocated
A regional Workshop in which findings of the literature and field research will be synthesized into a preliminary report.

For further information on the project contact Prof. Campbell on email: jrc(at)waikato.ac.nz

A completed copy of the report can be found on the following link: Community Relocation Project_ final report

Integrated Methods and Models for Assessing Coastal Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change in Pacific Island Countries

This training workshop is part of the AIACC project and was being jointly implemented by PACE-SD, University of Waikato's IGCI, and SPREP.

Click here to view short report.

APN Global Change Coastal Zone Management Synthesis

Project Leader: Prof. Nick Harvey
The 8^th APN Inter-Governmental Meeting (IGM) held in Vietnam, endorsed the production of a global change coastal zone management synthesis planned over a two year time period, 2003-05, with the final report to be produced during the 10^th anniversary of APN in 2005.

Click here to view further details

USP -NASA/NOAA Ozone Project

This is an on-going initiative since 1997, started as part of NASA's PEM-Tropics (Pacific Exploratory Mission to the Pacific) mission to provide ground based ozonesonde measurements of the vertical profile of ozone. Ozone is an atmospheric trace gas whose concentration affects the energy balance in the atmosphere, the amount of dangerous UV-B radiation that reach the surface of the earth and the oxidation budget of the troposphere. Anand Chandra, has been collecting data for the project since 2002 and the data that he has been generating is continuously being archived for international reference. This will also enable him to complete his Masters degree thesis.
This project is being conducted by Professor Koshy in conjunction with the USP chemistry department. The project is being funded by NASA, NOAA and USP. The postgraduate research has also received funding from START.

USP-NIWA NZ Greenhouse Gas Project

This is a joint effort between USP and the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA), New Zealand. Started in a small way in 1994, with the Director, Professor Koshy as the Principal Investigator, this project has since grown into a successful international collaborative effort, which has also developed in-house capacity at the chemistry department for the measurement of ambient methane concentrations. Dr. M. Maata is the partner in this project and a new postgraduate student, Francis Mani, joined the project in 2002 and expected to graduate with his Masters degree in April 2004. The postgraduate student has also received some funding assistance from START.

START - Oceania Secretariat, PACSD
Faculty of Islands and Oceans
Lower Campus,
Laucala Bay, Suva, Fiji