290
C. Ledderucci
cycles, volcanic eruptions and persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the
atmosphere or in the land use […]. (IPCC 2018, p. 544)
Alongside with the scientific definition and findings related to the phenomenon,
other aspects, like cultural and local perception and faith-related and symbolic issues,
need to be included in the discourse as they significantly impact a wider understanding
of climate change (Crate 2011; Hulme 2009).
Firstly, this chapter aims to highlight the influence of the political debate and
the historical context on the indigenous narratives posed by a particular grassroots
movement, the Pacific Climate Warriors. Such influence can work at various levels
and plays a role in guiding both the approach and the findings of the scientific
community, as different scholars have shown (Demeritt 2001, 2006; Jasanoff 2010;
Lahsen 2010; Latour 2010; Latour and Woolgar 1979; Miller 2004; Sarewitz 2000).
Secondly, the chapter aims to explain the singular way through which the spokespeople of this movement reject the dominant rhetoric and resist the ‘doomed fate’
that has been attributed to them (McNamara and Farbotko 2017).
The magnitude of the environmental issue in the Pacific Islands region has
been investigated by numerous scholars (see Brunois [2005] for ethnoecological
approaches or Trichet and Leblic [2008] for an extensive discussion about the environment). The projected anthropogenic changes caused by the emissions of greenhouse gases are likely to modify the delicate relationship humans maintain with
nature, at the same time impacting the cultural values and local cosmologies of the
indigenous communities (Crate 2011; Weir et al. 2017). Indeed, climate change is
thought to be a real threat to the Islanders’ livelihoods (Connell 2016; Nunn et al.
2020), as shown by the alarming results of the IPCC (Nurse and McLean 2014).
During the last decade, the Pacific islands have become one of the global symbols
of the environmental crisis in the eyes of the Western and eco-conscious public
(Farbotko 2010a). This reality, as widely publicized by the mass media, increases the
resonance of the problem, presenting such places as highly vulnerable while others
get little attention (for a discussion on the uneven attention attributed to climate
change see Orlove et al. 2014).
For a deeper understanding of the issue, I propose to examine the following questions: What are the understandings of the climate-change phenomenon by selected
Pacific indigenous communities? Are the major narratives on climate change, such
as those transmitted by the IPCC, compatible with the local ones? How can indigenous narratives enrich the scientific understanding of the environmental crisis? And
finally, what is the role of faith in this dense interplay?
Such questions have been raised by other scholars. Among many, Lazrus (2012)
posed interesting questions about island communities facing sea-level rise; RudiakGould (2014) examined science communication and indigenous climate-change
perceptions; Kempf and Hermann (2014) explored the importance of place-making,
identity and mobility and how these categories may vary because of climate change;
Farbotko (2005, 2010a, b) examined the construction of the category of ‘climate
refugees’ and how this is used by Western media and NGOs to corroborate their narratives; Luetz and Havea (2018) analyzed the complex situation in the Carteret Islands;
C. Ledderucci
cycles, volcanic eruptions and persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the
atmosphere or in the land use […]. (IPCC 2018, p. 544)
Alongside with the scientific definition and findings related to the phenomenon,
other aspects, like cultural and local perception and faith-related and symbolic issues,
need to be included in the discourse as they significantly impact a wider understanding
of climate change (Crate 2011; Hulme 2009).
Firstly, this chapter aims to highlight the influence of the political debate and
the historical context on the indigenous narratives posed by a particular grassroots
movement, the Pacific Climate Warriors. Such influence can work at various levels
and plays a role in guiding both the approach and the findings of the scientific
community, as different scholars have shown (Demeritt 2001, 2006; Jasanoff 2010;
Lahsen 2010; Latour 2010; Latour and Woolgar 1979; Miller 2004; Sarewitz 2000).
Secondly, the chapter aims to explain the singular way through which the spokespeople of this movement reject the dominant rhetoric and resist the ‘doomed fate’
that has been attributed to them (McNamara and Farbotko 2017).
The magnitude of the environmental issue in the Pacific Islands region has
been investigated by numerous scholars (see Brunois [2005] for ethnoecological
approaches or Trichet and Leblic [2008] for an extensive discussion about the environment). The projected anthropogenic changes caused by the emissions of greenhouse gases are likely to modify the delicate relationship humans maintain with
nature, at the same time impacting the cultural values and local cosmologies of the
indigenous communities (Crate 2011; Weir et al. 2017). Indeed, climate change is
thought to be a real threat to the Islanders’ livelihoods (Connell 2016; Nunn et al.
2020), as shown by the alarming results of the IPCC (Nurse and McLean 2014).
During the last decade, the Pacific islands have become one of the global symbols
of the environmental crisis in the eyes of the Western and eco-conscious public
(Farbotko 2010a). This reality, as widely publicized by the mass media, increases the
resonance of the problem, presenting such places as highly vulnerable while others
get little attention (for a discussion on the uneven attention attributed to climate
change see Orlove et al. 2014).
For a deeper understanding of the issue, I propose to examine the following questions: What are the understandings of the climate-change phenomenon by selected
Pacific indigenous communities? Are the major narratives on climate change, such
as those transmitted by the IPCC, compatible with the local ones? How can indigenous narratives enrich the scientific understanding of the environmental crisis? And
finally, what is the role of faith in this dense interplay?
Such questions have been raised by other scholars. Among many, Lazrus (2012)
posed interesting questions about island communities facing sea-level rise; RudiakGould (2014) examined science communication and indigenous climate-change
perceptions; Kempf and Hermann (2014) explored the importance of place-making,
identity and mobility and how these categories may vary because of climate change;
Farbotko (2005, 2010a, b) examined the construction of the category of ‘climate
refugees’ and how this is used by Western media and NGOs to corroborate their narratives; Luetz and Havea (2018) analyzed the complex situation in the Carteret Islands;