Thinking a little too hard about the Dodgers’ massive payroll

In an article published yesterday, MLB.com Brewers beat writer Adam McCalvy wrote that the Dodgers “outspend the Brewers by the GDP of a developing nation.” That line was no doubt intended simply as a humorous remark, but thinking about how...

‘A matter of survival’: Amnesty International calls for urgent reform of Aotearoa's visa rules

Amnesty International warns that Pacific people facing climate-related challenges are being blocked from migrating to Aotearoa New Zealand due to discriminatory visa rules. The organisation’s new report, Navigating Injustice, highlights how...

Pacific ministers endorse Fiji Military’s Blackrock camp as disaster relief depot

Pacific countries have officially agreed to use the Fijian Military’s Blackrock Camp as a regional humanitarian relief depot. Fiji’s Disaster Minister Inia Seruiratu announced the endorsement of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF) facility...

Opinion: Christian nationalists could decide tomorrow I’m no longer white

Carl Luna recalls how Italian-American Catholics were once deemed nonwhite and non-Christian. (File photo by Ken Stone/Times of San Diego) The worldview of American white Christian nationalists is simple: America was meant to be and was at its...

When people are displaced by climate change, what rights do they have?

Climate change is a global emergency that touches every human on this planet. But its effects hit some people harder than others. People in low- and middle-income countries, coastal areas, river valleys, low-lying areas and island states, are on...

The European Union and the Pacific Community boost border security in Marshall Islands with advanced X-Ray technology

Photo: European Union Ambassador Barbara Plinkert and Marshall Islands Minister Anthony Muller, key handover of the Airport X-ray machine The Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI) has received a state-of-the-art X-ray machine to reinforce border...

Why loss and damage matter in the Pacific

For many Pacific Island nations, climate change isn’t a distant threat or an abstract statistic – it’s an everyday reality reshaping homes, traditions, and futures. Rising sea levels, coastal erosion, increasing temperatures and severe weather...

Pacific Islands News Roundup – October 3 – 9, 2025

Editor’s Note: We are undergoing a web host migration process and may need to make necessary modifications to our format and frequency over the next several weeks. Thank you in advance for your understanding. Political Leadership and Regionalism,...

On Road to Belem, Pacific countries raise their voice on 1.5…

Pacific countries at the forefront of the climate crisis, described as a “ticking time bomb”, have vowed that their One Pacific Voice on keeping 1.5 alive, is heard loud and clear at the Thirtieth Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework...

IAC endorses two new Marine Spatial Planning Micro-Qualifications

The Industry Advisory Committee (IAC) met at the Heritage Park Hotel this week to formally validate and endorse two new Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) Micro-Qualifications (MQs). The meeting marked the committee’s fourth and final session since it...

Chinese Pressure Shreds Taiwan’s Relationship With South Africa

(Bloomberg) -- Just months after Oliver Liao arrived in Pretoria as Taiwan’s de facto ambassador, South Africa began a campaign to downgrade its relationship with the island — thrusting him into the epicenter of a geopolitical drama. While South...

Daylight saving is here again (for some). What’s it all about?

Save Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text sizeLarger text sizeVery large text size Hang on, what just happened? If you live in Victoria, NSW, South Australia or Tasmania, you’ve...

Honor Flight San Diego ... Veterans, Volunteers, And Coronado Connections

Honoring our nation’s veterans isn’t just about ceremonies, proclamations, and words, it’s about showing gratitude through action. No group jumps into action in the service of veterans quite like Honor Flight. The Honor Flight Network is a...

Landmark ICJ climate ruling must be turned into concrete action on shipping

John Taukave is technical and cultural adviser to Pacific delegations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a Rotuman performing artist and a doctoral researcher at the University of Amsterdam. When a little-known UN agency meets in...

Global immigration news round up

This week, the Global Immigration team at Smith Stone Walters would like to highlight the following recent updates from Denmark, Hong Kong, Namibia, Portugal and Qatar. Denmark: No residence permits for nurse authorisations On 7 October 2025, the...

Australia signs defence pact with Papua New Guinea to counter Chinese threat

Australia and Papua New Guinea have signed a defence pact, widely viewed as an attempt to strengthen regional security against China’s growing influence in the Pacific. Under the Pukpuk Treaty – meaning “crocodile” in pidgin – Papua New Guinea...

COP is 'heartbreak' for the Pacific. Here is why they still want to host

Joseph Sikulu's long-haul journey home to the Pacific has felt fruitless after the recent world climate talks. It has become a "heartbreaking" exercise seeing the annual United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP) summit achieve so little of...

Marines retire ‘workhorse’ Assault Amphibious Vehicle after 50 years

From the shores of Grenada to the deserts of Iraq, the Assault Amphibious Vehicle (AAV) shielded and carried Marines from ship to sea to shore for over 50 years. Now, after a Sept. 26 ceremony, the famous “workhorse” has been officially...

 Pacific Islands Forum’s exclusion of great powers and its consequences

Pacific island leaders gather in Honiara, Solomon Islands for the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leadership Meeting in September. Photo courtesy of the FSM government These Islands By Robert Underwood In the prelude to the September 2025 Pacific...

Australia, Papua New Guinea ink defense treaty

The leaders of Australia and Papua New Guinea yesterday signed a major bilateral defense treaty that China believes targets it unfairly. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Papua New Guinea counterpart, James Marape, described the...