In 2023, the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) released a report highlighting the work of CJRF partners addressing climate mobility. One of its central questions was: How does displacement drive Loss and Damage (L&D)?
For the Banaban community, this question reflects a lived reality spanning generations. In the 1940s, the British colonial government mined their homeland—Banaba (Ocean Island)—for phosphate, leaving it uninhabitable. Forced to relocate, many Banabans moved to Rabi Island in Fiji, while others dispersed across the Pacific. Decades later, the Banaban Defenders are working to reconnect the diaspora, rebuilding lost genealogies and family ties fractured by displacement. For them, ancestral knowledge is essential for resilience and for ensuring that future generations do not have to migrate and fragment once again.
“I found healing in the process of sharing my stories, with the hope that it will help future migration of people that may have to leave home because of environmental degradation. It has been years of tears, resilience building, and trying to heal from all the trauma of that experience—while now facing another level of the climate crisis.”
— Interviewee from Banaban Defenders
Today, the community faces renewed existential threats as climate change intensifies water scarcity on Rabi Island. In response, and with support from CJRF’s partner UUSC, the Banaban Defenders conducted studies that led to the construction of the island’s first safe freshwater access point in over 80 years.
“It was the community that provided the labor to implement the project—and it was the community that celebrated this very special milestone.”
— Interviewee from Banaban Defenders
The construction process itself became a space for cultural revitalization. During consultations, elders and youth came together—sharing wisdom, needs, and hopes—which inspired practical design choices, such as ensuring the wells were accessible to people with disabilities.
🎨 Artwork by @victor_ynami
📖 Read the full UNU-EHS report
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