Pacific Islanders

A research expedition backed by Purdue University is at sea and expects to reach Nikumaroro island in the Pacific within 72 hours, in the latest effort to solve Amelia Earhart's disappearance in 1937. The aviator and navigator Fred Noonan vanished during her attempt to fly around the world, and the enduring mystery continues to draw searches, documentaries and public fascination nearly 90 years later.

A new expedition is setting out to find the wreckage of Amelia Earhart's plane near a remote Pacific island, hoping to solve one of aviation's greatest mysteries. The pioneering aviator vanished in 1937 while attempting to fly around the world, and the fate of her aircraft has been debated ever since. Interest is high in the US, Australia and Brazil.

A search crew has arrived on a remote, crab-infested Pacific island as part of a renewed effort to solve the disappearance of aviator Amelia Earhart, who vanished in 1937 during her attempt to fly around the world. The team is investigating whether her aircraft may have come down near the island, one of the leading theories behind the aviation mystery.

A study published in Nature examines how adaptations in the Pacific Islands fisheries sector affect nutrition in the region. Researchers assess whether changes in fishing practices and management deliver measurable nutritional benefits to island communities that depend heavily on seafood for protein and micronutrients. The findings are drawing attention among food security and climate adaptation specialists.

ReliefWeb has published its regular briefing on epidemic and emerging disease alerts across the Pacific, dated 13 October 2026. The bulletin compiles current outbreak notifications and disease surveillance updates for Pacific island countries and territories, giving health officials and aid agencies a consolidated picture of regional health threats and ongoing responses.

Guam is confronting mounting pollution issues as the US military continues to expand its presence on the island. The buildup, tied to broader American strategy in the Pacific, is straining infrastructure, land, and environmental resources. Residents and observers are raising concerns about the environmental cost of the expansion and how the island can balance defense priorities with public health and sustainability.

A travel specialist is being highlighted for work connecting Australia with Pacific island destinations, promoting regional travel links between the two. The item, featured in diving and travel coverage under the banner 'The Travel Expert', casts the Pacific as a growing focus for Australian travellers. Details about specific destinations, companies or initiatives remain limited, and no broader reaction has yet emerged.

A New Jersey Institute of Technology historian has published a book exploring the largely untold legal history of US nuclear weapons testing in the Marshall Islands. The work examines the consequences of the Cold War-era blasts and the legal battles that followed. It is being highlighted by NJIT as a significant contribution to scholarship on nuclear policy and Pacific Islander justice.

Islands Business is urging that calls for unity translate into concrete action on climate change. The appeal comes from the Pacific region, where island nations face some of the most severe impacts of rising seas and extreme weather. Commentators stress that statements of solidarity carry little weight unless governments follow through with emissions cuts, funding and practical support for vulnerable communities.

New Jersey Representative Josh Gottheimer hosted a roundtable with Asian American and Pacific Islander community members in Bergen County. The discussion covered affordability, public safety and immigration, issues central to his constituency. The event reflects ongoing outreach by the congressman to AAPI residents as these topics remain prominent in local and national political debate.

Ahead of the COP31 climate summit, Pacific island states are pushing to keep the 1.5°C warming target central to negotiations and to secure stronger climate finance commitments. Their calls highlight the region's acute vulnerability to rising seas and extreme weather, and its long-standing demand that wealthy nations pay a fairer share of adaptation and loss-and-damage funding.

Tuvalu has issued a call for global unity in addressing the climate crisis, according to regional reporting from Islands Business. The low-lying Pacific island nation, among the countries most threatened by rising sea levels, is pressing the international community for coordinated action on emissions and climate resilience.

New Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer hosted a roundtable in Palisades Park focused on Asian American and Pacific Islander community issues. The event brought together local AAPI leaders for discussion, according to an announcement from his office. Palisades Park has one of the largest Korean American populations in the United States, making it a natural venue for such outreach.

Leaders from Pacific nations gathered to discuss climate issues affecting the region, and a rundown of the main points from the meeting has been published. The Pacific islands are among the places most exposed to rising seas and extreme weather, so outcomes from such talks draw close attention from governments, campaigners and observers watching how climate commitments are being shaped.

The University of California, Berkeley has launched a new campuswide project examining the legacy of U.S. nuclear bomb testing in the Marshall Islands. The initiative brings together scholars across disciplines to confront the history and ongoing consequences of the detonations conducted there in the 1940s and 1950s, including displacement and health effects on Marshallese communities.

Pacific Islander climate advocates declared 'we will not be sacrificed' during a week of high-profile climate advocacy, drawing attention across regional and international media. Their message centred on the existential threat rising seas and extreme weather pose to Pacific nations, and frustration at inadequate emissions commitments from larger countries. Commentators note the region's delegates were among the clearest and most compelling voices in the climate conversation, and that their demands are increasingly being heard and amplified.

Sea surface temperatures in the north central Pacific Ocean, along and south of the Aleutian Islands, have been at or near record high levels every month this year, based on NOAA satellite data going back to 1982. Forecasters warn this warmth could influence the behavior of storms crossing the region, with possible knock-on effects for Alaskan weather.