PIRT holds successful 26th Annual Meeting, announces 11th Pacific Nature Conference

At the annual meeting of the Pacific Islands Roundtable for Nature Conservation (PIRT) held in Suva, Fiji, PIRT members welcomed the announcement by the Government of New Caledonia at the recent 31st SPREP Meeting in Apia that it will host the next Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas.

The most significant regional gathering for conservation, the 11th Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas, will take place in 2026 in Noumea as a partnership between SPREP, the Government of New Caledonia and PIRT.

Annual Meeting outcomes

The 26th Annual Meeting brought together representatives from PIRT's 16 member organisations across three days of strategic dialogue. Members reviewed progress on the 2024 Pacific Islands Framework for Nature Conservation, agreed the priorities for the 2026–2030 Framework refresh, and confirmed the work programme for each of the six PIRT working groups.

The meeting also welcomed the GYBN Pacific Chapter as a youth-led extension of the coalition, increasing PIRT's reach into the next generation of Pacific conservation leaders.

Looking ahead to PIC11 in Noumea

The 11th Pacific Islands Conference, hosted at the Centre Culturel Tjibaou in Noumea from 7–11 September 2026, is expected to bring together over 800 delegates from PIRT member organisations, governments, civil society, academia and the private sector. Key themes will include marine protected areas, indigenous-led conservation, climate-resilient livelihoods, and biodiversity finance.

Registration opens on 30 May 2026; the call for abstracts is open until 31 July. Travel scholarships are available for early-career Pacific researchers and Indigenous practitioners.