After initial test drilling in northern Namibia since the beginning of the year, the Canadian gas and oil exploration company Reconnaissance Energy Africa (ReconAfrica) announced on 15 April 2021 that analyses of the drilling samples had provided evidence of the existence of a "functioning petroleum system".

When Simon Thompson, the chairman of the multinational mining giant Rio Tinto, was criticised by local NGOs at Rio Tinto’s AGM, held on 9 April 2021, over plans for a huge copper mine in Arizona, he responded by arguing that his company is committed to the fight against climate change, and argued that the transition to a low-carbon economy will necessitate the expansion of copper production.

During the COVID-19 pandemic migration patterns reversed in the Pacific Islands. As paid employment in cities decreased, migration to some rural areas increased, often with en-couragement from national governments. While some migrants have returned to urban areas following an initial rural relocation, even as a temporary phenomenon, urban-rural migration that occurred during the pandemic is instructive for understanding how cultural and family connections to rural places help in maintaining resilience among Pacific Island populations, particularly in the face of external shocks.

Pacific sailors are used to being away from home for months. But this voyage unexpectedly turned out to involve a lot of drama and almost epic frustration. When the pandemic hit, seafarers found themselves stranded almost everywhere. Some were stuck on ships beyond the maximum end of their contracts waiting for fresh crews to arrive and replace them; when they didn’t, the sailors continued working without a break, while others couldn’t go home because of travel restrictions around the globe.

On February 23, the UN Security Council (UNSC) held a high-level open debate on the topic of climate and security. The meeting, convened by the Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom, was the latest in a series of open debates and Arria-formula sessions set to define the role of the Council in addressing threats to international security posed by climate change. Despite a decade-long discussion, the UNSC is still divided on a series of conceptual and procedural issues that, as it will be shown in this article, prevent it from defining its role in relation to climate change.

At the end of February, the government of the Pacific island nation of Kiribati announced that it planned to collaborate with China in developing Natovatu land bought by the Kiribati government in 2014 on the Fijian island of Vanua Levu. In the light of increasing attempts by the People’s Republic of China to expand its influence in Pacific Island Countries, this announcement was met with some concern on the international stage. It was interpreted in the context of the growing geostrategic power rivalry in the region.