Opening Remarks by Pacific Ocean Commissioner
Dr Filimon Manoni
Pacific Voyagers Talanoa
Pacific Voyaging and Courage in the Ocean
Ladies and Gentlemen, friends, voyagers, and seekers of the horizon,
It is both a privilege and an honour to gather today to reflect on a legacy that spans thousands of years, bound not by borders but by the boundless blue — the legacy of Pacific voyaging. As you note Our Pacific is blessed with geography from the mountains of Melanesia to the atolls and lagoons of Polynesia and Micronesia – sitting on long dead volcanoes, and in many cases barely peeking above sea level.
Long before satellites tracked our paths or GPS marked our waypoints, there were the great ocean navigators of the Pacific — bold men and women who read the stars, listened to the winds, studied the swells, and dared to cross the world’s largest ocean in canoes carved by hand and guided by heart.
These were not aimless drifters, but intentional explorers — scientists of the sea, philosophers of the horizon, and stewards of ancestral knowledge. With nothing but the sky above and the ocean below, they traversed thousands of miles, linking islands and cultures in a vast web of connection and courage.
Voyaging was never just about reaching another shore. It was — and remains — a powerful act of courage, resilience and identity. Each journey reaffirmed a deep relationship with nature, with community, and with the ancestors who charted the way long before maps were ever drawn.
Today, as we look out to the ocean, may we be reminded not just of its power and vastness, but of the spirit of those who dared to know it — who chose courage over comfort, purpose over fear, and discovery over the status quo.
Let us honor that legacy not only with our words, but with our actions — by navigating our own lives with intention, humility, and the enduring courage of those who first sailed into the unknown.
While this majestic endowment the richest endowment we call our Blue Pacific Continent has continued to serve our people for generations, as a source of knowledge, food security and wealth and as so called developing States – Our Ocean is increasingly coming under pressure due to triple planetary crisis of Climate Change, biological diversity loss, and pollution.
It is our duty as stewards of this vast ocean space to do our part to save our Ocean and our resources. It is our duty as navigators and voyagers to do our part to impart knowledge and wisdom about why the health and resilience of the Ocean matters so much to all of us.
Let us work harder to usher in earlier rather than later, the entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement, let us work even harder at the multilateral level to agree to a binding agreement on plastics pollution including in the marine environment, let us encourage our Pacific members of the WTO to encourage ratification of the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement.
Let us also encourage compliance with our very own regional treaties and conventions, such as the Rarotonga Treaty, the Noumea Convention, the Waigani Convention, the Wellington Convention, and the fisheries related regional and subregional agreements, that help maintain order and governance that extend to the limits of our Blue Pacific heritage
Let us not forsake the courage and wisdom passed down by word of mouth from generations long gone – but instead amplify this through the transfer of traditional knowledge, the technology, and the science and wisdom as practiced by our forefathers those many generations ago to our young generations of today and tomorrow – not only to sail the Ocean, but equally to conserve and manage our Ocean resources. I truly believe that from the perspective of our own history that that will be the most courageous act of our generation in keeping this ‘flame’ burning for the next generation.
In closing let me say that I regret that I am not able to share this moment with all of you in person in Suva, but rest assured of my own personal commitment and that of OPOC in supporting this noble cause. Let me also take this opportunity to recognize the contribution of partners who have come together to make this a reality, and to recognize the support of the ROC/Taiwan through OPOC.
I wish you all fruitful sessions and look forward to see you all in Suva.
Sulang
Komoltata
Vinaka Vakalevu
Thank you.
