ABSTRACT
The Pacific Islands have become a symbol of the pending catastrophe of increasing sea levels due to global warming. The majority of the Pacific Islands are tiny in size and hardly rise more than two or three metres above sea level. The high volcanic islands are generally steep with only a small coastal rim on which most of the construction and population are concentrated. Such topographies are easy prey for erosion, resource degradation and destruction of the built environment caused by torrential tropical rains, tidal waves and storm surges, which are likely to increase in frequency and intensity with climate change.1
Pictures of nature’s destructive power over the population’s food sources and acquainted environments, driving local people out of their homes without the prospect of return, now figure prominently in the media.2 Yet, environments are not only a physical entity, but are perceived by humans and modulated into cultural values, norms and other aspects that, in short, constitute a particular culture.
