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The effects of marine resource development, aggravated by the rise of population in some Pacific countries, are disturbing those elements on which life depends. Modem technology is making it possible for distant water fishing nations (DWFNs) to fish the Pacific Ocean and sometimes within the exclusive economic zones of Pacific Island countries. The coastal zones, the breeding grounds for marine life, are under pressure from overfishing, coastal run-offs and wastes dumped in the ocean. Efforts to secure sustainable development, conservation and management of the marine resources take place, firstly against a 'background of complex international, national and customary laws, and secondly against a background of plural legal systems where laws passed by a country's legislature, laws "received" during the colonial era, and customary law, all co-exist.

Marine invasive species have received much less attention than terrestrial species worldwide. In the Pacific, the marine environment provides us with a significant part of our diet and income. Marine Managed Areas focus on protecting these important resources for livelihood purposes, biodiversity and ecosystem function, tourism, and many other benefits. Although invasive species management is more difficult in the marine environment, it is not something we can neglect, and the efforts we put in need to increase. This guide seeks to provide some options for this management. Special thanks to Anne Haas, who completed an internship with the SPREP Invasive Species Programme from Yale University in 2015, for completing the literature review and creating the text for this guide.

The presence of invasive species generally leads to negative impacts, some perhaps irreversible, and the economic costs from the impacts and their management can be substantial and long-lasting. Efforts to understand the extent of damages caused by invasive species are slowly gaining momentum globally; however, in many countries, efforts are only beginning. This guide will assist Pacific island practitioners to use the costs that result from invasive species incursions to gain support to fund prevention, management, restoration, research and outreach. SPREP thanks James Stanford, Aaron Buncle, and Jarrod Troutbeck, who advised the development of this guide.

Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR) systems are the first line of defence against invasive species once they have penetrated national or inter-island biosecurity systems. For these systems to be effective, a plan is required to coordinate the responsible agencies and ensure both the systems and equipment to address the detected species are in place prior to the response. Several countries have developed these plans recently, which are available on the Battler Resource Base. SPREP thanks James Stanford, who drafted the text for this guide.

The invasive battler has a difficult job. Many of the management solutions for invasive species require a broad base of information to determine the best way to approach an issue and determine if the approach is feasible. Likely questions a battler will face are: what is that species? How did it get here and where will it go next? Is it a risk to our environment or other important national asset? Where else is this species found and what did they do about it? This guide was developed to assist the invasive species battler in accessing information to answer these questions and decide about management action.|SPREP thanks Shyama Pagad from the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) for drafting this guide. The ISSG performs a vital role in storing and making available invasive species data for the Pacific.

Dealing with invasive species is a huge job. Invasive species are everyone's responsibility, but people can only help if they are aware and know what they can change to make a difference. This guide is designed to support your creation of cost-effective communications campaigns to reduce the impact of invasive species in Pacific Island nations. Thanks to Steve Menzies and the Pasifika Collective for assisting with the design of the campaign, assisting and advising SPREP through the process, and preparing the draft text for this guide. In January 2015, the Invasive Species team from (SPREP) began a targeted public campaign to stop the spread of the little fire ant across the Pacific. This guide uses examples from the "Stop the Little Fire Ant!" campaign to highlight the key steps needed to develop and implement an effective strategy.

National or Territory Invasive Species Strategies and Action Plans (NISSAP) are a critical document to ensure invasive species management is coordinated within a country or territory and that the different sectors involved with invasive species management are working together toward the same goals. NISSAP are essential to show political will for managing invasive species and are looked upon favourably by funding bodies.

In the Pacific Island region, oceanic fisheries target four species of tuna – skipjack, yellowfin, bigeye and South Pacific albacore – and make critical contributions to economic development, government revenue and livelihoods in most nations. Climate change is expected to have profound effects on oceanic fish habitats, food webs, the fish stocks they support and, as a consequence, the productivity of fisheries.

This report synthesizes the emerging evidence of climate impacts at different temperature thresholds for Pacific islands. All evidence points to vast differences in impacts in a 1.5 ?C world, compared to the +3 ?C world to which our current policies and climate change pledges are leading us.

The effects of climate change on Pacific Islands are expected to have significant implications for society, culture and gender. Social and cultural groups will be impacted differently, with some being disproportionately affected by climate change. These groups also play an important role in sharing information and should be consulted and included in all efforts to promote climate action. Inclusion of social and cultural considerations increases