People at the Centre: Social and Cultural Dimensions of Conservation and Area-Based Management in the Pacific

Conservation in the Pacific only succeeds when communities, indigenous knowledge, and cultural values lead the way. This session brings together local practitioners, community leaders, government representatives, and regional partners for an open talanoa. We aim to move past top-down models by exploring how indigenous knowledge, customary rights, and local livelihoods can be meaningfully integrated into regional and global conservation strategies.