Erromango has opened a Community Climate Center in Ipota this week.

It is part of a four-day workshop involving participants from both the North and South Erromango area councils, including chiefs, women’s representatives, youth groups, NGO representatives, government representatives, and community members with disabilities.

Philip Tangat, Chairman of the CDC, said that through the workshop, participants learned how to access and use information from VMGD, as well as how to use traditional knowledge to manage water, climate, and geological hazards such as earthquakes.

Erromango Area Administrator, Mr. Remy Nambil, said the four-day workshop concluded with a certificate presentation and the official opening of the Community Climate Center.

Mr. Remy Nambil, Area Administrator, Erromango:
“We will rely on information from community members. We learned lessons from TC PAM, or from Judy and Kevin, when we in Erromango lost a branch of Kava. So we must bring Kava from other islands because we don’t have a climate change plan. We don’t know when a climate change event happens, what your responsibility is, and this training can equip you to understand your role in the community beyond what you can see.”

Ms. Glenda Pakoa said the government delivered assets to benefit the community, which are now in the community to be used and maintained for the good of everyone.

Glenda Pakoa, Senior Provincial Scientific Officer at VMGD:
“We managed to set up a 55-inch monitor TV screen, speaker, computer, desktop, printer, a cabinet, and also a Starlink.”

The VMGD team is now planning to set up the next climate centers in Bwatnap and North Ambrym next month.

This initiative is part of the Van-KIRAP project, which is funded by the Green Climate Fund.