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Staff - Climate Change, Climate Variability and Sea Level Rise

Taito NAKALEVU [Climate Change Adaptation Officer]

Taito Nakalevu is the Climate Change and Adaptation Officer. Originally from Fiji, he obtained his Bachelor and Master of Arts Degrees from the University of the South Pacific, Fiji. Taito started his career as a high school teacher in Fiji and moved on to a European Union funded Programme  called the 'Pacific Regional Agriculture Programme' (PRAP) as a Graduate Research Assistant, a project that was executed by the University of the South Pacific and later, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC). In this position, he worked very closely with the Fiji-German Forestry and Agroforestry Project carrying out agroforestry research in the hinterlands of Fiji. In 1999, he joined the Ministry of Agriculture, Land Resource Planning and ALTA as Senior Research Officer, Land Use Planning, for the Central/Eastern Division.

Solomone FIFITA [Chief Technical Adviser – Pacific Islands Renewable Energy Project]

Solomone is originally from Tonga. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of the South Pacific, Fiji and a Master of Science Degree from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand. Solomone began his career in the Energy sector in Tonga where he was Head of the Tonga Energy Office. Afterwards, he moved on to the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) in Fiji to become the Renewable Energy Adviser. Following the relocation of the Energy Unit from PIFS to SOPAC (South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission), Solomone served as Energy Adviser at SOPAC and later on as Programme Manager for the 'Pacific Rural Renewable Energy France-Australia Common Endeavour' (PREFACE) at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in New Caledonia.

Ewan CAMERON [Pacific Year of Climate Change Campaign Coordinator]

Dean SOLOFA [Pacific Global-Climate Observing System (PI-GCOS) Officer

Dean Solofa is graduated with a background in physics, computing and environmental science from Canterbury University ( New Zealand ) and the University of the South Pacific ( Fiji ).  He joined the National Meteorological Service in Samoa and worked on climate services. After 5 years he progressed into climate information services for possible end users in the water and energy sector. In 2005 he moved to the Secretariat of the Regional Environment Programme to manage the Pacific Islands-Global Climate Observing System (PI-GCOS) programme as a way forward for the improvement of Pacific NMHS in terms of local climate operations, and connecting those efforts to a regional and global benefit through an improved global climate observing system.

Espen RONNEBERG [Climate Change Advisor (CCA)]

Espen worked as an Inter-regional Advisor for Small Island Development States with the Division of Sustainable Development in the UN since 1999. Espen's early involvement in/with the UN started in 1992 when he was an Adviser and later promoted as Minister Counsellor for the Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to the UN in New York. He has also worked closely with SPREP members and various programs for many years. Espen has a Masters Degree from Rhode Island University.

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