Voices of hard-to-reach island communities provide inclusive and culturally appropriate climate change responses: A case study from the Torres Strait Islands, Australia

Many island-based Indigenous communities continue to occupy, manage and live off and from their ancestral lands, known in Australia as ‘Country’ (with intentional capitalization). These lands are often in areas that are highly exposed to extreme and changing conditions under climate change, including increasingly frequent and severe cyclones, sea level rise, and extended heatwaves, flooding, and bushfires. Further conditions include saltwater intrusion of freshwater supplies and loss of traditional Country. Indeed, some Pacific Island communities are already experiencing irreversible climate damage and have activated plans for relocation and documenting cultural information for future generations who will not now have the privilege or right of returning to their islands.