Pacific Development Deal: Papua New Guinea and Niue signed a framework agreement on development and technical cooperation at the Pacific Islands Forum in Palau, setting up cooperation across trade, investment, tourism, education, labour mobility, health, agriculture and food security, climate resilience, environmental protection, and infrastructure/digital connectivity. Community Climate Finance: The Pacific Resilience Facility is taking 14 community projects to pre-COP events and COP31, with up to US$20,000 each for water security, food production, coastal restoration, sanitation, renewable energy and resilience—showcasing Palau’s youth-led water work and traditional planting revival. Port Infrastructure & Logistics: The US and New Zealand-backed plan for a US$60m deep-sea port at Penrhyn (Cook Islands) puts NZ in charge of building, with US$50m from Washington and US$10m from NZ—an important shipping and access move tied to rising Pacific geopolitics. Net Zero Reality Check: A fresh look at “net zero” questions how the phrase has drifted from carbon accounting into jobs, buildings and growth claims, and why the meaning keeps getting blurred.