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Thursday 15 June, Honiara – About 22 early to mid-career professionals from diverse backgrounds including academia, agriculture, community development, conservation, media, resource management and water infrastructure benefited from a 2-day workshop on
knowledge brokering held from 6 – 7 June (half days).
The objectives of this two-half-days workshop were to strengthen awareness and understanding of knowledge brokering and some of the available tools that can be used; identify opportunities for strengthening knowledge brokering activities and other capacity building areas for early and mid-career professionals working in climate-related sectors in Solomon Islands.
One of the participants who works at the Wildlife Conservation society stated that “I am glad I came to the workshop because I gained new skills that will greatly enhance my capacity and support my role as a community conservation officer.”
The two-half-days event concluded with a networking session which featured inspirational panel discussions from our experts namely, Mr. David Hiriasia, Director of Solomon Islands Meteorological Services; Dr. Kristina Fidali, Solomon Islands Country Coordinator, Pacific
BioScapes Program, Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and Mrs. Lysa Wini-Simeon, PhD Researcher and Consultant.
These speakers shared valuable tips on being a good knowledge broker, how to navigate obstacles, build a strong professional network, and cultivate a growth mindset. A few key messages that came out strong during the discussion were on:
● The importance of incorporating traditional knowledge in our modern-day systems and processes in the context of natural resources management. Scientists need to crossreference traditional and local knowledge in their work especially when working with
communities.
● The need for good knowledge brokers who can bridge the information gap between the reality on the ground and what’s happening at the global scale.
● Being comfortable with uncertainty, that you won’t always have all the solutions to every problem.
● The power of having someone like a role model to help guide and give you direction when starting in your career. The rest comes down to hard work, perseverance and consistently showing up for yourself and the vision you have for your future.
Knowledge brokering is often interchangeably used with information knowledge management and communications. The introductory training helped participants understand the differences and where information management and communications falls within the knowledge brokering
spectrum.
This training with networking session was jointly organised by the Australia Pacific Climate Alumni Network (APCAN) and the Youths Advocate for Integrity Network Solomon Islands (YAISI). APCAN is supported by the Australia Pacific Climate Partnership (APCP).

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