MarshallIslands


 * media type="facebooklike" key="http%3A%2F%2Fpcep.wikispaces.com%2FMarshallIslands" width="270" height="48" align="right"Yowke**, Welcome to the Marshall Islands Community Page

//Adapted from Creation Myths of the World by David A. Leeming// In ancient times, when there was only water, Lowa (the uncreated) was alone. When he hummed, the islands emerged along with the reefs and sand banks. He hummed again and the plants and animals grew. Lowa made four gods for the four directions and a seagull god to constantly circle the sky. Lowa also created a man, who put the islands into a basket made from coconut leaves and set them in an order -- the Carolines to the west and the Marshall Islands in a straight line, except for Namorik, which fell out of the basket.
 * Creation Myth & the Origins of Bikini Island**

After Lowa placed all the islands, he threw away the basket. It became Kili Island. Only one of the islands had coconut trees at the time, the little sandy island of Bikini (from //bok//, meaning sand, and //ni//, meaning coconut).

=About Laura= Laura (Lora) is a village in the Marshall Islands, located in the west of Majuro atoll. At approximately 10 feet above sea level, Laura has the highest elevation of any islands in the Majuro Atoll.

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= Republic of the Marshall Islands = //**Aolepān Aorōkin M̧ajeļ**//   **Languages**: Marshallese, English   **Indigenous Ethnicities**: Marshallese  **Greetings**: //Yowke//
 * Capital**: Majuro
 * Population**: 67,182 (2011)
 * Land Area**:181 sq km (69.9 sq miles)

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= Environment = The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) consists of five single islands and 29 atolls, including the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, Kwajalein, Majuro, Rongelap, and Utirik. These landmasses total 181 sq km of land spanning 11,673 sq km of lagoon waters. The terrain is characterized by low coral limestone and sand islands, and the highest point occurs on Likiep atoll (10 m).

 Some of the current environmental issues facing RMI residents includes: inadequate supplies of potable water and pollution of Majuro lagoon from household waste and discharges from fishing vessels. Further, RMI residents are experiencing the effects of nuclear testing on Bikini and Enewetak atolls. These atolls are vacant, and Kwajalein atoll is used as a US missile test range. Ebeye is the second largest settlement in the Marshall Islands, after the capital of Majuro, and one of the most densely populated locations in the Pacific. RMI is also party to several environmental international agreements, including: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, and Whaling.

 __Learn more about Environment in RMI__:

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 * **Marshall Islands Conservation Society**: http://www.kobedia.org/
 * **Sea Grant at the University of Hawai‘i** (Hawaii, RMI, American Samoa): http://seagrant.soest.hawaii.edu/

= Climate & Climate Impacts =  Climate in RMI is characterized as tropical—generally hot and humid, moderated by trade winds throughout the year. Average temperature is about 80oF, and the range between the coolest and the warmest months averages less than 1 degree Fahrenheit.

 There are two seasons: wet season is between May and November, and dry season occurs between December and April. Rainfall varies throughout RMI. Southern atolls can average up to 160 inches/year, while northern atolls average only about 20 inches/year. RMI borders the typhoon belt. Typhoons are rare; although, in the last 3 years there have been three major cyclones.

 __Learn more about Climate & Climate Impacts in RMI__:  Back to the Top
 * **Republic of the Marshall Islands Climate Change Website** (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change): http://unfccc.int/resource/ccsites/marshall/index.html
 * National Climate Change Committee of the Marshall Islands
 * National Training Council of the Marshall Islands
 * "//Adapting to a Changing Climate//" (2011) by **MCT**: http://www.cakex.org/virtual-library/3439
 * "//Climate Change in the Pacific//" by the **Pacific Climate Change Science Program**: http://www.cawcr.gov.au/projects/PCCSP/publications.html Regional Overview, Country Reports, Brochures, and Posters
 * **Pacific Climate Change Portal (SPREP)**: http://www.pacificclimatechange.net/
 * **Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change (PACC), Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme**: http://www.sprep.org/pacc-home
 * **Pacific Adaptation Strategy Assistance Program (PASAP)** (FSM, RMI, Palau): http://www.climatechange.gov.au/en/government/initiatives/international-climate-change-adaptation-initiative/pacific-adaptation-strategy-assistance-program.aspx

= History & Way of Life = <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> __Learn more about History & Way of Life in RMI__: > //Teacher Resource on Selected Pacific Cultural Topics// <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;">
 * **Republic of the Marshall Islands Customary Law and Language Commission**
 * **Women United Together in the Marshall Islands**: http://www.wutmirmi.org/
 * **Teach ReSPCT**: http://www.prel.org/teams/teach-ReSPCT.asp

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= Education = <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;">__Learn more about Education in RMI__: <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Back to the Top
 * Education demographics from PCEP: http://pcep.dsp.wested.org/content_items/389049
 * **Republic of the Marshall Islands Ministry of Education**: http://www.rmimoe.net/
 * **College of the Marshall Islands**: http://www.cmi.edu/

= Photo Gallery = <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Want to know how to add photos to this gallery? Please see the Photo Gallery Tutorial.

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= Tell Your Climate Story = <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;">You can share a story about how climate change is affecting your community in two ways

Add a Story using Facebook
<span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> media type="custom" key="20472418"

Or Create a New Wiki Page with Pictures and Links
<span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> Your new page will appear in the list of Marshall Islands Climate Stories here. <span class="category_data" style="vertical-align: bottom;"> include component="pageList" hideInternal="true" tag="Marshall Islands story" limit="10"
 * 1) Create a new wiki page
 * 2) Give it a title that includes your name
 * 3) Tag your page as //Marshall Islands story//.
 * 4) Tell us your story (you can even include pictures and links!)

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