Palau


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

//Adapted from the Belau National Museum// //Delad er a Chuab a ngaruchei el meral di ngii el ta el redil Al bekiis er a kereker er a mekuul eng meral di bechachau tial Belau A loruul a kkeldiull eng mle mor Ngerebluchel meng keiung er a kingellel ngarngii....//
 * Chuab the Giant: Belau Creation Story**

Born to Latmikaik, goddess of the ocean, Chuab was one of three children. While her brother Ucherrerak went to live in heaven, Chuab was blown to Ngebeanged and went to the house of Ngetelkou with their sister Tellebuu.

Chuab grew very tall...and kept growing. She grew so tall that the people could not reach her mouth. They built ladders and climbed to feed her until even the ladders could not reach her height. As Chuab reached the clouds, no one could care for her. The people decided to buy soil from Uchelianged, the god of heaven, and pile it up to reach Chuab. When this failed, they gathered firewood and decided to end this by burning her. As the people went about collecting firewood, Chuab asked what they were doing. The people replied that the firewood was for cooking more food. They arranged the firewood around her feet and lit it. As the fire burned Chuab, she fell and her body parts formed into Belau.

The name Belau comes from the //aibebelau// (or indirect replies) to Chuab about the activity to burn her down. It was also believed that Chuab died of a sacrifice -- since she was a demi-god, she knew that the people's intentions, yet sacrificed her body for the people.

=About Chuab= Learn more about Chuab from the storytellers at Pacific Worlds: http://www.pacificworlds.com/palau/arrival/setting.cfm

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=Republic of Palau=




 * Capitol**: Melekeok
 * Population**: 20,518 (2010)
 * Land** **Area**: 459 sq km (177 sq mi)
 * Languages**: Palauan, English (Sonsoral, Tobi, Angaur, Japanese in some islands)
 * Indigenous Ethnicities**: Palauan
 * Greetings**: //Alii// (formal)(informal)

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=Environment= Palau consists of six groups of more than 300 islands totaling about 459 sq km of land in the North Pacific Ocean. Its terrain varies from the high, mountainous main island of Babelthuap to low, coral islands usually fringed by large barrier reefs. Its highest point is Mount Ngerchelchuus (242 m) on the island of Babeldaob between the states of Ngardmau and Ngaremlengui.

Some of the current environmental issues facing Palau include: inadequate facilities for disposal of solid waste, as well as threats to the marine ecosystem from sand and coral dredging, illegal fishing practices, and overfishing. Palau is party to several environmental international agreements, including: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, and Whaling.

__Learn more about the Environment in Palau__:
 * **Palau Conservation Society**: http://www.palauconservation.org/cms/index.php
 * **Palau International Coral Reef Center**: http://www.picrc.org/

=Climate & Climate Impacts= Palau’s climate is characterized as tropical—generally hot and humid with two different seasons. Wet season May to December; the dry season lasts from January to April. Rainfall averages 150 inches/year, with the driest months averaging about 6-9 inches. Temperatures range between 79-90°F, and surface waters average in the low 80°s F.

Typhoons can occur between July and December, sometimes causing heavy damage, flooding and erosion. However, typhoons are uncommon, as the islands lie outside the main typhoon path. Occasional storms with high winds do occur during typhoon season.

__Learn more about the Climate & Climate Impacts in Palau__: > //Regional Overview, Country Reports, Brochures, and Posters//
 * "//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
 * **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
 * **"//Paradise Lost//" on PBS** (2012): http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/video/video-paradise-lost/14421/

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=History & Way of Life= __Learn more about the History & Way of Life in Palau__: > //Teacher Resource on Selected Pacific Cultural Topics//
 * **Palau Ministry of Community and Cultural Affairs**: http://www.palaugov.net/palaugov/executive/ministries/MCCA/MCCA.htm
 * **Ebiil Society**
 * **Airai on Pacific Worlds**: http://www.pacificworlds.com/palau/index.cfm
 * **Teach ReSPCT**: http://www.prel.org/teams/teach-ReSPCT.asp

=Education= __Learn more about Education in Palau__:
 * Education demographics from PCEP: http://pcep.dsp.wested.org/content_items/389066
 * **Palau Community College**: http://www.palau.edu/
 * **Palau Ministry of Education**: http://www.palaumoe.net/

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=Photo Gallery= Want to know how to add photos to this gallery? Please see the Photo Gallery Tutorial.

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=Tell Your Climate Story= You can share a story about how climate change is affecting your community in two ways

Or Create a New Wiki Page with Pictures and Links

 * 1) Create a new wiki page
 * 2) Give it a title that includes your name
 * 3) Tag your page as //Palau story//.
 * 4) Tell us your story (you can even include pictures and links!)

Your new page will appear in the list of Palau Climate Stories here.

include component="pageList" hideInternal="true" tag="Palau story" limit="10"
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