World Cup Culture: As Australia counts down to its World Cup clash with Paraguay, fans are turning workdays into matchdays—booking leave, planning “office watch parties,” and even joking about “sickies” to catch the 12pm AEST game. Nature & Resilience: Vanuatu has launched new policy tools under the PPIN project to help communities use healthy forests, mangroves, reefs and seagrass in climate adaptation planning. Indigenous Knowledge & Volcanoes: A new regional study highlights how Indigenous oral traditions—from Vanuatu to Fiji and the Solomons—can reveal volcanic eruption histories and improve disaster preparedness. Dogs, Humans & Culture: Cross-cultural research using Vanuatu participants finds dog-human cooperation and communication look strikingly similar across very different societies. Climate Politics: Pacific leaders at UN climate talks in Bonn warned that attempts to weaken climate science put Pasifika lives at risk—naming Vanuatu among the voices defending the science. Regional Leadership: Vanuatu’s Dr Anna Naupa has been appointed the first woman and first ni-Vanuatu to lead the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Secretariat. Education & Work: Pacific education unions met to push back on teacher shortages, workload and mental health, including planning for the 2026–2027 public education campaign.