The Alliance of Small Island States was formed in 1990, on the eve of the Second World Climate Conference, when a group of island nations recognized that their shared vulnerability to a changing climate and rising seas gave them a common cause — and that, by speaking together, small states could carry a weight in international negotiations that none could achieve alone.
A coalition built on common cause
What began as an informal lobby quickly became one of the most influential negotiating coalitions at the United Nations. Today AOSIS brings together 39 member states from the Caribbean, the Pacific, and the regions of Africa, the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea — diverse nations united by the realities of small size, limited resources, and exposure to the impacts of climate change.
Shaping the global climate response
From the earliest climate negotiations through the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, AOSIS has consistently pressed the international community toward greater ambition. The coalition was among the first to call for limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C — a target once dismissed as unrealistic and now recognized as the threshold the world must strive to meet. AOSIS has also been a leading voice on loss and damage, climate finance, and the special circumstances of small island developing states.
Beyond climate
While climate change remains central, AOSIS advances a broad agenda reflecting the priorities of its members: the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean, the implementation of the SAMOA Pathway and the sustainable-development priorities of small island states, and the recognition of SIDS as a special case in international fora. Across all of these, the coalition's strength lies in its unity and the moral clarity of its message.
A voice that endures
For more than three decades, AOSIS has shown that small states, speaking with one voice, can shape outcomes that affect the entire planet. As the challenges facing its members evolve, the Alliance continues to advocate — at the United Nations and beyond — for an ambitious, just, and sustainable future.