About

Official Bio:

Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner is a poet of Marshallese ancestry, born in the Marshall Islands and raised in Hawai’i. She currently serves as Climate Envoy for the Marshall Islands Ministry of Environment. Her work focuses on supporting her government in engaging in the multilateral climate space, as well as in developing national policies on climate adaptation. She has a background of creative practice as a poet and artist exploring her culture’s rich storytelling and how these stories converse with climate change impacts and its intersections with the legacy of the US nuclear weapons testing program on the Marshall Islands. She has shared these explorations through written poetry, the curation of poem videos, performances, and art installations. In 2012, she co-founded the Marshallese climate youth nonprofit, Jo-Jikum, and has led the organization of programming and actions on climate change, nuclear advocacy, and arts for Marshallese youth for over 13 years. She currently lives between Majuro, Marshall Islands, and Portland, Oregon in the United States, and is completing a PhD from Australia National University in Pacific Studies focusing on poetry and the RMI’s national adaptation policies.

Promotional Material:

• KathyJetnilKijiner_CV
• Previous Public Speaking Engagements, Artist Performances, Workshop Facilitations:
  • 17th Annual Northwest Teaching for Social Justice Conference (Keynote Speaker): October 2024
  • 2024 Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Research and Development Symposium (Keynote Speaker): June 2024
  • National Conference on Race and Ethnicity, Oregon (Keynote Speaker): May 2019
  • Digital Storyteller’s Workshop, Marshall Islands (Workshop Facilitator and Organizer): April 2019
  • Pacific History Association at the Asia Pacific Triennial, Australia (Keynote Speaker, Performance Artist, Workshop Facilitator): March 2019
  • Innovative City Forum, Japan (Keynote Speaker): October 2019
  • Laudato Si’ Conference on Climate Change in the Vatican, Italy (Opening Ceremony Speaker): July 2018
  • Asia Pacific Triennial, Australia (Performance Artist): November 2018
  • Conference of the Parties 23 (COP23), Bonn (Performer): November 2017
  • PREL Storyteller’s Workshop, Saipan (Workshop Facilitator): July 2017
  • Pacific Education Conference, Palau (Presenter, Workshop Facilitator): July 2017
  • ‘Ae Kai Culture Lab, Honolulu (Artist): July 2017
  • Climate Action Network Japan Debriefing Event on Bonn Conference, Japan (Speaker): June 2017
  • 350.org Japan Storytelling Workshop, Japan (Workshop Facilitator): June 2017
  • Sasakawa Peace Foundation’s Pacific Ambassadors’ Roundtable, Japan (Speaker): June 2017
  • Rhodes Trust: Generation 1.5 C An Intergenerational Climate Workshop, London (Speaker): April 2017
  • Honolulu Biennial, Honolulu (Artist): February 2017
  • Climate Generation 10th Anniversary Celebration, Minnesota (Keynote Speaker): December 2016
  • Conference of the Parties 22 (COP22), Morocco (Performer, RMI Delegation Member): November 2016
  • Portland State University, Portland State of Mind, Oregon (Keynote Speaker): October 2016
  • Asian Pacific Islander Network of Oregon (APANO) Rolling Tides (Panelist, Performer): October 2016
  • Pacific Asia Tourism Association Annual Summit, Guam (Opening Speaker): May 2016
  • Conference of the Parties 21 (COP21), Paris (Performer, RMI Delegation Member): November 2016
  • European Union African Caribbean Pacific Islands Conference, Fiji (Performer, Panelist): July 2015
  • University of Guam Presidential Speaker Series, Guam (Speaker): April 2015
  • United Nations Secretary General’s Climate Summit, New York (Civil Society Representative): June 2012
  • ‘Aha Mo’olelo Hawaii Literary Conference, Hawai‘i (Panelist, Performer): 2012
  • Leaves Keep Falling: The Asian/Pacific Basin & Sustainability After Empire, Film Screening, Hawai’i (Panelist and Performer), Hawai‘i: 2012
  • Native Voices Reading, Hawai‘i (Featured Poet): 2012
  • International Poetry Parnassus Festival, London (RMI Representative, Performer, Panelist): 2011
  • Queer Pacific Islanders Sustaining Community, California (Performer): 2011
  • Poetic Crossroads: An Open Mic with Swag, California (Featured Poet): 2010
  • Sisters Rising, The Garage, California (Performer): 2010
  • The Kaleidoscope Reading Series, California (Featured Poet): 2010
  • Third Roots Art Collective, California (Solo Performance Artist): 2010
  • City Solo, Off Market Theater, California (Solo Performance Artist): 2010
  • Words First, California (Solo Performance Artist): 2010

Author Photos