The President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, says there is an urgent need to build seawalls around the islands to reduce their vulnerability to sea level rise.
Mr Tong says this would require a huge amount of money and he has travelled around the world to seek support for this work from the international community.
He says i-Kiribati children need to upskill and acquire a better education so they can emigrate with valuable skills and knowledge.
He says it's very unlikely Kiribati will remain a nation in the next hundred years based on what is happening now.
Mr Tong says a number of islands are facing serious problems as a result of climate change but people cannot be forced to emigrate when the time comes.
