Transcript
Tony de Brum led a life of advocating against nuclear proliferation and was a critic of the United States' nuclear weapons testing program in the Marshall Islands, which he witnessed as a child in the 1950s .
I was on Likiep as a nine year old when it happened and I saw Bravo with my own eyes, yes, and I still get, what they call in Hawaii, chicken skin, goosebumps when I think about that thing.
Most recently Mr de Brum was involved in lawsuits filed on behalf of the Marshalls against nine nuclear powers.
The aim was to get the nations to address stalled nuclear disarmament talks. Our Marshall Islands correspondent, Giff Johnson, says although the lawsuits failed, they were successful in other ways.
Those lawsuits ultimately were thrown out by the various courts but they did galvanise a lot of public opinion globally and put the spotlight on the nuclear weapons disarmament issue [and] no doubt had some impact on what has taken place at the United Nations.
Mr de Brum was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the issue and it gained him other international anti-nuclear awards.
Sandy Jones of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, which brought the legal action, says Mr de Brum was a resolute visionary who set an example for small countries to follow.
How to persevere with integrity and dignity how to be a small nation and take on the big bad guys and do it with your head held high and not be afraid.
Ms Jones says Mr de Brum was optimistic and had a life long goal not to give up on the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Krishneil Narayan is a co-ordinator of the Pacific Islands Climate Action Network.
He has fond memories of Mr de Brum.
He not only advocated for anti-nuclear but also was a champion of the Pacific on climate change issues and putting pressure on the international community on behalf of the Pacific, so his leadership was greatly appreciated within the region and is really going to be missed. He was one of the most elegant climate warriors that I've known in the region.
Mr Narayan says Mr de Brum was pivotal in getting nations to agree to aim for a global temperature change of no more than 1.5 degrees.
I had the pleasure of working with him on a number of occasions, both here at the regional level and also at the international climate change negotiations. One of the memories I have of working with him was at the Paris Climate Change Conference in 2015 when he rallied over 100 countries together to bring high ambition on climate change and get 1.5 degrees in the Paris Agreement.
Giff Johnson agrees that Mr de Brum was a unifying force.
Tony was just brilliant in mind and speech. He was normally several steps ahead of most people in understanding the nuances of international diplomacy and what was going on. He picked things up so quickly and he was able articulate issues very well.
The president of the Marshall Islands Hilda Heine says the former foreign minister led the international fight against climate change.
She says he fought for the country's independence, against the tyranny of nuclear weapons and his legacy goes beyond his homeland.
She described him as a giant of history, a legend and a custodian of the future.
