In 2016, Fijian diplomat Peter Thomson was elected President of the Seventy-first session of the United Nations General Assembly, becoming the first Pacific Islander to hold the post. He told the General Assembly: "We bring special perspectives on climate change and on oceans issues and you can expect me to be vocal on those in the 71st session". Fiji presided the 2017 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP23), which took place in Bonn for practical reasons but under Fijian leadership. Under Fiji's impetus, it launched the "Talanoa Dialogue" to facilitate the implementation of efforts to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases.