Pacific DataViz Challenge 2026
Pacific DataViz Challenge 2026
People, land and a vast ocean
Twenty-two Pacific countries and territories look completely different depending on what we measure. This interactive prototype explores population, land area, ocean territory and the relationship between them.
Interactive prototype live
This is an evolving data story. The current version presents five perspectives on 22 Pacific countries and territories using data from the Pacific Community’s Pacific Data Hub.
Interactive explorer
Change the metric. Change the story.
Compare population, land area, Exclusive Economic Zone area, ocean territory per resident and the ocean-to-land ratio.
About the project
This is my first data competition.
I am documenting the full process: finding and understanding the source data, cleaning it, testing research questions, building visual experiments and deciding what story is genuinely supported by the evidence.
The goal is not merely to produce an attractive chart. I want to explore how data can help communities, support better public decisions and draw attention to issues affecting Pacific and Indigenous populations.
What this prototype explores
The visualization currently compares five measurements:
- Estimated population
- Land area
- Exclusive Economic Zone area
- Exclusive Economic Zone area per resident
- Ocean-to-land ratio
Switching between these measurements reveals how radically the relative scale of each place changes.
A country that appears small in population can become enormous when ocean territory is considered.
How it was built
The current workflow combines:
- Pacific Data Hub SDMX datasets
- Python and pandas for cleaning and joining the data
- A processed CSV containing 22 Pacific places
- D3.js for scales, proportional bubbles, transitions and force simulation
- Quarto for documenting and publishing the project
- Cloudflare Pages for deployment
The circles are grouped editorially into Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Their positions are not intended to represent geographic coordinates.
Current limitations
This is still an exploratory prototype.
- The visualization currently uses a single reference period
- Pitcairn’s population source note refers to 2021
- Regional grouping simplifies more complex cultural and political identities
- More contextual indicators are needed before making broader conclusions
- Accessibility, annotations and mobile presentation will continue to improve
Explore the research
- Research Log — Dated notes, experiments and changes in direction
- Hypotheses — Questions and ideas being tested
- Decision Log — Important analytical and technical choices