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Actor and ocean activist Jason Momoa has spoken out about the effect of climate change on people living on islands.

The Aquaman star gave a speech on behalf of small island nations at the United Nations on Friday about the climate crisis.

He said: "We the island nations, and all coastal communities, are the front lines in this environmental crisis."

"The oceans are in a state of emergency. Entire marine ecosystems are vanishing with the warming of the seas. And as the waste of the world empties into our waters, we face the devastating crisis of plastic pollution."

Small island nations, which include countries like the Maldives, Bahamas and Fiji are some of the countries which are most likely to suffer the most as sea levels rise.

The United Nations-backed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report on 25 September said sea levels are rising far more quickly than previously thought.

It's happening because burning of fossil fuels is causing global warming which melts glaciers and sea ice. The water then causes sea levels to rise.

"Island nations contribute the least to this disaster but are made to suffer the weight of its consequences. Our governments and corporate entities have known for decades the immediate changes needed. Yet change still has not come," Momoa said in his speech.

The actor also called on leaders to honour the Paris Agreement, demanding "global unity for a global crisis".

The activist has also been campaigning to stop a 30 metre telescope from being placed on Hawaii's highest mountain Mauna Kea.

He ended his UN speech with a triangle hand gesture which is known as a show of support for the campaign.