Small Islands, Big Issues: Pacific Perspectives on the Ecosystem of Knowledge

«This work highlights the need for a holistic approach to the confounding issues confronting the region, confronting our age. In reminding us of the many vulnerabilities and vitalities of Oceanian communities and island worlds, it shows the potential for dialogue between disciplines and consilience between academic scholarship and local community understandings. The collection’s clarion call for a new ‘ecosystem of knowledge’ is utterly timely.» (Alexander Mawyer, Director, Center for Pacific Islands Studies, University of Hawai‘i) «This work breaks the barriers imposed by language and distinctive intellectual traditions in presenting a wide-ranging selection of current work from the South Pacific in the humanities, social and natural sciences. Of particular significance is the fact that Francophone as well as Anglophone scholars are represented. This gathering of minds, a meritorious initiative of the University of French Polynesia, is an invitation to ‘think the Pacific’ in the vein of pioneer Oceanian intellectuals like Epeli Hau’ofa and Jean-Marie Tjibaou.» (Eric Waddell, Adjunct Professor, Université Laval, and Chercheur invité, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD), Nouméa) This work, an initiative of the University of French Polynesia, Tahiti, showcases research collaboration between small island universities in the Pacific. It addresses a number of «big issues» for Oceania which are also big issues for the world, concerning the biosphere and human society, sustainable development and well-being. The authors seek to create an ecosystem of knowledge through a dialogue, in English and French, between the natural sciences, the social sciences and the humanities. The work also brings into perspective academic and traditional knowledge, with a view to enhancing cultural and agricultural practices and the development of public policy. Climate change, environmental degradation and food security are key questions for survival. How can the preservation of cultural heritage, the transmission of native languages and the integration of traditional knowledge into formal education contribute to a harmonious future? How is the phenomenon of violence relevant to an understanding of history, interpersonal relations and social inclusiveness, including for women in the political sphere? The Tongan-Fijian writer Epeli Hau’ofa described Oceania imaginatively as a «Sea of Islands». This volume sees Pacific islands as being interconnected in ways beyond imagining, in which nowhere is remote, where the peripheral has become a decentred centre.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Ocean Contamination: A challenge for food security in small and remote tropical islands – Hunting, Extinction and Sustainability in the South Pacific: Complexities of conservation and local community engagement – Urban Agriculture, Traditional Food and Health in Melanesia: A multidisciplinary approach in Port Vila, Vanuatu – Complementarity of Scientific Analysis and Ancestral Knowledge Systems for Diversification of Food Sources: A case study of Pandanus from Jiwaka Province, Papua New Guinea – Human Capital Development and Research for Sustainable Harnessing of Natural Resources: Roles for universities in Small Island Developing States of the Pacific – Cultural Heritage, Arts and Sustainability in the Pacific: Indigenous knowledge systems and academic education – Mediating Cultures, Reconciling Antagonisms: The Place of imaginative literature in social construction in New Caledonia – Social Dynamics, Public Policy and Language Endangerment in Melanesia: An enduring enigma – Recherche académique et diversité linguistique : La contribution de LinkEast, base de données numérique, à l’étude de l’histoire des langues de Polynésie française / Academic Research and Language Diversity: The contribution of LinkEast, a digital data base, to the study of the language history of French Polynesia – Les pratiques familiales et scolaires pour revitaliser la transmission intergénérationnelle de la langue polynésienne / Revitalizing Intergenerational Transmission of Native Languages in French Polynesia: The role of the family and the education system – Namuu’je. Les médiations pluriartistiques pour un écosystème valorisant la pluralité des langues et des savoirs / Namuu’je. A Sustainable Ecosystem for a Plurality of Languages: Mediations across multiple art forms – Multilingualism in the Social Ecology of French Polynesia: Bridging the gap between Additional Language Learning research and classroom practices – Réflexion sur la parité en Polynésie française / Gender Equality in Political Representation in the Pacific: The case of French Polynesia – Spectrums of Indo- Fijian Women’s Identity: Literary representations of emancipation in the new millennium – Du sang sur la carte postale : Représentation et esthétique de la violence dans la fiction francophone du Pacifique / Blood on the Postcard: Representation and the aesthetics of violence in French- language Pacific literature – Littérature de langue autochtone en contexte diglossique : dynamiques socio- littéraires et politiques à l'oeuvre à Tahiti au XXIième siècle / Native Language Literature in a Diglossic Context: Socio- literary and political dynamics in contemporary Tahiti – Violence in Post- contact Polynesia: Understandings and misunderstandings of indigenous ‘pirates’ – Anticiper les conséquences économiques pour le tourisme d’une petite destination insulaire : l’exemple de la Polynésie française / The Economics of Tourism in a Small Island Destination (French Polynesia): Opportunities and fragilities – A Comparative Study of Tourism in Pacific Islands: Gravity models in economics and paradoxes of geography and culture.

About the Author :
Peter Brown is Professor in the EASTCO Research Centre for Oceanian Cultures, University of French Polynesia, and a member of the Pacific Institute, Australian National University, and the editorial board of the interdisciplinary journal Hermès (CNRS, Paris). Nabila Gaertner-Mazouni is Professor in Marine Biology (UMR EIO) and Vice-President for Research at the University of French Polynesia. She specializes in the ecology of molluscs and the integrated management of ecosystems, analysing the impact of human activities with a view to sustainable development.