The Fiscal Year 2021 budget recently released by the White House has captured the attention of Pacific watchers. The Trump administration’s goal to “frustrate Chinese efforts to shape the Indo-Pacific in its image” as part of their larger desire to re-calibrate from the global war on terror to “focusing on… read more
Room to Step-Up: Australia’s Bid to Maintain Influence in Oceania (2/2)
Australia’s preeminent role in the Pacific may be subject to change. While many think the looming threat to Australian leadership is increased Chinese interest in the region, the greater threat may very well be Australia’s response, or lack thereof, to regional climate threats. This article series explores Australia’s partnership with… read more
Learning Exchange: How Collaboration Can Facilitate Adaptation
The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme began a five year initiative titled the Pacific Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change Project (PEBACC). This initiative includes the governments of Fiji, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu and through this project, these governments are able to collaborate with one another as well as… read more
Room to Step-Up: Australia’s Bid to Maintain Influence in Oceania (1/2)
As China becomes increasingly assertive in Oceania, Australia seeks to reinforce and strengthen ties with its Pacific neighbors. However, its success in reengaging the Pacific will depend on its willingness to step up on climate issues. Australia has long been perhaps the preeminent partner to the Pacific. It is the… read more
Perspectives on Chinese Lending and Implications for Oceania
This blog was updated on 7 March 2020 from its original version. China’s lending levels and loan-issuing practices are increasingly topics of analysis for governments and policy wonks. Assessing China’s intentions, its massive Marshall Plan-esque foreign development strategy — the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) — and stories of debt… read more
The Pacific Reset: New Zealand Re-Engages Oceania
Earlier this year, New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Winston Peters, visited the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. In the Solomon Islands, Peters signed a new Statement of Partnership with Solomon Islands’ Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade Jeremiah Manele, and he pledged New Zealand’s support for… read more
I’m the Map, I’m the Map, I’m the Map, but What am I Saying?
As the group crosses into serious data collection and needs visual tools to help express important data trends across geography, it is good time to list the challenges of hot spot mapping as it relates to Oceania. It’s important to remember, hot spot maps are supporting graphics, illustrating geographic trends… read more
Example of a Melanesian Consciousness: Decolonization Music
Beginning in the 2010s, a musical movement throughout Melanesia that protests the colonization of West Papua, and, to a lesser extent, New Caledonia, developed. Decolonization music tends to be created at the grassroots level, with artists utilizing social media and other Internet platforms to share their music. A noteworthy component of… read more
Oceania in Diaspora: Poetic Revelations
Communities living in diaspora commonly express their experiences through various art forms. For Oceania diaspora communities, poetry has served as a common medium through which individuals discuss living in diaspora. In addition to writing about the diasporic experience, some of these poets have also emphasized ‘Pacifikizsing’ literature by “debunking the… read more
Oceania – An External Battleground in Cross-Strait Relations (Part 2 of 2)
Last blog post, I discussed the competition between Taiwan and China over Taiwan’s autonomy, and how this is driving Chinese foreign policy in Oceania. In the second part of a two-part blog post series, I will explore the broader geopolitical and climate issues connected to the Taiwan-China contest over Taiwan’s… read more