Abundant research on Pasifika issues 'heartening'

Chemistry, culture and kava were among themes explored at five days of Pasifika-focused conferences at Massey University’s Albany campus last week.

The abundance of research was a tribute to how well Pasifikans are doing in documenting and finding solutions for issues affecting their people post-migration, says Professor Sitaleki Finau.

Studies, films and poetry on diverse topics were presented at the three-day Talanoa Oceania 2011 conference. Everything from education, trade and economics to health, family violence and community development was canvassed. Other issues considered at the conference included language preservation, sport, art, sexuality, intergenerational conflict and even the ambiguous effects of research on study participants. More than 60 people from universities, and community and health organisations in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific region attended.

Seven new publications on Pasifika topics were launched at the end of the first conference, which was followed by the two-day Whenua Research Network conference for Massey’s Pasifika staff and students, with guest speaker Barry Coates from Oxfam New Zealand.

Tongan-born Professor Finau, Massey’s Director Pasifika, say the richness, depth and quality of research covering a wide range of issues at the back-to-back conferences was “heartening.”

“I’m encouraged by the fact that Pacific people have achieved a lot and have really affected things in the countries they migrate to,” he says. He presented a study, ironically, on research fatigue among Tongans recruited for numerous studies and data collection, concluding that new approaches are needed to maintain robust results.

He says the Talanoa Oceania conference's theme of celebrating how well Pacific people have done provides a counterpoint to predominantly negative statistics in media coverage of Pacific people.

While the conference was largely attended by Pasifika academics, he hopes more non-Pacific people with an interest in Pasifika research and developments will be keen to attend in the future. One who did attend this year was Associate Professor Tony Whincup, head of Massey’s School of Visual and Material Culture and chair of the College of Creative Arts’ Pasifika Committee.

Mr Whincup gave a talk on his study of meeting houses of Kiribati and the social effects of using imported material in their building and construction. He described the conference as “a wonderful mixture of concerns, methodologies and practical experience.”

“Many of the presentations were deeply felt and moving. Most I think had a tear in their eye on hearing the young child's poem of his parent’s drunkenness. Psychology to sport, sexual stigma to economics – wide-ranging papers in a conference small enough to have one presentation at a time encouraged us to listen to new concepts outside of our usual interests,” he says.

Professor Sir Mason Durie, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Maori and Pasifika) praised the work of seven Massey authors when he launched their publications. These included Nandika Rohini Currey’s public health postgraduate diploma study, Are Our Pacific Peoples OK? Improving Intimate Partner Violence Services for Pacific Peoples, exploring factors deterring Pacific Island people in New Zealand from getting the appropriate help in dealing with abusive relationships.

Faguele Suaalii’s study Misconceptions in Chemistry compares different approaches to teaching chemistry to high school pupils in Samoa and New Zealand, and education lecturer Dr Lesieli MacIntyre’s work explores how Tongan mothers contribute to their children’s learning. Economist, Associate Professor Rukmani Gounder, edited a collection of essays by various writers, titled Community Development and Managing Change for Growth among Pasifikans, covering education needs of New Zealand-born Pasifika children, poverty reduction in Fiji, indigenous nursing practice in Fiji, the fishing industry, marine conservation and more.

Other publications launched were Talanoa rhythms: Voices from Oceania, edited by Nasili Vaka’uta, an essay collection of perspectives on culture, community, family and identity, as well as the latest edition of the Pacific Health Dialog journal. It features studies on cancer incidence in Tonga, Fiji, Niue and Cook Islands, body image and obesity from Pasifika perspectives, domestic violence in Papua New Guinea, myths and facts about kava drinking, and reports on rheumatic fever in Samoa, dengue fever in Palau and cholera in Guam. A seventh publication in Tongan language by Paula Onoafe Latu explores aspects of the Tongan Methodist Church.