Pacific Islands Political Studies Association Conference Held at Victoria University of Wellington
For the first time since its establishment nearly 40 years ago, the Pacific Islands Political Studies Association (PIPSA) held its conference here in Wellington. With support from New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Delegation of the European Union in New Zealand, the Australian High Commission, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, and Victoria University of Wellington, the event – under the overall thematic heading of “The Pacific Islands: Zone of Peace of Ocean of Discontent?” – began on the evening of 19 February with a reception at Parliament, at the Beehive Banquet Hall, and an opening address from New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rt Hon Winston Peters. The following two days saw almost 100 speakers address a wide range of topics, with presentations from scholars, postgraduate students, political figures, journalists and NGO staff.
The opening keynote was given by Professor Transform Aqorau, Vice-Chancellor of Solomon Islands National University, who was introduced by our own Vice-Chancellor Prof. Nic Smith. Professor Transform delivered a masterful address, which powerfully argued the Pacific Islands have agency and a sense of their own priorities and are not mere pieces on a chessboard for global competition. You can read the speech here: https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/strategic-studies/news/css-news-items/navigating-the-currents-of-change-the-pacific-in-an-era-of-geopolitical-fluidity.
The following two days hosted 25 panels on a wide range of topics, with presentations from scholars, postgraduate students, political figures, journalists and NGO staff. PIPSA’s president, renowned Pacific scholar Professor Stephanie Lawson, opened the final session praising the way in which the members of the organising committee had worked together, producing what she described as the most well attended PIPSA conference held to date.
Panels across the next two days touched on geopolitics, economic challenges, domestic politics, and development, security and environmental issues. The conference included a second keynote from PIPSA president and distinguished Pacific scholar Stephanie Lawson, and it closed with remarks from Professor Stephen Levine, who had been present at the creation of PIPSA 40 years earlier. The organization was a team effort by David Capie, Jon Fraenkel, Iati Iati, Jason Young , Adrian Muckle, Marion Crawshaw (Centre for Strategic Studies) and Terence Wood (ANU). A special thanks to Mengdi Zhang, a valued member of the team – now an experienced “Events Organiser” – and to a number of students who assisted in welcoming visitors and facilitating this special PIPSA gathering.