Turmoil in PNG

PNG has been riven by looting and political instability after police departed their posts due to salary deductions.

Leadership in the Pacific

The South Pacific has strong societies but weak states, and the social traditions which hold them together are beginning to shift and fade, underlining the importance of better Australian leadership in the region.

Now with added fibre

Internet connectivity is vital to the whole Indo-Pacific, and the Australian government sees investment in a more connected region as a means to foster both development and regional security.

Australia and the Pacific

Australia is seemingly focused on the red centre and the wealth generated by its vast farms and mines. Ian Hoskins’ book is a useful antidote to this inland fixation by retelling Australia’s long-standing relationship with the Pacific.

Europe and the Indo-Pacific

In a world of geopolitical turbulence and great power rivalry, three recent high-level meetings illustrate the strong and shared interest that the EU and the Indo-Pacific countries have in enhancing their collective security, prosperity and resilience.

Defence diplomacy in the Pacific

Rather than encouraging bilateralism, Australia’s defence diplomacy should advance an approach that bolsters cooperation and capacity to respond to security challenges under the auspices of regional institutions such as the Pacific Islands Forum.

The other side of the story

Female journalists in the Pacific are mobilising to work together against gender discrimination in male dominated workplaces.

Prospects for PNG

PNG’s economy has rebounded since the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing it to host important foreign leaders, reduce the fiscal deficit and introduce exchange rate reforms, but PNG may be entering a period of political uncertainty that puts all these gains at risk.

The populous Pacific

Pacific researchers from the the University of Auckland are modelling the population dynamics of the region’s 13 million people, a figure projected to become 20 million by 2050.

Union sundown

The Falepili Union and previous flexible sovereignty arrangements show potential for innovation even as the Pacific faces serious and complex challenges, originating from both within and outside the region.

An Indigenous ocean

Geopolitical inequalities in the Pacific should be taken into account in research, scholarship and analysis in the region.

Vanua in the age of climate change

Great power rivalry and climate-induced migration are frequently discussed in discourse about the effects of climate change in the Pacific, but we must not forget the implications for human security.