Imin Conference Center
1777 East-West Road
Honolulu, Hawai‘i
14–18 November 2000
The year 2000 was the fiftieth anniversary of the Center for Pacific Islands Studies at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa. It was an opportune time to honor the hard work of past directors, faculty, staff, and students of the Center in the School of Hawaiian, Asian & Pacific Studies. It was also a fitting time, at the end of fifty years and on the eve of a new millennium, to reflect on the study of the Pacific, to discuss what had worked well in the last fifty years, and what changes could be made that would keep the Center’s programs relevant and dynamic. To this end, this conference brought together scholars from around the world to discuss and debate three contemporary issues of concern to Pacific Studies: decolonizing Pacific studies, interdisciplinary approaches, and new technologies and pedagogies.
We also explored ways in which Pacific studies programs around the world might establish links and share resources. Two invited papers focused on this concept, which was discussed by a panel comprising directors of Pacific Studies programs around the Pacific. Throughout the conference participants in the audience had ample opportunities to air their views.
No less important at this conference were several very special evening events. The first was a unique presentation of art and dance by Epeli Hau‘ofa, Director of the Oceania Centre for Culture and the Arts, in Suva, Fiji, and Allan Alo, Katerina Teaiwa, and Linda Savage, three dancers from the Oceania Dance Theater; the second was the launching of a CD of poetry and music by Sia Figiel and Teresia Teaiwa, along with a new book of poems by Richard Hamasaki. An opening reception featured music by the Kava Boys, and a closing night dinner and dancing featured the music of the Te Hina o te Moana.
The conference, convened by Vilsoni Hereniko, was open to the
public. It was also videotaped by Dennis Ragsdale and shown on
‘Olelo Community Television in Hawai‘i. The conference schedule is available on-line. Those interested
in the topics addressed at the conference were invited to post their
comments before and during the conference on an on-line discussion board. The
conference was
made possible by the Center’s grant from International Education and
Graduate Programs, US Department of Education. For more
information, contact Tisha Hickson at
ctisha@hawaii.edu, tel (808) 956-2652, fax (808) 956-7053.