18 Feb 2022
A few remarkable wins for Pacific women in local politics
But what is far too often the exception should become the norm.
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11 Feb 2022
Kick-starting America’s Pacific diplomacy
Trying to force a “choice” with China would be a mistake. But US can win plenty of good will living up to its promises. -
18 Jan 2022
Bang for buck: Getting the most out of Pacific Islander remittances
Cash sent by family abroad is essential for local economies but doesn’t come cheap. -
16 Dec 2021
Team Pacific serves up a revolution: Interpreter 2021 favourites
A reality TV cooking show that is about so much more than simply food. -
22 Nov 2021
Forecasting vaccination in the Pacific
In the race to protect populations, big parts of the region have fallen well behind. -
18 Nov 2021
Economic diplomacy: Remaking the Pacific house
Two new studies provide the building plans for Australia’s regional infrastructure boom. -
4 Nov 2021
Economic diplomacy: Supply chains, sanctions, and Telstra Pacific
From ports to productivity, the pandemic has only exposed longstanding economic resilience issues in Australia. -
25 Oct 2021
Australia and Digicel: Hands-off no more?
Financing the takeover of a Pacific telco firm amounts to a marked shift in the government’s industrial philosophy. -
12 Oct 2021
Line in the sand: How sea-level rise is challenging international law
For island nations climate change poses not only a physical threat but a legal dilemma, too. -
30 Sep 2021
China’s declining Pacific aid presence
Beijing is becoming less generous. New data suggests 2018 was a high water mark for China’s aid to the region. -
17 Sep 2021
Safeguarding Pacific Island seas starts with indigenous knowledge
A new declaration by Pacific leaders on maritime zone preservation helps, but must also allow for cultural dialogue. -
26 Aug 2021
Economic diplomacy: After Kabul, Australia looks to India
Australia has a lower war-to-aid ratio, but the US is more transparent about its failure against the Taliban. -
11 Aug 2021
Pacific needs partnership, not just leadership
Richard Marles on a multidimensional regional challenge, from aid and migration to climate change and strategic denial. -
6 Aug 2021
Refreshing American soft power in the Pacific Islands
Tales of past wars no longer resonate. The US has better stories to tell, not least of its own stumbles with democracy. -
23 Jul 2021
Shouldering their fair share? The ANZUS allies in the Pacific Islands
A reported pivot by special forces to the region raises questions about the role expected of Australia and New Zealand. -
5 Jul 2021
Aiding the Pacific during Covid: An update
While the money is flowing, the outlook for the region has also darkened considerably. -
21 Jun 2021
The risks of escalating strategic competition in the Pacific Islands
Becoming tangled in power politics can create divisions between – as well as within – nations across the region. -
8 Jun 2021
Samoa’s constitutional crisis and the dangers that have gone before
Leadership turmoil in Samoa bears striking similarities to a stand-off in Papua New Guinea barely a decade earlier. -
13 Apr 2021
A fast end to an era of political dominance in Samoa
The Human Rights Protection Party has been in power almost continuously for nearly 40 years. Perhaps no longer. -
26 Mar 2021
Facebook’s monopoly danger in the Pacific
The social media giant’s move to “unfriend” Australia highlighted complex threats to information security in the region. -
8 Mar 2021
Private sector progress in women’s leadership in the Pacific
Women’s representation in politics across the region still lags. But a positive change is occurring in business. -
10 Feb 2021
What next for Pacific regionalism?
The achievements of the Pacific Islands Forum should not be missed amid the rancour. There is still a chance for repair. -
9 Feb 2021
Does it really matter if the Pacific Islands Forum falls apart?
Last week’s fiasco over electing a new leader revealed an organisation too fragile to confront big challenges. -
8 Feb 2021
Pacific development outlook for 2021
The economic toll of the pandemic will take years to recover from, but signs of progress are starting to appear. -
4 Feb 2021
A bruising 24 hours in the Pacific
An eruption over the the next PIF Secretary General and a university bust-up reveal a region divided. -
29 Jan 2021
Islands apart: Competing campaigns risk Pacific consensus for top job
The race for the next Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General spurs unprecedented competition and regional friction. -
19 Jan 2021
Australia’s Pacific Step-up and the Quad
The four nations should take the chance to draw together a group of common initiatives in the Pacific islands region. -
22 Dec 2020
The modern sharing of Pacific “public goods”
A repository for regional data not only preserves the lessons of the past, but will shape a better future, too. -
16 Dec 2020
Avoiding a “lost decade” in the Pacific
Remoteness has helped the Pacific mitigate the worst health risks in the pandemic – but not the severe economic costs. -
10 Dec 2020
Favourites of 2020: Casting a line in Pacific fisheries
The feel-good story of eight apparently vulnerable Pacific nations up against every major fishing economy in the world. -
1 Dec 2020
The UK’s unwelcome foreign aid cut
Amid a pandemic and shifting geopolitics, the aid budget was a victim of its own size – and domestic pressures. -
6 Nov 2020
Next steps in advocating for the Pacific Islands Forum
The island nations must get out to “sell a story and ideas” in Washington, and beyond. -
27 Oct 2020
Preparing for when climate change drives people from their homes
Combating Covid in the Pacific is hard enough. Add cyclones, droughts and flooding to the mix, the time to act is now. -
16 Oct 2020
Keeping West Papua on the agenda
During Covid, the independence campaign could have been forgotten. But a new generation of activists is forging ahead. -
8 Oct 2020
Health spending and foreign aid in the Pacific
The newest Pacific Aid Map, with nearly a decade of project-level data for the region, helps shine a light on health. -
29 Sep 2020
Evaluating aid in the Pacific
A common rating system could make aid evaluation less opaque. Better yet, it could deliver more bang for precious bucks. -
9 Sep 2020
Debunking the myth of China’s “debt-trap diplomacy”
Never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence. -
27 Aug 2020
Australia needs the workers, the Pacific needs the jobs
Striking the right balance between backpackers and the seasonal workers is key to Canberra’s neighbourhood ambition. -
5 Aug 2020
The way to post-Covid recovery in the Indo-Pacific? Act now
If Australia wants to see future stability in the region, it needs to find ways to help today, not down the track. -
30 Jul 2020
Pacific islands: The cost to tomorrow of the crisis today
The brunt of the Covid-19 recession will be borne by developing nations, where youth populations are dominant. -
30 Jun 2020
Chequebook diplomacy in the Pacific: Not just the big fish
Small donors seeking UN Security Council seats are providing more aid to Pacific nations. -
23 Jun 2020
Culture, constitution and controversy in Samoa
What’s behind the proposed bills to codify Samoan customs in law? -
18 Jun 2020
Hard knocks at University of the South Pacific
Claims and counter-claims of corruption have cast a pall over the management of a key regional institution. -
4 Jun 2020
Aiding the Pacific during Covid – a stock-take and further steps
Money is flowing, but the proportion of support is well below amounts advanced economies are deploying for themselves. -
29 May 2020
COVIDcast: Dame Meg Taylor on keeping Pacific Islands safe
The latest episode in a podcast to discuss the implications of coronavirus for Australia, the region and the world. -
28 May 2020
Can Pacific airlines pull out of the dive?
National carriers, many already struggling, have been hit hard in the Covid-19 crisis and will need to adapt to survive. -
20 May 2020
West Papua: Looking for an opening
Allowing more access would be an important first step to ending human rights abuses in the troubled Indonesian province. -
15 May 2020
COVIDcast Episode 11: Dave Sharma MP on COVID-19 and Pacific relations
The latest episode in a podcast to discuss the implications of coronavirus for Australia, the region, and the world. -
8 May 2020
Samoa’s constitutional crisis: Undermining rule of law
Amid the Covid-19 emergency, a set of legal amendments threatens judicial independence and human rights. -
7 May 2020
Creating a Pacific bubble
Australia’s special ties with Pacific Islands and New Zealand offer a chance to ensure mutual safety and prosperity.