Oceania Currents

The Hawaiʻi Triennial is Hawaiʻi’s largest, thematic exhibition of contemporary art from Hawai‘i, the Pacific, and beyond. Last year’s Hawaiʻi Triennial 2025 (HT25) shared the work of 49 artists and artist collectives around the theme "Aloha Nō." In this episode, we hear from one of the three co-curators of HT25, Noelle Kahanu, as well as three HT25 artists: Gisela McDaniel, a diasporic, Indigenou...

The concept of the Blue Pacific is central to Pacific regionalism. It serves as a narrative for rallying Pacific Islands countries to commitment to regionalism and collective diplomacy as well as a counter narrative to global geopolitical mappings. The Blue Pacific empowers Pacific Island countries by giving them agency to frame and tell their own narratives and map their region in context of incr...

In this two-part story, Oceania Currents dives into Guåhan’s rich and complex relationship with the Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC), produced with guest host Eva Aguon Cruz. In episode one, we hear from three leading CHamoru cultural practitioners as they reflect on their journeys through FestPAC, from Guåhan’s first participation in 1976 to today: Leonard Iriarte, master chanter an...

After the Cold War, US interest in the Pacific Islands waned. Assistance to Pacific Islands declined, and the US closed its embassies and consular offices in several Pacific Islands. However, China’s presence and influence in the Pacific Islands has triggered renewed interest from Western powers and a new geopolitical competition. In this episode, we speak with Prof. Kenneth Gofigan Kuper (Univers...

Between 1946 and 1996, the US, Great Britain and France tested over 300 nuclear weapons in the Pacific. The legacies of those nuclear weapons tests continue to affect Pacific Islanders and Islands today. In this episode, we speak with Nic Maclellan, an Australian journalist who has worked on nuclear issues in the Pacific for decades. After that, we talk story with Mililani Ganivet and Marie-Helene...

West Papua's ongoing struggle for independence is the longest and most violent independence struggle in Oceania. In this episode, we speak with Raki Ap and Koteka Wenda, two West Papuan activists who are spokespeople for the Free West Papua Campaign. They share their personal and family stories of struggle, their dreams of a free West Papua, and why this struggle is important to the region.

Climate change is the most important existential threat to the Pacific Islands, and Pacific Islanders have actively campaigned to address climate change issues, taking leadership at international forums such as the United Nations Conference of the Parties. In this episode, we talk with Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner, one of the most well-known Pacific Islander climate activists. She uses poetry, film, and...

Part 2 of a talk story about oral history with three leading scholars: Nepia Mahuika (Massey University), Davianna Pōmaikaʻi McGregor (UH Mānoa), and Ty Kāwika Tengan (UH Mānoa). "Oral History in the Pacific" features our three guests in conversation about storytelling practices in their home communities in Aotearoa New Zealand and Hawaiʻi. In Part 2, they share about how they came to oral history...

Part 1 of a talk story about oral history with three leading scholars: Nepia Mahuika (Massey University), Davianna Pōmaikaʻi McGregor (UH Mānoa), and Ty Kāwika Tengan (UH Mānoa). "Oral History in the Pacific" features our three guests in conversation about storytelling practices in their home communities in Aotearoa New Zealand and Hawaiʻi. In Part 1, they talk about kōrero tuku iho and moʻo ʻōlel...

Nothing Micro About Micronesia is a new play created by TeAda Productions and members of the Micronesian community in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, through a series of community workshops. It is a coming-of-age story about two Micronesian boys who encounter an unlikely place after a series of conflicts between them. In this episode, we speak with three cast members: Ova Saopeng (co-writer, co-director, cast)...

Since 2004, the International Oceanian Documentary Film Festival (FIFO) in Tahiti has showcased stories of the Pacific and promoted Pacific filmmakers. In 2023, a selection of past FIFO films were brought to Hawaiʻi for the first time, including Heretu Tetahiotupa's film "Patutiki: The Guardians of Marquesan Tattoo" (2019 Audience Prize Winner). In this episode, we are joined by filmmaker Heretu T...

Part 3 of a mini-series with guest host John Taukave (CPIS). "Rotuman Identity Through Storyliving" takes you along for a journey of reconnection through storytelling and music with Jon Kafoa, a Rotuman musician based in California. "Part 3: Reconnecting in Diaspora" shares Uncle Jon's experiences after his move to the U.S.

Part 2 of a mini-series with guest host John Taukave (CPIS). "Rotuman Identity Through Storyliving" takes you along for a journey of reconnection through storytelling and music with Jon Kafoa, a Rotuman musician based in California. "Part 2: Life in Rotuma" continues with Uncle Jon's musical influences on the island.

Part 1 of a mini-series with guest host John Taukave (CPIS). "Rotuman Identity Through Storyliving" takes you along for a journey of reconnection through storytelling and music with Jon Kafoa, a Rotuman musician based in California. "Part 1: Life in Rotuma" begins with Uncle Jon's early life in Rotuma.

A short bonus episode with Katerina Teaiwa discussing Project Banaba, a traveling exhibition that brings together rare historical archives and multimedia works to shed light on the history of phosphate mining on Banaba and the ongoing impacts on Banabans. Project Banaba most recently traveled to the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi.

Episode two of Oceania Currents continues our conversations with Emeritus Professor Terence Wesley-Smith, Professor Katerina Teaiwa (Australian National University), and CPIS Director Alexander Mawyer. We discuss the "Mānoa school" of Pacific studies, the founding of the Pacific studies teaching program at the Australian National University, Pacific studies pedagogies, and the future of the field.

Episode one of Oceania Currents takes you on a journey of stories about our home: the Center for Pacific Islands Studies (CPIS). We speak with three people who have worked and studied at CPIS and discuss what Pacific Studies means to each of them: Emeritus Professor Terence Wesley-Smith, Professor Katerina Teaiwa (Australian National University), and CPIS Director Alexander Mawyer.

A new podcast from the Center for Pacific Islands Studies bringing you voices, stories and conversations with criss-crossing currents between the past, present and future that flow deep and across Oceania, and beyond.