Tagaloatele Peggy Fairbairn Dunlop is an Emeritus Professor at Aukland University of Technology and was the institute’s founding teacher of Pacific Studies. Tagaloatele has been an academic for more than 35 years, with research spanning across development, gender equality and youth equity. Among her long list of professional achievements, Tagaloatele was one of the commissioners on Samoa's national inquiry into family violence in 2017. 

Climate change has seen entire coastal communities relocate, from Cateret Islands in Bougainville to the village of Vunidogoloa on Vanua Levu, Fiji.

Less than 9 per cent of national parliamentarians in the Pacific are women, but in the business sector women are rising to the top.

What's it like to be the only woman on board a fishing vessel, miles from land and away from your family for weeks?

From Nafanua, the Samoan goddess of war, to ending a civil war in Bougainville – the power of women is without a doubt embedded in Pacific history. But when you hear the word ‘chief’, do you still think of a man? Let’s blow the stereotype out of the water and meet the women across the Pacific who hold this rank and those who have stood in their traditional power, despite the impacts of colonisation, Christianity and western political systems. 

What do you know about perimenopause? I would guess not very much. And that’s because we never speak about it – and that’s not just in the Pacific. It’s worldwide. But Sistas, Let’s Talk is going to break it down for you and find out everything you need to know about the changes our bodies can go through in the lead up to menopause…. As well as why it’s so important to know about them.

In the Marshall Islands, a baby turning one is a big celebration. It’s known as the kemem. The occasion is usually marked with a big gathering with lots of food and entertainment, perhaps a live band or a DJ along with traditional singing. There can be themes, rides and t-shirts bearing the baby’s face plus gifts for all the guests. But this tradition comes from an important place. Sistas, Let’s Talk learns about the customs and history when it comes to the kemem as well as post-partum practices of Marshallese women.   

When Moemoana Schwenke took to the stage for her talent at Miss Samoa 2023, she had the crowd roaring. Not only did she perform the siva afi – a fire knife dance normally performed by men – but she did it to The Prodigy’s Fire Starter – and she told the legend of Nafanua, the Goddess of War. This is what you call breaking stereotypes. But she’s not the only young Pacific woman doing this on the pageant circuit. Sistas, Let's Talk meets the beauty queens breaking down barriers.

Changes to Australia’s PALM scheme have been life-changing to many families across the Pacific. We’ve heard from women who have made the sacrifice for their families, signing up to contracts that can be as long as three years. For those in Australia, it is often a culture shock, lonely and isolating. But what is it like for those left behind? Pacific governments have raised concerns about the brain drain and there are the personal costs too. We hear anecdotally of women being abandoned by their husbands – or those husbands finding another partner overseas. In Fiji and Vanuatu, there are reports of children being abandoned. So while there may be money flowing in, what are the societal and economic impacts at home? And what are communities doing to ensure the PALM scheme doesn’t drive families apart or leave communities and local businesses in the lurch? 

Work programs like the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility Scheme promise opportunities that can be really appealing.