By Michelle Curran
Strategic Communications, Pasifika TV
The deeply rooted connection between island nations in the Pacific and the ocean is being explored by a talented group of Young Pacific Leaders (YPL), at the Tiaki Moana Summit and Workshop in Pōrīnetia Farāni this week.
A 44-strong YPL contingent, representing 22 countries, has descended on Motu Ovini, at Teva-I-Uta, Tahiti Nui for a traditional welcome (fa’ari’ira’a), ‘ava ceremony and shared meal prepared by the Teva-I-Uta community.
Set to take place in Tahiti, Mo’orea and Raia’tea over the next week, Tiaki Moana is focussed on ocean health and prosperity in the region.
This is the first time a YPL workshop is being staged in French Polynesia, and the traditional welcome at Motu Ovini feels especially poignant for 23-year-old participant, Ihirau Piton from Mahina, Tahiti Nui.
He joins leaders, aged between 20-35 years old, from Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, American Samoa, Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Hawaii for Tiaki Moana.
Young Pacific Leaders representing 22 countries are welcomed by the Teva-I-Uta community in Tahiti Nui ahead of Tiaki Moana.
A third-year Polynesian Languages and Social Sciences student at the University of French Polynesia, Ihirau says being nominated for YPL, and attending an event with so many other Pacific leaders in his homeland, is a dream come true.
“For so many years, French Polynesia has been in a bubble and separated from the rest of the Pacific,” Ihirau says.
“We have lost our connection with most of the Pacific, but this kind of event brings people from all over the region together, and reminds us we are not alone, and we can ask our Pacific cousins if we need answers to challenges we face, and we can also share our knowledge.”
Clément Vergnhes, President of the Rahui Federation and Assistant to the Mayor of Teva-I-Uta, helped lead the traditional welcome for the YPL group, and says he feels honored to be a part of an event which brings people from all over the Pacific back together.
“My advice to our future leaders here is the ocean was provided to us from the gods, and we need to be aware the ocean is not an object but something we rely on to survive.”
Tiaki Moana gets underway on March 24 with an official opening at the Présidence De La Polynésie Française (Presidential Palace) in Pape’ete.
Addressing shared concerns around ocean health and prosperity is a priority goal of Tiaki Moana, which is a precursor to the United Nations Oceans Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, France.
It is anticipated selected YPL participants will travel to France, to present preliminary outcomes from this week’s summit and workshop at UNOC3, in June.
Visit the Tiaki Moana website for more information on the summit and the Young Pacific Leaders website for more details on the US Department of State initiative.
