August 20, 2021. Suva, Fiji Islands – A University of the South Pacific (USP) student, Ms Salanieta Kitolelei, has published the first i-Taukei titled journal article, Na Vuku Makawa ni Qoli: Indigenous Fishing Knowledge (IFK) in Fiji and the Pacific, in the multidisciplinary open-access journal, The Frontiers Marine Science Journal, as a Literature Review.
This was made possible through a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) scholarship awarded to Ms Kitolelei, by the University of the South Pacific (USP) as part of the Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP) Programme funded by the European Union and the Government of Sweden.
This journal is the first chapter of Ms Kitolelei’s, PhD thesis due to be completed in 2023 “Shifting baselines in Fiji’s marine and inland fisheries – using Traditional Environmental Knowledge (TEK) as an indicator for recovering keystone species” and the research area focuses on community-based approach to fisheries management.
Ms Kitolelei said, “writing this manuscript was an important opportunity to carry out a survey on fishing and traditional knowledge that was written about the Pacific Islands and Fiji since 1769. The challenge was worth the effort with a dynamic team of co-authors and rigorous editors. The manuscript gives us a glimpse into an entirely different and fascinating world of traditional knowledge which exists in the Pacific, for over a millennia”.
However the literature review shows there is a need to document traditional knowledge of marine and freshwater systems in the Pacific Islands region.
The USP is one of four key implementing partners of the overall PEUMP Programme and focuses on building the capacity for Pacific islanders through education, training, research and development in fisheries and marine resources management.
The overall EUR 45million Programme promotes sustainable management and sound ocean governance for food security and economic growth, while addressing climate change resilience and conservation of marine biodiversity. It follows a comprehensive approach, integrating issues related to ocean and coastal fisheries, community development, marine conservation and capacity building under one single regional action.
The journal can be found here : https://bit.ly/3xJxwhI
For more information
Josephine Prasad, USP PEUMP Programme, Communications Specialist, +679 9922098, eupeupm(at)gmail.com
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