The Pacific Islands Universities Regional Network (PIURN) Members gathered in Port-Vila, Vanuatu, for their annual Board Meeting, on Tuesday, October 15th, 2024.
The National University of Vanuatu hosted the Vice-Chancellors and their representatives from the network member universities, from Fiji, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Tonga. National University of Samoa and the University of French Polynesia participated online to the discussions.
PIURN universities shared updates on collaborative research projects through PIURN Call for Proposals, as well as regional initiatives including “Family Farming, Lifestyle and Health” FALAH Project, RERIPA Calls and Pacific Women Lead – PWL funded project on Gender barriers in Pacific universities.
Mr Jean-Pierre Nirua, Vice-Chancellor of the National University of Vanuatu, welcomed the participants by highlighting that “the cooperation between Pacific Island universities is essential for advancing research and academic excellence in our region. PIURN plays a pivotal role in fostering collaborative projects, sharing knowledge, and empowering our institutions to contribute to the development of the Pacific”.
Founded in 2013 under the name Pacific Islands Universities Research Network, PIURN is a consortium of 15 universities from the Pacific Islands countries and territories, aiming to enable closer and meaningful collaboration among researchers in the consortium, and to collectively empower the Pacific Universities to become key contributors to finding solutions for challenges facing the region. The network is co-chaired by the University of New Caledonia (UNC) and The University of the South Pacific (USP).
Pr Catherine Ris, President of UNC, reminded the participants of the Board Meeting “the strength of PIURN resides on our common capacity of working together, to support our academic staff, our students and contributing to the advancement of research to respond to the challenges faced by our region”.
The discussions of the 2024 Board Meeting included implementation of new collaborative projects, such as regional training for PIURN PhD students, staff mobility between member universities and the development of PIURN, with a reaffirming commitment from the member universities to support their collaborative effort and build their capacity through research collaboration and academic cooperation.
Pr Pal Ahluwalia, Vice-Chancellor and President of USP, indicated that “academic institutions must foster an inclusive environment where every voice is heard, and every perspective is valued. Diversity within research teams is not just a strength—it is a necessity, and our region is so diverse that we can do amazing things via this network”.
The participants also discussed the upcoming 2025 PIURN Conference to be hosted by PNG University of Technology (PNGUoT), in Lae, Papua New Guinea.
The Board Meeting concluded with a closing dinner offered by the National University of Vanuatu.