From The Crowd

Opinion | Global financial system … The impact on Fiji and Pacific islands

The Asian Development Bank-Asian Think Tank Development Pacific Island Economies forum is timely because Fiji and the countries of the Blue Pacific are beginning to show their restlessness at the pace of reform of the...

FEATURE | Bullying, body shaming: Counselling makes woman mentally strong

BULLYING and body shaming may not be a common occurrence in schools in Fiji but they are known to happen. Some students are able to either fight off the bullies or tell their teachers, parents or someone else about them. But, there are others who tend to keep things bottled up thus resulting in them...

OPINION | Across the divide: school experiences – Part 5

THE last article in this series on Crossing the Divide focused on the reunion at Holy Cross College that I had the good fortune of attending on the chiefly island of Taveuni in August this year. There were many snippets in that article that I could not expand on because of the space constraints involved...

Power in cooperation

AT the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) summit in Jakarta, President of Indonesia Joko Widodo pleaded with the world’s big powers to “strengthen cooperation, not sharpen rivalries”. “I don’t know how many words of peace and stability we utter at every meeting… peace and stability are key to achieving prosperity,” he said at...

29th September

Our ocean, our home

The new chapter of the law of the sea, which opened in June with the adoption of the Agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) is now ready to be written. Today, it officially opens for signature and what a delight that the first country...

28th September

Pacific climate warrior | Calls fuel industry out

Pacific youth climate champion Suluafi Brianna Fruean has likened her first time in the United Nations building to primary school. “It was my first time being in the (UN) General Assembly space,” Suluafi said. “I sat there and I was watching everyone and it kind of reminded me of a mock UN we did when...

What’s happening today!

Bula vinaka everyone. Here is another edition of some basic information you may need to know for today. First, here is your weather forecast for today: Weather A trough of low pressure remains slow moving over the Associated cloud and rain are expected to affect most parts of the group till later today. Occasional rain,...

27th September

Cyber security in Fiji

Defence forces from around the world are in a sudden rush to buy long-range strike missiles. Japan flagged a need for them in its recent National Security Strategy. The US is upping production of its long-range precision strike arsenal. Australia has announced a plan to build its own. The Missile Age, as some have dubbed...

25th September

Global warming to global boiling

Movers and shakers in the fight against climate change are gathering for the United Nation’s Climate Ambition Summit in New York Wednesday September 20, while climate scientists and Pacific activists call on Australia to ramp up its own ambitions. The summit comes as the Australia Institute has published a full-page ad in the New York...

24th September

Tonga’s rusting iron avenue | 30,000 abandoned cars

The Kingdom of Tonga looks like paradise, but its lush coconut palms nurse a hidden problem that threatens the health of its people. Thousands of cars are imported here every year, but, due to the cost of removing them, they never leave. When a car comes to the end of its life, it’s usually abandoned....

By the sweat of our brows

Many years ago on at least two separate occasions I drove with some friends from Sydney to Somersby on the Central Coast of New South Wales to visit an open air museum and theme park known then as Old Sydney Town, before it was converted into a movie location in 2003. The set up was...

Maui fire | Fiji man hailed a hero in Lahaina

Part 1 Man from Savusavu, Cakaudrove has been hailed a hero in the United States for the part he played in providing assistance during the recent Lahaina wildfire on Maui, Hawaii. On August 8, wildfires swept across Maui and killed at least 97 people, making it one of the America’s deadliest disasters. For weeks, the...

Good fats, bad fats, salt and cholesterol

Fats, oils, salt and cholesterol are all factors that have a significant bearing on our health, particularly in middle to later life. How often do we hear of an untimely death of a close friend or relative from some sort of heart-related incident. A closer look at the factors in our diets may help us...

Care for your mind, body, and spirit

Bula Fiji! Thank you for taking time out to read Bula Vakasaama, a column dedicated dicated to enlightening readers about practical strategies for optimal mental health and mind wellness. Today, I’d like to invite you to appreciate the importance of self-care. Society has conditioned us to put others’ needs before our own, however, it is...