We often think of the ocean as a vast, unknown entity, separate from land. Yet, the two are deeply connected: water, nutrients, organisms, and energy constantly move between them.
Without the sea, there is no land, without land, no sea. This connection shapes the Pacific countries and territories, where 98 per cent of their area is ocean. Often called “big ocean states”, these nations are shaped by marine life, including turtles and fish, as well as the salty scent of sea breezes, which is an integral part of daily life.
At the Pacific Islands Ocean Conference, speakers of the “Inspiring and engaging ocean: the ocean in us” session emphasised the ocean as a source of inspiration and connection — a symbol of infinity for artists, a return to roots for islanders shaped by migration, and a source of knowledge for scientists.
The ocean is both our teacher and our challenge. As the late Pacific poet Teresia Teaiwa wrote, “We sweat and cry salt water, so we know that the ocean is really in our blood.”
Simon Salopuka highlighted traditional navigation and cultural continuity, while Neil Nuia explored the use of storytelling for ocean stewardship. Chloe Molou spoke about reviving coastal knowledge through intergenerational learning, and Genezy Ilolahia, along with Suelaki Tiatia, discussed storytelling across generations and ocean identity. Caisy Ata shared her early-career experience at sea, and Dorothy Wickam celebrated cultural resilience through the Roviana Lagoon Festival.
The ocean to inspire us
Since ancient times, the ocean has been a source of inspiration. Neil Nuia, Artistic Director of Dreamcast Theatre in the Solomon Islands, shared his experience working closely with local communities: “The sea connects us: it teaches us rhythm, patience, and the art of listening”.
With the youth-led artist collective from Dreamcast Theatre, which he co-founded, Neil and his fellow artists have been reimagining theatre not simply as a form of entertainment, but as a vessel for stewardship and dialogue guided by culture. In Waitoto of South Malaita, Lepi of Isabel, and Pusiju of Vella La Vella, his team has collaborated with elders, youth, and women to integrate participatory art-making and storytelling with Community-Based Resource Management.
For Neil and his team, the ocean is the story itself; art becomes the canoe, and the performers are the navigators, carrying audiences across tides and interpreting hope through resilient songs.
In their journey to draw inspiration from the ocean, journalists Genezy Ilolahia and Suelaki Tiatia shared that the sea influenced their choice of medium, the podcasts, as their primary means of communicating stories. Hence, The Moanan is a media platform that shares the stories of Pacific Islanders and aims to help them reconnect with their roots.
“As our ancestors voyaged across the ocean, they took with them stories – memories, experiences and knowledge of home. Today, we continue this same oral tradition but in new media. We created a media platform using podcasting, social media, and talanoa to keep alive the spirit of storytelling about where we come from, who we are, and what we are.
These new forms allow us to reach our people wherever they may be in the world and in a way they can engage with their ancestral stories in ways that fit them”.
Over in Vanuatu, Chloe Molou, member of the Erromango Cultural Association, is working on the “Netai en Namou Toc project” (Stories of Our Mother Ocean) to record and bring back old ocean stories and coastal knowledge. In the face of climate change, the project preserves ancestral knowledge and promotes the transmission of traditional ocean knowledge from one generation to the next.
Like waves carrying stories from one shore to another, these creators show how the ocean continues to inspire new ways of expression, connecting people and voices across the Pacific.
The ocean to shape our identity
In the Pacific region, the ocean shapes people’s wellbeing, culture, and traditions. Dr Simon Salopuka, Founder and Executive Director of the Vaka Taumako Project, explains that voyaging is deeply connected to ancestral pride and identity:
“The ocean remembers how people moved and found new places — just as our ancestors settled islands across the Pacific thousands of years ago. To navigate is to keep their cultural identity alive and to honour their history.”
Building and launching boats has long been a communal practice and remains central to his organisation’s mission. Every stage, from constructing the canoe to setting sail, is a collective effort rooted in cooperation and shared purpose. In this way, the ocean becomes a social space that unites people through interdependence and belonging.
Canoes such as Tepuke and Uto ni Yalo have brought joy and sparked a cultural revival across the Pacific. This tradition is carried forward through educational programs that teach young people the art of navigation and canoe building.
Today, navigators also serve as guardians of the sea, linking ancient respect for nature with modern principles of environmental stewardship.
A journalist from the Solomon Islands, Dorothy Wickham, confirmed this statement. She used the Roviana Lagoon Festival as an example. This festival marks the return of the traditional Tomoko war canoe. “During the festival, people can feel connected to their community’s history again through displays of war canoes, weaving, and swimming in the lagoon, which are all signs of pride, tradition, and unity,” she mentions.
The ocean, our teacher
The ocean is also our greatest teacher: vast and full of knowledge. During the Kaiyo-Maru Tuna Ecology Cruise, Caisy worked with an international team of marine scientists, applying her training to real-world ocean research. She participated in “Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth sampling” to understand how physical changes in the ocean affect marine ecosystems.
She helped deploy and monitor research equipment and took part in nutrient sampling, learning how chemical data reveals the productivity and health of marine environments.
“During the research cruise, I had the chance to witness every day how the ocean holds secrets and supports a life beneath the water that we need to understand to ensure a resilient future. Since fisheries are important in the region, we need to know where fishery resources are moving and their state of well-being.”
To support this goal, Caisy contributed to eDNA analysis, which involves collecting and identifying genetic material from seawater to detect the presence of marine species. Her work helped map how tuna and other species move through the Pacific’s vast ocean layers.
Through these experiences, she learned that the ocean doesn’t just sustain life: it teaches it. Every sample recorded from the sea carries information that deepens our understanding of how the ocean functions.
Hence, the ocean continues to bring people together across generations, encouraging responsibility and stewardship. It tells us that taking care of it is really taking care of ourselves: our past, our future, and the world we share.
