A sustainable linguistic future for the Pacific: What role does the University of the South Pacific play?

Participants at an indigenous language conference surely believe in the importance of safeguarding Pacific languages. But for a sustainable linguistic future of the Pacific to be guaranteed requires this same conviction to be held at every level of society, from pre-school to adulthood, from grassroots to government. It requires new generations who understand the value of their languages, and who will stand up for their linguistic rights in their schools, in bureaucratic institutions, and in international negotiations. The University of the South Pacific should play a key role in supporting this vision and yet, throughout almost 50 years, it has faced challenges in ensuring the development, sustainability and localization of Pacific language expertise. This paper discusses these challenges, and outlines the Linguistics programme’s strategy to produce a new generation of Pacific language specialists within whose safe hands a truly sustainable linguistic future can rest. A laatou ka fai mo sui kite fonotaga e uiga mo 'gana tootino a fenua ka talitonu katoatoa kite taaua o puipui kae tausi a 'gana ate Pasefika. ... Dekhor, agar humlog apna baat manta jiwit rakhe, tou … dai lando hoko ginie lo vataha level lo tokakivenue, tavuiki lo maresu dadari lo sesea, tavuiki lo tangaloi weweriki dadari lo tangaloi lalawua; ... e gadrevi na itaba vou era doka na nodra dui vosa, ka ra makutu na tutaka na dodonu ni vosa e koronivuli, tabana ni matanitu, kei na veivosaki kei vanuatani. … Ana kuura n reirei ae rietata te Betebeke Maiaki (USP), e riai ni karaoa tabena ni boutakaa te kanoanimi aio … ia … tata lima ngavulu vuaheni … Yunivesiti blong Saot Pasifik i stap stragol blong bildimap wan stamba blong save long saed blong ol lanwis blong Pasifik, blong putum save ia long han blong ol man ples, mo blong mek sua se bae yumi kipim save ia i stap strong. … O lenei pepa, o le a ou talanoa e faatatau i luitau ma le otootoina o nisi o iloiloga o sini autu ma tulimatai alafua ua fa’ataoto e le Iunivesite a le Pasefika I Saute mo le tapenaina o nisi o ia lava taoso i le itu tau i le gagana, ina ia mafai ona latou aoaoina ma tauaveina le gagana a atumotu a le Pasefika i se itu e maualuga ma amanaia i le lumanai. (a multilingual composite of Tuvaluan, Fiji Hindi, North-East Ambae, Fijian, i-Kiribati, Roviana, Bislama and Samoan