The annual Fiji Psychological Society conference, themed Anchored in Culture, Growing in Connection, was held today at the University of the South Pacific’s Laucala Campus, bringing together psychologists, educators, and researchers.
The one-day event focused on how the higher education sector can deliver quality learning while preserving cultural identity and strengthening community bonds in a fast-changing world.
President of the Fiji Psychological Society, Dr Ofakilomaloma Swann says the theme reflects the need to balance innovation with tradition.
She emphasizes that culture grounds people, while connections enable growth, shaping the direction of higher education in the country.
She adds that this approach ensures psychological institutions produce not just graduates for the job market, but leaders who can protect values and contribute to national development.
The Director of the Higher Education Commission, Evi Tekuru Naisele says the theme reflects the Education Commission’s vision for education in Fiji and the Pacific, providing culture as the foundation that steadies while connections allow us to grow.
Naisele highlighted the importance of anchoring education in Pacific culture while ensuring students and professionals remain connected locally and regionally.
He says education should reflect Pacific ways of knowing, learning, and living together, integrating indigenous knowledge systems with modern academic practices.
While speaking to fijivillage News, Naisele says he commission is working to establish systems in higher education institutes, that prioritize courses such as philosophies, governance and ethics, ensuring students are ethically prepared for the workplace.
Naisele also emphasises the significance of Vanua and traditional protocols, explaining the cultural rituals surrounding birth, marriage, and family relations.
He urges educators to balance these approaches with communal Pacific values that emphasise sharing, collective wellbeing, and ecological ethics.
The conference also featured panel discussions on issues such as cultural integration in the curriculum, and ways to strengthen Pacific values in high education.
