Ngā Kākano presents: Repatriation and Rematriation Stories From The Pacific
TUE 24 NOV, 6PM - 8PM
TE MATA TAIRONGO AUDITORIUM, LEVEL 2
FREE, BOOKINGS REQUIRED
Ngā Kākano presents: Repatriation and Rematriation Stories From The Pacific. Dr. Tarisi Vunidilo will talk on her exploration of the growing movement for Pacific cultural repatriation and its significance for Indigenous communities, museums, and heritage institutions. Drawing on her experience as a Fijian cultural heritage specialist and museum practitioner, she examines the historical pathways through which Pacific ancestral remains, cultural treasures, and knowledge systems became dispersed across international collections.
This talk will highlight contemporary approaches to repatriation that emphasise Indigenous leadership, community collaboration, cultural renewal, and restorative justice. Through Pacific case studies, the talk will consider how repatriation extends beyond the physical return of objects to encompass the revitalisation of cultural knowledge, strengthening of identity, intergenerational transmission, and the rebuilding of relationships between communities and collecting institutions.
This session invites reflection on the responsibilities of museums in supporting ethical, community-centred heritage practice across the Pacific.
Dr. Vunidilo will also be showing Oceanbone, a short documentary that she co-produced in 2025 with Dr. Lani Cupchoy of the College of Ethnic Studies, California State University, Los Angeles.
Following the talk, join an engaging panel discussion exploring Māori and Pacific repatriation through a cultural lens, with Dr Vunidilo and distinguished guest speakers offering unique insights.
Light refreshments will be served.
About Dr. Tarisi Vunidilo
Dr. Tarisi Vunidilo has an MSc in Anthropology and a Postgraduate Diploma in Māori and Pacific Development from the University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand; a Postgraduate Diploma in Arts, majoring in Archaeology, from the Australian National University, Canberra; and a BA in Geography, History, and Sociology from the University of the South Pacific, Suva, Fiji. She worked at the Fiji Museum from December 1994 to February 2001, before moving to New Zealand with her family. She completed her PhD in Pacific Studies in January 2016 on the topic of “iYau Vakaviti—Fijian Treasures, Cultural Rights and Repatriation of Cultural Materials from International Museums,” at the Centre of Pacific Island Studies at the University of Auckland (New Zealand). She was a Professional Teaching Fellow (PTF) and Lecturer at the University of Auckland from 2012 to May 2018 before taking up her new role as Assistant Professor in Anthropology at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. In Fall 2023, she took on a new position as Assistant Professor at the College of Ethnic Studies at California State University, Los Angeles. She currently holds a Research Fellow position with the University of Göttingen in Germany as part of the Sensitive Provenances—Human Remains from Colonial Contexts (2021–2024). During the summer of 2024 (June 17 to July 19), she was based at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC, working as an invited Faculty Research Fellow, studying the Fijian collections that were collected during the Wilkes Expedition from 1838 to 1842.
This event is hosted in partnership with the Center for Pacific Languages
Twilight Tuesday
Take in the relaxed atmosphere as the whole Museum is open for you to wander, every Tuesday evening until 8.30PM. Grab a drink and a bite at Tuitui Museum Bistro & Café, check out our special exhibition and wander the galleries.