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Session Detail (plenary)
Opening Plenary and Keynote lecture by His Highness Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Ta'isi Efi
“Le fuia, le fuia, e tagisia lou vaelau: Starling, starling, we pine for your nimbleness”: Towards a Samoan Indigenous Framing of Responsibility for ‘Climate Change’
Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Ta'isi Efi
Government of Samoa
About a century ago Augustin Kramer recorded a Samoan song with the line: “le fuia, le fuia, e tagisia lou vaelau”. I have translated this into English as: “Starling, starling, we pine for your nimbleness”. The references to nimbleness and to the fuia or native Samoan starling bird are literal and metaphorical and were chosen deliberately for their ability to make visible an indigenous context. The line reminds that with skill and dexterity one can find in nature balance, hope and support despite the potentially harmful effects of gravity. The address uses this phrase and its Samoan indigenous references to frame an indigenous contribution to current conversations on what to do about the effects of ‘climate change’. It argues that in order for the island Pacific to have a say in how its islands are to survive, we must take the time and space necessary to openly dialogue in the manner and style of the fuia.
