Prof. Ron Vave
Fiji
Community research in iTaukei villages documenting funeral practices, culturally protected water bodies, and socioecological resilience across rural and urban contexts.
Primary Fieldsite
Ethnographic and participatory research with indigenous and local communities across Oceania, documenting socioecological resilience and traditional knowledge systems. This work places communities at the center of knowledge production.
Community workshops and surveys are a core method for understanding how cultural practices, traditional governance, and socioeconomic conditions shape marine resource management outcomes — and for co-producing solutions with the people who manage these resources.
Approaches Used
- Semi-structured interviews and focus groups
- Participatory mapping and resource assessments
- Household surveys and socioeconomic assessments
- Community-based monitoring and reporting
- Autoethnographic and oral history methods
Coastal research site in Hawaiʻi — documenting marine cultural ecosystem services and community wellbeing
Ron presenting PhD research findings on iTaukei funerary practices to a community in Fiji
Community engagement with women in a Fijian village — sharing and verifying research findings
Community survey session conducted in a traditional setting around the kava bowl, Fiji
Hawaiʻi
Surveys on marine cultural ecosystem services and the wellbeing of indigenous communities in Hawaiʻi, examining the intersection of fishing, culture, and food security.
Active Research
Broader Pacific
Community engagement across six Indo-Pacific nations through the LMMA Network, including Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
6 Countries