Talanoa: Dr. Lana Lopesi

Our Talanoa series comes out of our Marsden Project (2019-2023), 'Vā Moana: space and relationality in Pacific thought and identity'.

Dr. Lana Lopesi (Sāmoa), Assistant Professor at the University of Oregon, completed her PhD in 2021 as part of the Vā Moana: space and relationality in Pacific thought and identity Marsden-funded research team at the Auckland University of Technology. In this talanoa, she discusses some key concepts in her research, linking vā and the Moana Cosmopolitanism that emerged from the late 1950s to the current generation of transnational Moana creatives in Aotearoa New Zealand. Drawing on the term ‘Vā Moana’, Lana describes the relational social world (often digital) in which the Moana Cosmopolitanism imaginary operates. A widely published writer and editor, Lana’s major contributions include Pacific Arts Aotearoa (2023), Bloody Woman (2021), and Marinade journal.

To cite: Lopesi, L. (2023, August 22). Interview with Lana Lopesi (Videographer/editor/interviewer: Emily Parr). Vā Moana: space and relationality in Pacific thought and identity interviews, Vā Moana - Pacific Spaces Research Cluster, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland.

Click here to watch the talanoa.

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