NEW ZEALAND PACIFIC MUSEUMS NETWORK

The New Zealand Pacific Museums Network was established in 2006 by the Pacific Cooperation Foundation (PCF) and a group of founding museums - Auckland War Memorial Museum, Te Papa Tongarewa Museum, Waikato Museum, Otago Museum and Museums Aotearoa.

The objective of the Network is:

"To strengthen the capacity of New Zealand museums with Pacific Islands collections and to improve their ability to display and project these; to increase New Zealands' awareness and understanding of Pacific Islands' culture through accessing these collections; and to strengthen linkages between New Zealand museums and museums in the Pacific Islands to improve the capability of Pacific Islands peoples and states to retain their culture in their indigenous environments." 

The Network meets once a year at the annual Museums Aotearoa Conference and has began work on a series of projects:

  • Undertaking a major update of Pacific Collections Survey originally done in 1980 identifying New Zealand museums that hold Pacific artefacts and the total number of items held by these museums and institutions.

  • A museums intership programme to build staff capacity in regional museums throughout the Pacific Islands.

The Network membership to date (2008) consists of the following institutions:

The New Zealand Pacific Museums Network is also a member of the Pacific Islands Museums Association whose headquarters are based in Port Vila, Vanuatu. 

Facilitation of the Network is provided by the Pacific Cooperation Foundation and for further information contact: David Vaeafe, Programme Manager, ph +64 4 9319390, email david@pcf.org.nz