Coco Talanoa — Coco News / Page 21

He's a rapper, model, father and, if it all goes to plan, a future movie mogul. But before Roman Cress was dropping tracks, he was running it. 

The Kaven born, Minnesota raised sprinter began competing in athletics when he was 11 year old and first represented the Marshall Islands at the 1999 South Pacific Games in Guam. Earlier that year he clocked a personal best of 10.39 seconds in the 100m at a meet in Minneapolis and had his sights on the Sydney Olympics. But there was one problem: the Marshall Islands didn't have an Olympic Committee.

"I actually qualified 'B standard' at that time," Cress recalled. "I was in peak form around that time, 99/2000, and after that I still competed in my college years but I didn't have the same desire because when we didn't make it to Sydney I just left it alone, I didn't think about the Olympics anymore." The Marshall Islands National Olympic Committee was eventually established in 2001 but was not recognised by the IOC until 2006, meaning Athens 2004 was also a non-starter.…more

In 2019, students in more than 150 countries launched strikes to demand action to avert cataclysmic climate change.

In Aotearoa New Zealand, filmmakers The Rebel Film Collective started shooting seven months before what became the world’s biggest ever climate change strike. They were given intimate access to New Zealand students’ meetings, homes and personal video diaries to record how the local school strikes movement began. 

The film makers were there when an unexpected turn of events changed the face of the protests. High Tide Don’t Hide reveals the inner processes of teenagers mobilising record-setting numbers of children and adults…while dealing with the looming threat of climate change, interpersonal politics, and the need to just be teenagers. 

One of the teenagers profiled and followed is South Aucklands Aigagalefili Fepulea'i-Tapua'i. Aigagalefili, known by her friends as "FIli" is an award-winning published poet and indigenous activist from South Auckland. Her work has appeared in the 2019 Poetry Yearbook New Zealand and in 2020 she was a guest speaker at the UN General Assembly.…more

Touching on real-life examples, she spoke candidly about institutional racism, sexism and feminism, as seen through her eyes. She related how important it is to have a thick skin, and what resilience means when you’re in complex and sometimes hostile environments.…more

Tupu Tai Summer Internship programme are looking for proud Pasifika students and recent graduates who are passionate about seeing change for their families and wider communities.

Tupu Tai is an 11-week paid internship across the summer break. Through Tupu Tai you will have the opportunity to work on policy projects in one of the many government agencies that affect change in areas such as education, housing, employment, justice and the environment.

This is a fantastic opportunity where you will:

* Contribute to the growing tide of Pasifika representation in the public sector
* Develop your leadership skills and professional resume
* Build professional networks with other interns, government agencies and community leaders

Check out the videos below and hear from recent interns on their Tupu Tai experience.

Tupu Tai places high value on the entire wellbeing of each intern, providing wrap around support heading into, during and post internship.…more

People say that nurses are the foundation of a healthcare system. As the world faced a global pandemic it was our nurses that laid the foundation at our frontlines as they battled Covid19 on top of continuing to care for others who were ill from other ailments. Today nurses strike as they express their disappointment in the current their working conditions and pay, despite continuosly serving our communities during the toughest times.  

Nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants at public hospitals and district health board facilities striked today for 8 hours in New Zealand. This followed in the wake of 30,000 members of the New Zealand Nurses’ Organisations voting to reject the latest offer from the District Health Boards amid concerns about pay, conditions, and safe staffing. 

"Safer staffing, sick leave and fair pay enhances the mana for kaimahi hauora. Our people deserve quality healthcare. If we want to ensure the health of our future, truly valuing the future of our profession is a good place to start. Aotearoa New Zealand deserves our best.…more

Lavika's Lash House is a Pacific owned and run Beauty Parlour based in Auckland specialising in Eyelash Extentions. It was started by founder Veronica Tatafu 4 years ago after the birth of her sixth child, named Lavika. In search for a work life balance where she could be present in her daughters life Veronica left her corporate job and started doing Lashes. Since then she has built her business from the ground up and now uses the knowlege she has gained to teach other aspiring business women how to do lashes through her masterclasses.

The Coco team got to talk with Veronica about her hustle, what it means to be an empowered woman and so much more.

How would you describe your business to those who are hearing about it for the first time?

My business didn’t really take off properly until me and my husband separated. Suddenly I found myself alone having to provide for me and my 6 children.…more

via RNZ Pacific 

Samoa's prime minister elect, FAST party leader Fiame Naomi Mata'afa says negotiations remain at an impasse between her party and the rival HRPP.

The parties met yesterday in Apia to try and resolve the stalemate resulting from the 9 April election.

In a statement last night, Fiame maintained that FAST held the majority of 26 seats to the HRPP's 25.

She said these FAST members had been sworn in, with a cabinet appointed and speaker and deputy chosen.

The HRPP leader, caretaker prime minister Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi continued to claim the result was not clear because 10 percent of 51 members or six women representatives in the House had not been achieved.

“Now Tuilaepa is singing about the rule of law when he had been contemptuous and ridiculed the Judiciary in his and the caretaker governments actions to block and delay the formation of a new government,” said Fiamē.…more

Celebrating our Pasifika recipients in this years Queens Birthday honours.  

In a statement, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern congratulated this year’s recipients and said the group represented decades of services across many areas, and highlighted how many New Zealanders were “going above and beyond for the benefits of us all”.

Minister for Pacific Peoples, Aupito William Sio said the Queen’s Birthday 2021 Honours list show that across Aotearoa, New Zealand there were many champions of Pacific education.

“Education is so vital to the success of Pacific people that it’s truly fitting that a number of educators have been honoured this year. Education provides an opportunity for Pacific people to realise their potential and to be confident, thriving and resilient in Aotearoa New Zealand."

“This year’s honours are a celebration for all of us in Aotearoa New Zealand who recognise and acknowledge the value and importance of education to our Pacific communities,” said Aupito William Sio.

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Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) 

Reverend Iliafi Talotusitusi Esera, for services to the Samoan community and Christian ministry.…more

Wellington born Samoan author of children's Pasifika books and the creator of Mila's books, Dahlia Malaeulu, is launching eight new children's stories this year.

The stories include a board book "Going to Te Papa" which they are releasing with Te Papa Press.  Mila's "My Gagana Series 2" which includes four early gagana readers and Mila's "My Aganu'u" series 1 which includes two picture book stories that they are self-publishing for Mila's books.

In the second half of the year Dahlia and her team will be releasing their second MG/YA book - "Tama Samoa".  Last year she released "Teine Samoa" which was originally written during the lockdown in May and then released as an ebook for Samoan language week last year.  The paperback edition was then published in October including study questions for students and the Teine Samoa Project.  Read more about both Dahlia's background and the Teine Samoa book in her Women of the Islands profile here.

The new releases this year represent a lot of firsts for Dahlia and her team.…more