Empowering Pasifika futures through education, culture, and collective leadership.
We envision an Australia where Pasifika peoples are recognised, resourced, and represented across all levels of education, and where Pasifika ways of knowing, being, and doing shape just and inclusive learning systems.
We are a national volunteer-led community organisation. We are teachers, school executives, university academic and professional staff, community educators and advocates dedicated to advancing the educational experiences, opportunities and positive outcomes for Pasifika learners and communities. Our vision is to see Pasifika educators, learners and communities thrive in Australian society by amplifying their perspectives, advocating for systemic change and celebrating our excellence. Our approach to doing this is to better understand the experiences of Australian Pasifika learners and educators through talanoa, consultation and research that can inform culturally responsive policy and best practices to support Pasifika educators, learners and our broader community and facilitate opportunities to connect, support and celebrate Pasifika educators, learners and communities.
While we acknowledge that all Pacific heritages and ethnicities hold their own unique politics, language, histories, and cultural practices, underscoring the significance of recognising the heterogeneity within it, as a network, for our work, we have chosen to define ‘Pasifika’ as peoples and communities who are genealogically, spiritually and culturally connected to the lands, the skies and the seas of the Pacific region (including Aotearoa New Zealand), and who have chosen to settle in and call Australia home.
We recognise the diversity of work undertaken by various organisations and community groups across Australia to promote and support Pasifika success at all levels of education. We welcome members and partnerships that share our common values and goals to see Pasifika people thrive in Australian society and align our strategies and advocacy with the Multicultural Access and Equity Policy, which is ‘about ensuring that Australian Government programs and services meet the needs of all Australians, regardless of their cultural and linguistic backgrounds’.
Mission Statement
The Australian Pasifika Educators Network (APEN) exists to uplift and advance Pasifika learners, educators, and communities by:
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Advocating for equitable and culturally responsive education policies and practices.
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Building platforms for Pasifika leadership, voice, and visibility in the education sector.
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Connecting educators, students, families, and allies through community-centred programs, research, and initiatives.
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Celebrating and embedding Pasifika knowledges, languages, and identities in learning spaces.
Our mission is grounded in 'teu le vā' - the nurturing of sacred relational spaces, and a commitment to educational justice and collective wellbeing.