Elise is the Culture Adviser for the Human Development Program of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, the oldest intergovernmental regional organization in the Pacific. In this role, Elise is responsible for promoting the development of the cultural sector in the Pacific Islands region, working directly with governments, non-governmental organizations and other regional and international agencies. Prior to joining SPC, Elise designed and coordinated the Pacific Studies Program at the University of the South Pacific (a regional university which has 12 member States) and was responsible for the Institute of Pacific Studies Publications.

Lashing the canoe: binding statistics and culture in the Pacific

Currently the Pacific Islands region suffers from a lack of cultural data. This renders the cultural sector invisible in policy circles and circumvents its development and organization. The Secretariat of the Pacific Community, an inter-governmental regional organization which is responsible for providing technical assistance to cultural development among its 22 member countries and territories, is currently working on the development of cultural statistics and indicators for the region. An inaugural meeting on cultural statistics in the Pacific was held in collaboration with the UNESCO Institute of Pacific Studies and UNESCO in May 2011. A set of recommendations was developed. What are the challenges that countries and the Pacific face in implementing cultural measures and what can Pacific Islands countries bring to the global conversation on cultural measurement?