Relations between the University of Otago and Pacific Island communities are set to get even closer with the official launch of a new set of research protocols next week aimed at strengthening partnerships.
University Vice-chancellor Prof Harlene Hayne is to welcome representatives from Pacific Island communities, alongside university and academic staff members, at a function in the clocktower council chambers on Tuesday at noon.
University council members approved the Pacific protocol research guidelines this week.
In the document, the university acknowledges "the quality of the relationships it hopes to foster and maintain with Pacific communities is the essential foundation for all research development".
University council member Prof Judy Bennett, a Pacific Island historian, said research relationships with island communities were often "a lot like a marriage".
"Once you start working with Pacific communities, you will have a relationship which lasts through the years," she said.
