Since 2009 there has been a fundamental shift in the way that the Pacific Island states engage with regional and world politics. The region has experienced what former Kiribati President Anote Tong aptly called a 'paradigm shift' in ideas about how Pacific diplomacy should be organised, and on what principles it should operate. Many leaders have called for a heightened Pacific voice in global affairs and a new commitment to establishing Pacific Island control of diplomatic processes.

This change in thinking has been expressed in the establishment of new channels and arenas for Pacific diplomacy at the regional and global levels and new ways of connecting the two levels through active use of intermediate diplomatic associations. This 'new' Pacific diplomacy has seen real success in diplomatic outcomes in key sectors of global negotiations for Pacific states such as fisheries, climate policy, decolonisation and trade.

This course examines this new diplomatic agency on the part of Pacific Island states and explores its impact on relations with larger states - such as Australia, China, France and Indonesia - as well as on the shape of the regional institutional architecture. It also questions what this experience tells us about the power of small states to influence diplomatic outcomes in world affairs.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Understand the foreign policy priorities of Pacific states, and the constraints and resources influencing their diplomatic efforts to pursue them.
2. Examine the role of regional diplomacy and regional institutions in Pacific diplomacy.
3. Critically assess the political significance of ‘new Pacific diplomacy’ in relation to a changing regional order in the Pacific.
4. Analyse the impact of the new Pacific diplomacy on diplomatic outcomes in fisheries, climate change, decolonisation, trade and global positioning.
5. Evaluate the implication of the new Pacific diplomacy experience for the broader debate about the power of small states to influence diplomatic outcomes in world affairs.

Required Resources

Greg Fry and Sandra Tarte (eds) The New Pacific Diplomacy, ANU press, 2015 (free download)

Greg Fry , Framing the Islands: Power and Diplomatic Agency in Pacific Regionalism, ANU press, 2019 (free download)

Recommended Resources

weekly reading list on wattle

weekly video link recommendations on wattle

Radio NZ Pacific bulletin archive

Pacnews archive

Pacific Islands Forum website

Devpolicy blog ANU

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• written comments
• verbal comments
• feedback to whole class, groups, individuals, focus group etc

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	The Pacific : ocean, islands and people weekly zoom seminar; recorded resources
2	Oceanic Diplomacy and Western Diplomacy weekly zoom seminar; recorded lecture
3	Small State Diplomacy: Constraints and Strategy: weekly zoom seminar; recorded lecture
4	Australia and the Pacific: from colonial to diplomatic partners weekly zoom session; recorded lecture	Reflection/Blog One (15%) - March 21
5	Regionalism - Old Regionalism (pre Cold War) weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
6	Regionalism - New Regionalism (post Cold War - to 2006) weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
7	The New Pacific Diplomacy weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
8	Changing geo-politics in the Pacific: External partners and sub-regionalism weekly zoom session; recorded lecture	Reflection Blog Two (15%) - May 2
9	Civil Society and Regional Diplomacy weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
10	The Blue Pacific Strategy and Regional Security Diplomacy weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
11	Pacific Climate Diplomacy weekly zoom session; recorded lecture
12	Malaga - Talanoa and final presentations weekly zoom session; recorded lecture	Malaga - class presentations (15%) - TBC
13		Final Research Essay Due (40%) June 13

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date
Reflection Paper/Blog 1	15 %	21/03/2022
Reflection Paper/Blog 2	15 %	02/04/2022
Reflection paper/Blog 3	15 %	23/05/2022
Malaga - class presentation (either research essay, selected topic or multimedia)	15 %	24/05/2022
Major Essay	40 %	13/06/2022

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information 
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the Academic Integrity . In rare cases where online submission using Turnitin software is not technically possible; or where not using Turnitin software has been justified by the Course Convener and approved by the Associate Dean (Education) on the basis of the teaching model being employed; students shall submit assessment online via ‘Wattle’ outside of Turnitin, or failing that in hard copy, or through a combination of submission methods as approved by the Associate Dean (Education). The submission method is detailed below.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Assessment Task 1

Reflection Paper/Blog 1

Word limit: 1000 words

Value: 15

You should reflect on what you regard as the key idea or ideas in the readings in topics 2 or 3 or 4 and reflect on the interesting question (s) that it/they raise for you. 

The marks will be awarded on the basis of:

Clarity in distilling key ideas from set readings

Critical thinking ability in raising interesting questions related to these ideas

Assessment Task 2

Reflection Paper/Blog 2

Word limit: 1000 words

Value: 15

You should reflect on what you regard as the key idea or ideas in the readings in topics 5 6 and reflect on the interesting question (s) that it/they raise for you. 

The marks will be awarded on the basis of:

Clarity in distilling key ideas from set readings

Critical thinking ability in raising interesting questions related to these ideas

Assessment Task 3

Reflection paper/Blog 3

Word limit:1000 words

Value: 15

You should reflect on what you regard as the key idea or ideas in the readings in topics 7 or 8 and reflect on the interesting question (s) that it/they raise for you. 

The marks will be awarded on the basis of:

Clarity in distilling key ideas from set readings

Critical thinking ability in raising interesting questions related to these ideas

Assessment Task 4

Malaga - class presentation (either research essay, selected topic or multimedia)

In the final seminar each student will be given opportunity to present a Malaga piece. Malaga in Samoan and Tongan language means journey. In this activity students are encouraged to reflect and reports on their journey in the class. Students will make a 10 minute presentation and submit a one page A4 description on either one of the following

• Oral Presentation of Main Essay research: students may present on the research journey (hypothesis, questions and findings) of the final research essay.
• Multimedia presentation of reflections or key lessons from the course;
• Oral presentation that answers the topic: How can small island states overcome the constraints of small size in global diplomacy? Illustrate your answer with examples from the experience of the Pacific small island states in working collectively in their global diplomacy engagements?

Note that each student will be allotted 10 minutes for oral presentation. It is mandatory that a one A4 page description of the presentation be submitted 24 hours prior to the presentation.

Length - 10 minutes and one page A4

Value- 1

Assessment Task 5

Major Essay

Length: 2,500 words

Value: 40

Topic: Choose your own topic on course themes in consultation with (and approval of) the lecturer

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of the ANU culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically, committing to honest and responsible scholarly practice and upholding these values with respect and fairness.

The ANU commits to assisting all members of our community to understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to be familiar with the academic integrity principle and Academic Misconduct Rule, uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with.

The Academic Misconduct Rule is in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Very minor breaches of the academic integrity principle may result in a reduction of marks of up to 10% of the total marks available for the assessment. The ANU offers a number of online and in person services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. Visit the Academic Skills website for more information about academic integrity, your responsibilities and for assistance with your assignments, writing skills and study.

Online Submission

You will be required to electronically sign a declaration as part of the submission of your assignment. Please keep a copy of the assignment for your records. Unless an exemption has been approved by the Associate Dean (Education) submission must be through Turnitin.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Individual assessment tasks may or may not allow for late submission. Policy regarding late submission is detailed below:

• Late submission not permitted. If submission of assessment tasks without an extension after the due date is not permitted, a mark of 0 will be awarded.
• Late submission permitted. Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure. Extensions may be granted for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information.
In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service – including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy.
If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes.

Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students