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© 2025 Island Innovation. All rights reserved.

    News

    Curated stories and analysis from islands and sustainability leaders worldwide.

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    Showing 9 of 391 news items in Culture & Community
    ‘A little downer’: Pine Island music program continues despite Hurricane Ian destroying all instruments
    Culture & CommunityMay 26, 2025

    ‘A little downer’: Pine Island music program continues despite Hurricane Ian destroying all instruments

    Gregory and Warren Van Kirk, who founded the Monday Music program more than 10 years ago, lost nearly everything when the hurricane hit. Not only did it flood from the bottom, it also rained through the top. So everything we thought would might be okay kind of got everything kind of got destroyed,” Gregory Van Kirk said. Despite the setback, the brothers remain determined to keep the program running for the Pine Island community. “We can make music with sticks and snapping and clapping, so that’s not gonna stop,” Warren Van Kirk said.

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    ‘Become a Māori again’: Rebuilding education the Cook Islands way
    Culture & CommunityMay 20, 2025

    ‘Become a Māori again’: Rebuilding education the Cook Islands way

    A significant national event dedicated to revitalising education through culture, language and identity took place this week, drawing over 100 participants each day from May 5 to 8, at the National Sports Arena in Nikao. Te Umeia Te Maro Kura – Rebuilding Our Future: Language, Culture, and Identity in Cook Islands Education, is the first symposium of its kind and a major collaboration between Te Maraurau o Te Pae Apii (Ministry of Education) and Te Ui Ariki Ngateitei O Te Kuki Airani (UANKA), an organisation formed under the House of Ariki. Launched on Monday, the symposium aimed to reshape the nation’s education system by embedding cultural heritage and innovation into teaching and learning practices. Under the guiding theme Ranga Ia Te Kōrero, the event dedicated to honouring traditional knowledge and reawakening community pride in local language and identity.

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    Man who runs business on remote Scottish island wants to give it away for free
    Culture & CommunityMay 13, 2025

    Man who runs business on remote Scottish island wants to give it away for free

    Photo by Julian Paren/Geograph, via The Independent ([independent.co.uk](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/05/06/13/36/geograph-7809558-by-Julian-Paren.jpeg?quality=75&width=1368&crop=3%3A2%2Csmart&trim=47%2C0%2C86%2C0&auto=webp)) A small business owner on a remote Scottish island has spent years building his enterprise – but now he wants to give it all away for free. Richard Irvine founded and runs the Colonsay Smokery in the Inner Hebridean island of Colonsay, which has a population of just 120 people. The 65-year-old is now looking for a family with an “entrepreneurial spirit” to take over the firm for free, in a bid to address the ageing population on the island and boost the number of children in the local school – which currently has just four pupils.

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    SXM DOET 2025 invites community to volunteer for island-wide projects
    Culture & CommunityMay 13, 2025

    SXM DOET 2025 invites community to volunteer for island-wide projects

    Image source: The Daily Herald, [thedailyherald.sx](https://www.thedailyherald.sx/images/2025/05/05/page6a238_large.jpg) The 2025 projects range from environmental clean-ups and school improvements to support programs for seniors, people with disabilities, underserved communities, and youth. PHILIPSBURG–SXM DOET is calling on the community to keep the spirit of unity alive by volunteering for the island’s largest annual volunteer initiative. Scheduled for May 16 and 17, SXM DOET 2025 invites individuals, families, businesses, and organisations to join hands and contribute to meaningful projects that support a stronger, more connected St. Maarten. Funded by the Oranje Fonds and the Be the Change Foundation, SXM DOET continues to serve as a powerful platform for civic engagement. Each year, the initiative mobilizes hundreds of volunteers to take part in a wide range of community projects organised by local NGOs and civic groups.

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    The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) immersion to boost local innovation, livelihood in Sibuyan Island
    Culture & CommunityMay 13, 2025

    The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) immersion to boost local innovation, livelihood in Sibuyan Island

    Photo credit: Image from [Philippine Information Agency](https://pia.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DOST-leads-immersion-activity-to-boost-local-innovation-livelihood-in-Sibuyan-Island-1024x768.jpg) ODIONGAN, Romblon (PIA) — The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) held an immersion activity in Barangay Danao, Cajidiocan, Romblon, to support local innovation and strengthen the livelihood of communities through science and technology. The Romblon DOST Evaluation Team visited the area to observe various local products, including tiger grass brooms, traditional delicacies like “balatsaw” and “pinais,” handmade egg noodles, and semi-precious stones crafted by local artisans. Dr. Randy Nobleza from Marinduque, a member of the evaluation team, noted that some of the featured food items are relevant to the celebration of Filipino Food Heritage Month.

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    Tremor 2025: Can a music festival change the face of Portugal’s São Miguel island?
    Culture & CommunityMay 6, 2025

    Tremor 2025: Can a music festival change the face of Portugal’s São Miguel island?

    São Miguel , the largest of the Azores island archipelago, is one of the poorest areas of the European Union. Cue the transformative power of music… Two hours from Portugal, five hours from New York, the Azores lie in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The clouds here are so low you feel you have to duck to avoid them. Small fishing boats hug the harbour wall while larger commercial vessels bob about in the perennial shadow of a cruise liner. Cargo ships dot the horizon and the occasional sight of a clipper evokes imaginings of the age of exploration. Fitting, then, that this place between the New World and the Old World is home to a festival that links the history of music and culture with its future, and strives to make that future brighter.

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    CPR and first aid training comes to Isle au Haut
    Culture & CommunityMay 6, 2025

    CPR and first aid training comes to Isle au Haut

    ISLE AU HAUT—Since statistics on the industry began more than 30 years ago, commercial fishing has been consistently ranked as the most dangerous occupation, by far, in the United States. Combine that with living in a small, isolated island community, where the nearest medical professionals are a 45-minute boat ride away, and the benefits of having CPR and first aid training are obvious. To provide that training, a first of its kind in Downeast Maine, Fishing Partnership Support Services, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit, teamed up with Maine’s Seacoast Mission and the Maine Lobstermen’s Association. The result was an intensive day of training in CPR, basic first aid, and safety at the town hall on Isle au Haut on April 17. The training, provided at no charge, along with snacks and lunch, recognizes that when they are out on the water, fishermen are the first responders. Learning the life-saving skills needed to assess and treat injured or ill crew members before emergency medical professionals arrive is critical, organizers said.

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    Mic check: Singapore’s podcast boom amplifies opposition voices
    Culture & CommunityMay 5, 2025

    Mic check: Singapore’s podcast boom amplifies opposition voices

    In a tiny studio, a former Wall Street banker and an ex-aviation executive are doing what critics say is lacking in Singapore’s tightly managed media landscape — giving opposition politicians unfiltered airtime ahead of an upcoming election. The popular podcast Yah Lah But — a colloquial Singlish way of saying “Yes, but” — promises “the most uncensored conversations and interviews from the much-censored country of Singapore”, according to its YouTube description. The show is part of a growing wave of podcasts deep-diving into the affluent city-state’s politics, providing alternative coverage of the May 3 polls. “We’re not scared. I think there’s a desire to really hear different voices,” said host Terence Chia.

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    Beyond Awesome: Vanuatu’s Resilience Star
    Culture & CommunityMay 1, 2025

    Beyond Awesome: Vanuatu’s Resilience Star

    Just before cyclone season gets underway in Vanuatu, we join disability advocate Ellen Tamata as she helps people living with disabilities and their communities to get ready. Her efforts are saving lives.

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