Creative Australia has unveiled the delegation that will travel to Hawaii in June to represent Australia at one of the world’s largest cultural gatherings: the Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC).
The significant celebration of First Nations arts and culture, held every four years, brings together artists, cultural workers, and government officials from 28 Pacific nations.
FestPAC 2024 will feature live performances, cultural workshops, fashion, film, storytelling and more. The gathering will also highlight some of the urgent issues the region faces, such as rising sea levels and the threats to coral reefs, the protection and copyright of Indigenous Traditional Knowledge Systems and Cultural Property Rights and widening social inequality.
The festival will also include a Youth Ambassadors program for the first time in 2024.
Creative Australia Executive Director, First Nations Arts & Culture Franchesca Cubillo said:
“We are proud to support this impressive delegation of First Nations artists and cultural practitioners at FestPAC. The delegates will showcase the richness and diversity of First Nations art and cultural practice at this important global gathering.”
Creative Australia CEO Adrian Collette AM said:
“FestPAC is a significant international cultural event and provides a unique opportunity not only to showcase and celebrate Australia’s First Nations arts and cultures, but to learn from and share with other First Nations communities from across the Pacific.”
The Australian delegation and creative program will respond to the theme of ‘Hoʻoulu Lāhui: Regenerating Oceania’.
FestPAC is taking place in Hawaii from 6-16 June 2024.
