Dr Anouk Ride2
1Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, 2Solomon Islands National University, Kukum, Solomon Islands
Biography:
Dr Anouk Ride is a sociologist with an interest in development and peace and conflict in the Pacific Islands region. She has numerous journal articles, 4 books and 12 reports, including the first regional report on riots in the Pacific (Ride, 2022). Her most cited work is a book on community resilience in natural disasters (Ride & Bretherton, 2011), and a chapter on involving participants in data analysis (Ride, 2015). She was awarded the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Research Higher Degree Theses from University of Queensland for her dissertation on narratives of conflict and peace in Solomon Islands (Ride, 2014).
Abstract:
Solomon Islands, an archipelagic nation of less than 1 million people, on Australia’s border, has been the site of intense geopolitical competition, particularly following the signing of a security pact with China in 2022. Both West and East jostle for influence in Solomon Islands through increased promises of aid, bilateral security arrangements, visa and trade access. In this competition, outsiders have tended to assume certain investment in defined interests of Solomon leaders can win influence. But what is power in the Solomon context, and how is it influenced?
Through a political sociology analysis of power in Solomon Islands over the past decade, this research demonstrates power of individuals and networks is complex. Solomon politicians typically draw on economic, political, environmental and cultural power to influence their constituencies and retain control. This power is indicated through trends in human-induced environmental change, parliamentary and governmental decisions and civil society influence. Clusters of power in Solomon Islands are concentrated, but not exclusive, and the multi-faceted composition of power means powerful actors are subject to various influences. A more nuanced understanding of where power lies in Solomon Islands contexts and what sustains it, might support bilateral partners in more effectively engaging Solomon leaders, and open the way to changing the nature of Solomon power itself.