Dr Kabutaulaka Selected for Prestigious U.S.–China Policy Fellowship

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Prominent Solomon Islands academic Dr Tarcisius Tara Kabutaulaka has been selected among high-profile candidates to join the Transpacific and Asian Dialogue on China Fellowship, an initiative of the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Project on the Future of U.S.-China Relations.

Dr Kabutaulaka is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pacific Islands Studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and is widely recognised for his scholarship and commentary on Pacific regional affairs and geopolitics.

The Penn Project on the Future of U.S.-China Relations is a newly established initiative aimed at contributing to policy deliberations across the Asia-Pacific region on the complex and evolving challenges posed by China’s rise on the global stage. The Transpacific and Asian Dialogue on China builds on the earlier Transatlantic and European Dialogue on China, both of which reflect the Project’s mission of advancing academically informed and policy-relevant analysis by next-generation experts.

Dr Kabutaulaka is among 22 leading emerging scholars and experts on China selected from across the Asia-Pacific region for the fellowship. Collectively, the cohort represents nearly 15 countries and a diverse range of professional backgrounds and thematic research interests.

Under the initiative, fellows will each produce policy papers offering actionable recommendations for regional policymakers on managing relations with China across key areas including security, trade, energy, infrastructure, governance, development, and human rights.

Dr Kabutaulaka’s research focuses on international relations, Pacific Islands regionalism, governance, and natural resource development, with recent work examining geopolitical competition arising from China’s growing influence in Oceania. He is a regular commentator in both Pacific Islands and international media on regional and global affairs.

In 2000, following several years of conflict in Solomon Islands, Dr Kabutaulaka served as one of the chief negotiators in the Townsville Peace Talks in Australia. He has previously held a research fellowship at the East-West Center and holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from the Australian National University.