Solomon Islands Research Articles

Seismic Observation of a New ULVZ Beneath the Southern Pacific

AbstractWe present new observations of core‐diffracted shear waves which contain anomalous waveforms sampling the lowermost mantle beneath the southern Pacific region. Data in two distinct geometries, one from New Zealand to North America and the other from the Fiji and Solomon Islands to South America, show evidence of postcursor phases. The postcursor delays and move‐outs imply that they are caused by an ultra‐low velocity zone (ULVZ). Beamforming analyses of the observed diffracted postcursors show a strong backazimuthal deviation, suggesting this new ULVZ is likely to have a cylindrical shape similar to broad ULVZs sampled by shear diffracted waves elsewhere. Full‐waveform modeling suggests that the postcursors seen in North America might be due to the previously modeled ULVZ located to the west of the Galápagos, while those seen in South America are due to a previously unknown ULVZ beneath the Southern Pacific. We cannot fit observations in both geometries by a single ULVZ. For the new location, we propose one cylindrical ULVZ model with a radius of 400 km and a shear wave velocity decrease of 20% centered at geographical coordinates (−33.6, 130) close to the Pitcairn hotspot. Despite some uncertainty in the west‐east direction, this new ULVZ observation likely provides another example to support the hypothesis that ULVZs exist at the base of mantle plumes where primordial signatures are observed in the ocean island basalts.

Responding to domestic and family violence in resource-constrained contexts: a case study on rural policing innovations in Melanesia

PurposeDiscussions about progressive gender reform across Melanesia highlight the need for more gender-inclusive policies and improved conditions for women and girls throughout all sectors. However, for many of these countries, attempts to address the problems are marred by insufficient resources and low prioritization of the issue and traditional, cultural and religious perspectives about gender and gendered roles. This article discusses how police responses are coordinated to address domestic and family violence (DFV) and provides a critical reflection on both internal responses and the complexities of multi-partner operations beyond urban spaces.Design/methodology/approachThis article draws on the findings from a stakeholder engagement focus group with 20 participants from four Melanesian countries – Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu – to provide insight into policing innovations in rural contexts.FindingsThere is a need for improved multisector partnerships, increased police presence and greater reliance on indigenous strategies to improve responses to DFV in resource-constrained contexts.Originality/valueThe article provides insight into an under-researched area and makes recommendations for improving responses to DFV in rural areas in small-island developing states.

Examining the influence of global smoking prevalence on stroke mortality: insights from 27 countries across income strata

BackgroundThis study investigates the influence of Global Smoking Prevalence (GSP) on Stroke Death Rates (SDR) across 27 countries categorized into High-Income Countries (HIC), Upper Middle-Income Countries (UMIC), Lower Middle-Income Countries (LMIC), and Low-Income Countries (LIC).MethodsAnalysing data from two distinct periods (1990–1999 and 2010–2019), countries exhibiting an increased SDR were selected. The study uses a polynomial regression model, treating income groups as cross-sectional and years as time series data.ResultsResults from the regression model reveal that 17 countries observed a significant impact of GSP on SDR, with only Turkey, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste resulting in negative values. However, the study emphasises that out of all 27 countries, the highest occurrence of the impact of GSP on SDR has been reported in the LMIC stratum for the period under review.ConclusionIt is evident that GSP affects the risk of incidence of stroke death, specifically in the LMIC stratum. Furthermore, it has been identified that GSP is a major preventable risk factor affecting global mortality. To mitigate the risk of stroke death attributable to smoking prevalence, necessary preventive steps should be adopted to encourage smoking cessation, and essential policies should be implemented to reduce the burden of SDR.

Unveiling the Impact of Mythimna seperata Walker (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on Agriculture: Insights into Host Range Biology and Biological Control: A Review

The Oriental armyworm scientifically referred to as Mythimna separata poses a significant threat to cereal crops across East Asia, South Asia, and Australia, resulting in notable agricultural losses. Recent reports indicate its widespread presence in 21 Asian countries and its establishment in Europe (Russia) and Oceania (Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia, Norfolk Island, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu). M. separata undergoes a comprehensive metamorphic life cycle, progressing through stages of egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The larvae are highly voracious, causing significant harm to diverse crops This pest targets a wide range of host plants spanning 18 families, with the majority belonging to Poaceae (44 species), Brassicaceae (10), Cucurbitaceae (9), and Fabaceae (8), exacerbating agricultural damages. The voracious feeding habits of M. separata larvae lead to significant crop damage and reduced yields across various crops. Its adaptability to diverse environments and broad host range further amplifies its impact on agriculture. The challenges in predicting and controlling outbreaks stem from its strong flight capabilities, high reproductive rates of females, and voracious feeding behavior during later larval stages. Traditionally, insecticide application has been the primary method for controlling M. separata. However, concerns regarding health risks, ecological disruptions, rising costs, diminishing efficacy of some products, and adverse effects on non-target organisms and human health highlight the need for environmentally sustainable pest management strategies. Biological control, involving the utilization of natural enemies such as insects, viruses, fungi, bacteria, nematodes, mites, and spiders, has emerged as a vital approach for managing insect pests while preserving ecological balance. Given the complex challenges posed by M. separata, implementing a holistic approach that integrates biological control methods holds promise for effective pest management. This approach aligns with principles of environmental sustainability and biodiversity conservation within agro-ecosystems.

Twenty-one new species of Omaliini from the Papuan Region (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Omaliinae), with diagnostic and faunistic notes on some species of the genus Paraphloeostiba Steel, 1960.

New taxonomic, diagnostic and faunistic data for 26 species of Nipponophloeostiba Watanabe, 1962 (one species), Paraphloeostiba Steel, 1960 (23 species) and Xanthonomus Bernhauer, 1926 (two species) of the tribe Omaliini McLeay, 1825 of the Papuan Region (Indonesia (Western New Guinea), Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands) are provided. Twenty-one new species are described and illustrated: Nipponophloeostiba hornabrooki sp. n., Paraphloeostiba assimile sp. n., P. attenuata sp. n., P. barclayi sp. n., P. betlephila sp. n., P. coprophila sp. n., P. latissima sp. n., P. okapensis sp. n., P. rufula sp. n., P. steeli sp. n., P. telnovi sp. n. and Xanthonomus thayerae sp. n. from Papua New Guinea, P. atramentaria sp. n., P. iriana sp. n., P. margineguttata sp. n., P. pilosa sp. n., P. riedeli sp. n., P. vitiosa sp. n., and X. guineensis sp. n. from Western New Guinea (Indonesia), and P. guadalcanalensis sp. n. and P. penelopeae sp. n. from Solomon Islands. Paraphloeostiba coriacea (Cameron, 1952) and P. rhopalocera (Cameron, 1928) are redescribed and illustrated. The male of P. papuana (Cameron, 1931) and females of P. conjuncta Shavrin, 2023 and P. coriacea are described and illustrated for the first time. Keys for Nipponophloeostiba Watanabe, 1962, Xanthonomus Bernhauer, 1926, and the Papuan species of the genus Paraphloeostiba are provided. Distributional maps of Xanthonomus and Nipponophloeostiba, and P. coriacea, P. gayndahensis (MacLeay, 1873) (for New Guinea) and P. papuana are given. Paraphloeostiba conjuncta, P. coriacea, P. gayndahensis and P. papuana are recorded from Indonesia (Western New Guinea) for the first time.

Parallel evolution in an island archipelago revealed by genomic sequencing of Hipposideros leaf-nosed bats.

Body size is a key morphological attribute, often used to delimit species boundaries among closely related taxa. But body size can evolve in parallel, reaching similar final states despite independent evolutionary and geographic origins, leading to faulty assumptions of evolutionary history. Here, we document parallel evolution in body size in the widely distributed leaf-nosed bat genus Hipposideros, which has misled both taxonomic and evolutionary inference. We sequenced reduced representation genomic loci and measured external morphological characters from three closely related species from the Solomon Islands archipelago, delimited by body size. Species tree reconstruction confirms the paraphyly of two morphologically designated species. The nonsister relationship between large-bodied H. dinops lineages found on different islands indicates that large-bodied ecomorphs have evolved independently at least twice in the history of this radiation. A lack of evidence for gene flow between sympatric, closely related taxa suggests the rapid evolution of strong reproductive isolating barriers between morphologically distinct populations. Our results position Solomon Islands Hipposideros as a novel vertebrate system for studying the repeatability of parallel evolution under natural conditions. We conclude by offering testable hypotheses for how geography and ecology could be mediating the repeated evolution of large-bodied Hipposideros lineages in the Solomon Islands.

Unraveling biological responses to oceanographic equipment: Insights from forward-facing active acoustics and low-light imagery using small boats

Over six decades, extensive research has delved into the intricate interactions between marine animals and oceanographic sampling equipment, recognizing the impactful influence of light and sound emissions on mobile fauna behavior during surveys. This study, conducted through three mid-water experiments in the Solomon Islands (2019) and Bermuda (2021 and 2023), utilizing small boats, aims to unravel the effects of light on the distribution of biological scattering layers. Employing broadband active acoustics, dimmable lights, and low-light imaging on an observation-class ROV and a custom-made instrument frame, the experiments dynamically adjusted light intensity to track changes in volume backscattering strength. Amidst challenges encountered along the way, the study notably succeeded in observing avoidance behaviors from mesopelagic animals in response to the presence of our equipment. This study provides valuable insight for fisheries acoustics and echosounder applications, particularly in coral reef environments where small boats play a crucial role. This paper reviews the system setup, data processing, and presents fused backscatter data over depth, concluding with lessons learned, recommendations, and future study goals, contributing to the broader understanding of marine animal interactions with sampling equipment.

Social impacts of critical mineral exploration on Indigenous peoples’ lands: A case study from Solomon Islands

The growing uptake of energy transition technologies in response to global and national climate policy goals to transition to a low-carbon future is increasing demand for critical minerals. This increased demand is expected to intensify mineral exploration, particularly on Indigenous peoples’ lands. However, mineral exploration is a protracted process, fraught with uncertainty, and few mineral exploration projects progress to development. While the social impacts of mine construction, operation, and increasingly, closure are well documented in the literature, there is limited empirical evidence on the social impacts of mineral exploration on Indigenous peoples. This paper contributes to this gap in the literature by drawing on the case of nickel exploration in Solomon Islands. Drawing on qualitative data elicited from semi-structured interviews, this research indicates that activities associated with critical mineral exploration on Indigenous peoples’ lands generate more negative than positive impacts for affected communities and interested parties. Overlooking the social impacts of critical mineral exploration can lead to community opposition, which in turn can lead to project abandonment, thereby potentially delaying the energy transition and achievement of global climate goals. The findings underscore the importance of ‘just transition’ in the context of the accelerating energy transition to a low-carbon future.

Citizen Science for Enhanced Dengue Vector Surveillance in Solomon Islands: A Methods Paper

Arthropod-borne arboviral diseases—including dengue, Zika, and chikungunya—place a substantial burden on the health of populations, globally. Dengue alone is endemic in more than 100 countries and causes more than 96 million symptomatic cases and approximately 40,000 deaths annually. The recent surge in arboviral disease outbreaks, coupled with the World Health Organization’s newly published vector control guidelines, accentuates the imperative to understand the dispersion of disease-carrying mosquitoes across diverse spatial and temporal scales. However, traditional surveillance mechanisms often fall short because of workforce limitations, logistical complexities, jurisdictional boundaries, and budgetary constraints, especially in low- and low-middle-income countries. In this article, we systematically report the design, implementation, and iterative enhancement of a groundbreaking school-based citizen science initiative for augmenting mosquito surveillance in the Solomon Islands. Key reflections encompass the initiative’s role in supporting routine government-led disease vector monitoring, sustainability through integration and fostering participant engagement, and the amalgamation of citizen-collected data with government surveillance activities. The article also discusses the impact of the citizen science initiative with regard to the Solomon Islands’ pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals. Our findings underscore the potential of citizen science methods to support and extend public health surveillance activities and to serve as a community-engagement-for-behaviour-change tool in resource-constrained contexts.

Strengthening rural community water safety planning in Pacific Island countries: evidence and lessons from Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji.

Pacific Island Countries (PICs) collectively have the lowest rates of access to safely managed or basic drinking water and sanitation globally. They are also the least urbanised, have dynamic socioeconomic and increasing climate-linked challenges. Community-based water managers need to respond to variability in water availability and quality caused by a range of hazards. Water Safety Planning (WSP), a widely adopted approach to assessing water supply, offers a risk-based approach to mitigating both existing and future hazards. WSP is adaptable, and making modifications to prescribed WSP to adapt it to the local context is common practice. Within the Pacific Community Water Management Plus research project, we used formative research and co-development processes to understand existing local modifications, whether further modifications are required, and, to develop additional modifications to WSP in Fiji, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands. The types of additional local modifications we recommend reflect the unique context of PICs, including adjusting for community management of water supplies and required collective action, community governance systems, levels of social cohesion in communities, and preferred adult-learning pedagogies. Incorporating modifications that address these factors into future WSP will improve the likelihood of sustained and safe community water services in Pacific and similar contexts.

External setting di kawasan Pasifik Selatan sebagai tantangan politik luar negeri Indonesia era pemerintahan Joko Widodo (2014-2023)

The South Pacific region is an area that neighbors and directly borders Indonesia via Papua New Guinea. Members from the South Pacific are Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji and Kanak which represents New Caledonia. Geopolitically, this area is very important for Indonesia because it is a neighbor and has a direct border. Especially in 2015 the regional organization Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) accepted the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), which is part of the Free Papua Organization, to become an observer member of the MSG. This research aims to examine challenges Indonesia's foreign policy in the South Pacific region during the President Joko Widodo (2014-2022). Qualitative research and descriptive Analysis methods that researchers use for this research use the concept of external situations and conditions (external settings) in the study of foreign policy. The results of this research are the first and main challenge, namely the development of the Papua issue in MSG and there is support from Vanuatu, inconsistent support from PNG and the Solomon Islands. Secondly, the Papua issue is also discussed at the civil society level such as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), journalists, churc council, activists and students. Thirdly, The South Pacific region is not dependent on Indonesia because economic relations and cooperation between Indonesia and the South Pacific region are very small

Assessment and Prediction of Sea Level and Coastal Wetland Changes in Small Islands Using Remote Sensing and Artificial Intelligence

Pacific Island countries are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, which include the risks of increased ocean temperatures, sea level rise and coastal wetland loss. The destruction of wetlands leads not only to a loss of carbon sequestration but also triggers the release of already sequestered carbon, in turn exacerbating global warming. These climate change effects are interrelated, and small island nations continuously need to develop adaptive and mitigative strategies to deal with them. However, accurate and reliable research is needed to know the extent of the climate change effects with future predictions. Hence, this study develops a new hybrid Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) Multi-Layer Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory (BiLSTM) deep learning model with Multivariate Variational Mode Decomposition (MVMD) to predict the sea level for study sites in the Solomon Islands and Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Three other artificial intelligence (AI) models (Random Forest (FR), multilinear regression (MLR) and multi-layer perceptron (MLP) are used to benchmark the CNN-BiLSTM model. In addition to this, remotely sensed satellite Landsat imagery data are also used to assess and predict coastal wetland changes using a Random Forest (RF) classification model in the two small Pacific Island states. The CNN-BiLSTM model was found to provide the most accurate predictions (with a correlation coefficient of >0.99), and similarly a high level of accuracy (>0.98) was achieved using a Random Forest (RF) model to detect wetlands in both study sites. The mean sea levels were found to have risen 6.0 ± 2.1 mm/year in the Solomon Islands and 7.2 ± 2.2 mm/year in the FSM over the past two decades. Coastal wetlands in general were found to have decreased in total area for both study sites. The Solomon Islands recorded a greater decline in coastal wetland between 2009 and 2022.

"Feeling at home in Vanuatu": Integration of newcomers from the East during the last millennium.

Several localities across the Vanuatu archipelago (Melanesia), so-called 'Polynesian Outliers', are inhabited by communities that display Polynesian linguistic and cultural features although being located outside the Polynesian Triangle. Several introductions of Polynesian genetic components to Central and Southern Vanuatu during the last millenium have resulted in the cultural distinctiveness observed among the Polynesian Outliers in Vanuatu. However, social, political or economic process surrounding the exchange of genes between Polynesian and local individuals remain unidentified. Recent bioanthropological studies suggest the existence of female mobilities from neighboring regions to Vanuatu but also to the Polynesian Outliers of Taumako (Solomon Islands) within patrilocal societies. We aim to examine the hypothesis that Polynesian biological affinities observed in ancient individuals from Vanuatu are gendered or sex-specific, and that some of the Polynesian migrations during the last millennium may have involved practices of exogamy. By reconstructing phenotypes and biological identities from 13 archaeologically-recovered human skulls (400-300 years ago) from "Polynesian-related" regions of Vanuatu, we provide new insights to better contextualize the settlement patterns of Polynesian individuals. Eastern-Pacific associated phenotype are observable in 4 women from the Eretok burial complex (Efate region) and the Polynesian Outlier of Futuna, who were buried in close proximity to individuals with Western-Pacific associated phenotype. We suggest that close integration of individuals from the East into the local Vanuatu society, as well as the practice of exogamy, might have been key processes contributing to the preservation of Polynesian cultural features in Vanuatu over the past millennium. Our finding are cross-referenced with oral records from these two areas, as well as the known genetic makeup of the Vanuatu Polynesian Outliers.

Pacific Island Countries Supporting Papua to Separate from Indonesia: Where Does the U.S. Stand?

Pacific Island Countries, such as Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu, have been supporting the separatist movement in Papua, Indonesia. There have been suspicions that great power countries, for example the U.S., are behind them. The research finds out that the U.S. is against the idea of separating Papua from Indonesia because the entailed instability and insecurity will badly affect its mining business in Papua, represented by Freeport. However, by using foreign policy and proxy war framework, this research manages to explain that there is a possibility of a proxy war between the U.S. and China for dominance in the Pacific Islands Region. They ram Indonesia against Pacific Island Countries, with the separatism issue of Papua as the focal point. This research uses a qualitative method, which is suitable for analyzing social and political phenomena. The research data is obtained from secondary data, such as research reports, articles, and publications about the separatism movement in Papua

Can Law Manufacture a Party System? The Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands Experience with Party‐Strengthening Legislation

Two western Pacific states — the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea (PNG) — experimented with unusual and ambitious reforms aimed at strengthening political parties in the new millennium. In this paper, we look at what those laws entailed and how they worked in practice. In both cases, we find that unforeseen repercussions dominated. In PNG, the new laws encouraged candidates who formerly contested as independents to now nominate as members of microscopic one‐ or two‐member parties whereas in the Solomon Islands many formerly party‐affiliated candidates adjusted by contesting as independents. In PNG, the law was one of a range of devices aimed at strengthening incumbent governments, but money politics and manipulation of parliamentary procedure proved more significant. Core anti‐defection provisions in the new law were ruled unconstitutional in 2010, but other still valid clauses preserved an advantage for the “largest party” in government formation. In the Solomon Islands, the law created a shadow world of free‐floating individuals able to switch at liberty between formally constrained hermit crab shell parties. In neither country did these laws succeed in strengthening party systems.

Understanding the cocoa genetic resources in the Pacific to assist producers to supply the growing craft market

ABSTRACT The Pacific countries of Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu account for less than 2% of the world’s cacao dry bean production. To capitalise on the rapidly expanding origin craft cocoa market, understanding the genetic attributes of Theobroma cacao in the Pacific is essential. A six-year ACIAR-funded project collected 1647 dried leaf samples from research stations and smallholder farms to identify the population ancestry of T. cacao in the partner countries. Using SNP marker profiling, the study identified germplasm high in Amelonado, which represents the majority of material throughout the Pacific. However, the study also identified samples high in the remaining nine genetic groups, including Criollo, Nanay, IMC (Iquitos), Guiana, Parinari (Marañón), Nacional, Ucayali (Contamana), LCT EEN (Curaray), and Purus, which were distributed throughout the Pacific. The results, if utilised in local selection trials, could reposition growers in the Pacific countries, allowing them to supply the growing origin craft cocoa market, with genetically unique beans. Cocoa genetics was one aspect of a project incorporating production and postharvest research to refocus the commodity based cocoa industry to a supplier of high-quality beans of unique Pacific cocoa origin to the rapidly expanding craft ‘bean to bar’ cocoa industry.

Human–crocodile interactions in the western Solomon Islands: the importance of local data for reducing attacks on people

AbstractInteractions between people and the saltwater crocodile Crocodylus porosus frequently occur on islands and in coastal regions. Saltwater crocodiles impact people's lives and livelihoods by attacking them, resulting in minor or serious injuries, and by interfering in people's foraging activities. Retaliation may include killing the crocodiles involved. To reduce such human–crocodile interactions, data about the occurrence of incidents are required. We present data on encounters with crocodiles and attacks on people in the Roviana Lagoon, Solomon Islands. Data includes time of incident, gender, age and activity of the victim, water conditions and what happened to the crocodile after the incident. We used a questionnaire to capture the details of incidents that occurred during 2000–2020 in the villages of Dunde, Baraulu, Nusa Hope and Kozou. Most incidents were in the evening, mostly involving women, and most victims were aged 20–39 years or ≥ 60 years. In all cases people were attacked while gleaning for shellfish in the mangroves. Attacks occurred irrespective of whether the water was clear or murky, and in all cases the crocodiles were not killed. Such site-specific data will facilitate the formulation of strategies for reducing negative interactions between people and crocodiles in this particular location. Although the saltwater crocodile is categorized as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, research such as this provides data that can be used for promoting coexistence with and conservation of this species.

Atmospheric resonant oscillations by the 2022 January 15 eruption of the Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha'apai volcano from GNSS-TEC observations

SUMMARY Continuous Plinian eruptions often excite atmospheric modes of ∼3.7 and ∼4.4 mHz, which are observed as harmonic oscillations of ionospheric total electron content (TEC) by global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receivers. Such TEC oscillations started shortly after the great eruption of the Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha'apai (HTHH) submarine volcano at ∼4:14 UT, on 2022 January 15. Here I analyse GNSS data at stations within ∼4000 km from the volcano to study temporal and spatial distribution of such atmospheric modes. Strong ∼3.7 mHz TEC oscillations in near fields started shortly after the eruption onset and propagated outward with the sound speed from HTHH. Later such TEC oscillations became strong again with the amplitude peak at the distance ∼1400 km from HTHH. Such far field oscillations occurred also above New Zealand and the Solomon Islands, ∼3000 km from HTHH. Their amplitudes seem correlated with those of the 0S29 solid earth mode, suggesting that vertical surface vibrations underneath may play a role in maintaining the atmospheric mode. Onset of the far field TEC oscillations are synchronized with the local sunrise, possibly controlled by diurnal changes in the ionospheric electron density.

Oceanic Plateau and Spreading Ridge Subduction Accompanying Arc Reversal in the Solomon Islands

AbstractWe study the collision of the Ontong Java Plateau, reversal of the Solomon Islands arc, and subduction of the Woodlark Basin spreading ridge in the southwest Pacific. Double‐sided subduction and intra‐arc deformation, not just polarity reversal, characterize the rapid Australia‐Pacific plate convergence. The rifted margins of the 0–6.2‐Ma Woodlark Basin separate its unflexed young lithosphere without a trench from the older flexed lithosphere with >8‐km‐deep trenches subducting to either side. A gap evident in the seismicity and tomography between the NE‐subducted slabs of the Solomon Sea and Australia plates indicates that the Woodlark lithosphere likely melts and/or is quickly (<1 m.y.) resorbed into the mantle. A section of the Pacific Plate remains attached within the gap and provides the slab pull to form the Malaita accretionary prism. Quaternary arc‐composition volcanoes that occur on both sides of the Woodlark Basin subduction front are not sourced from a mantle wedge overlying a Wadati‐Benioff zone, but come from and through breaks in the young incoming and subducting lithosphere and the overturning mantle beneath. Though the basin is too weak to sustain plate flexure, arc volcanoes on the subducting crust result in locally strong coupling to the forearc, manifest by tsunamigenic earthquakes. At 150–400‐km depth, the subducted slabs under the Solomon Islands are near vertical. They are near‐horizontal between the 410 and 660‐km mantle discontinuities beneath the Woodlark Basin and further south, whereas beneath the Solomon Sea Basin they dip southwest and penetrate the 660‐km discontinuity, having been detached by the north‐dipping Solomon Sea slab.

Visitation, communication, and participation: an ethical and respectful strategy for engaging Australian South Sea Islander communities when sharing their lived experiences.

This study examines the experiences of three Australian South Sea Islanders from the same community who are part of a larger research team scheduled to engage in an archaeological research project in Mackay, Queensland, in 2021. The aim of the project was to highlight Australian South Sea Islander knowledge, voices, and lived experiences. However, owing to COVID-19 and persistent lockdowns in Queensland and New South Wales, the project faced significant delays. The timeline was adjusted, with plans to reintroduce the project to the community after an 18-month hiatus, aiming to rekindle interest and encourage participation. This study focuses on designing a community engagement strategy that builds on established protocols for researchers working with Australian South Sea Islander communities. The strategy includes three key steps: visitation, communication, and participation. By integrating the Tok Stori methodology-an Indigenous research approach from the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu-the strategy supports the decolonisation of the collaborative research process, enabling the sharing of Australian South Sea Islander lived experiences in a culturally safe manner. The authors provide contextualised reflections, offering insights from an Australian South Sea Islander perspective.