Doreen Kuper

Doreen Kuper is an entrepreneur and cultural mediator from the Solomon Islands. She is a former Honorary Consul of Solomon Islands to New Zealand and a former Chair of the Festival of Pacific Arts.[2][3]

Doreen Kuper
CitizenshipSolomon Islands
Known forHonorary Consul to New Zealand
Chair of the Festival of Pacific Arts
SpouseRichard Prebble[1]

Biography

Educated at the Melanesian Mission's St. Mary's School in Pamua, in 1962 she was awarded one of three scholarships to fund overseas secondary education.[4] She attended St Gabriel's College, Waverley.[5] In 1992, she was appointed the Solomon Islands Honorary Consul to New Zealand.[6]

In the 2006 general elections she contested the seat of East Makira, but was unsuccessful - the fact she was not resident in the constituency made campaigning difficult.[7] In 2010, as part of he role as consul, she launched the book Being the First, which is the first publication to feature the stories and experiences of women from the Solomon Islands, in their own words.[8] She later launched the anthology in New Zealand.[9]

Kuper is a former Chair of the Festival of Pacific Arts, which was held in the Solomon Islands in 2012.[6][10][11][12] The festival attracted an audience of 200,000 people, with 3,000 performers from twenty-four countries taking part.[13] During her time as Chair, she led calls for the repatriation of art and artefacts to the Solomon Islands from non-Pacific countries.[14] Her cultural leadership also enabled the Solomon Islands to host the Miss Pacific Pageant in 2013.[6]

In 2021, she was a guest speaker at a festival in Honiara celebrating the people of Makira.[15]

References
  1. Spratt, Amanda. "Dogged by the past". The Listener. Archived from the original on 2013-10-20.
  2. "SPLA | Doreen Kuper (Ysabel)". Spla. Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  3. "Pacific.scoop.co.nz » Being The First launched in New Zealand by Solomons honorary consul". Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  4. "Education - Concept - Solomon Islands Encyclopaedia, 1893-1978". 2021-01-20. Archived from the original on 2021-01-20. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  5. Alasia, Sam (1989). Ples Blong Iumi: Solomon Islands, the Past Four Thousand Years. editorips@usp.ac.fj. p. 104. ISBN 978-982-02-0027-2.
  6. "Cultures-Solomon | Doreen Kuper (Ysabel)". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  7. Dinnen, Sinclair; Firth, Stewart (2008-05-01). Politics and State Building in Solomon Islands. ANU E Press. p. 164. ISBN 978-1-921313-66-0.
  8. "Pacific.scoop.co.nz » Solomon Islands women 'barrier breakers' tell their stories". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  9. "Pacific.scoop.co.nz » Being The First launched in New Zealand by Solomons honorary consul". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  10. "Solomons Artists Asked To Price Goods Fairly During Festival | Pacific Islands Report". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  11. "Preparations for the Pacific Festival of Arts Well in Progress | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  12. Teaiwa, Katerina (2014-07-03). "Reflections on the 11th Festival of Pacific Arts Honiara, Solomon Islands, 1–14 July 2012". The Journal of Pacific History. 49 (3): 347–353. doi:10.1080/00223344.2014.953665. ISSN 0022-3344. S2CID 162350755.
  13. "A Gathering Like No Other - Solomon Times Online". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  14. "Return of cultural artefacts hailed as way to grow economy | RNZ News". Radio New Zealand. 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
  15. "Empower Women in All Works of Life: Mrs. Kuper | Womens Media Solomon Islands". 2021-09-29. Archived from the original on 2021-09-29. Retrieved 2021-09-29.
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