The accelerating climate crisis—manifested through global warming, sea-level rise, biodiversity loss, resource depletion, and growing food insecurity, has exposed deep contradictions within dominant models of modernization and development. While technological advancement, economic growth, and globalization have long been celebrated as markers of human progress, these same forces have contributed significantly to ecological degradation and climate vulnerability. This paper critically interrogates the question of responsibility for the climate crisis by examining the interconnected roles of education systems, governance structures, development policies, globalization, and technological transformation. Drawing on interdisciplinary literature from environmental education, critical development theory, political ecology, and governance studies, the paper argues that the climate crisis is not the result of isolated failures but of systemic and institutionalized paradigms that prioritize economic growth over ecological sustainability and social justice.

The analysis highlights how education systems have often reproduced growth-centric ideologies, instrumental views of knowledge, and skills-for-growth narratives, while insufficiently fostering ecological consciousness, ethical responsibility, and critical sustainability thinking. At the governance and policy level, weak accountability mechanisms, fragmented environmental regulation, and inequitable development models have exacerbated environmental degradation, particularly in the Global South and climate-vulnerable regions such as small island developing states. The paper further critiques techno-solutionist approaches that frame innovation as a panacea, obscuring structural inequalities and deflecting responsibility from political and institutional actors.

By reframing responsibility as collective, multi-scalar, and historically situated, this study advances a more nuanced understanding of climate accountability that moves beyond blame toward systemic transformation. It proposes a re-conceptualisation of education as a transformative force for ecological literacy, ethical reasoning, and civic engagement, alongside governance reforms that embed transparency, accountability, and sustainability at the core of development decision-making. The paper contributes to contemporary debates by offering an integrated conceptual lens for understanding the paradoxes of modern development and by outlining pathways toward more just, inclusive, and sustainable futures in an era of escalating climate risk.

The global higher education landscape is increasingly dominated by Western-centric accreditation standards and university ranking systems, often framing institutional quality and legitimacy through a narrow, Euro-American lens. This dominance has significant implications for Indigenous universities and knowledge systems, which are frequently marginalized or devalued despite their critical contributions to cultural preservation, community engagement, and locally relevant scholarship. Drawing on a critical review of accreditation frameworks, global ranking methodologies, and case studies of Indigenous institutions, this paper interrogates whose knowledge is prioritized in global higher education. It highlights the structural inequities that favor Western epistemologies, the challenges Indigenous universities face in gaining recognition, and the broader consequences for educational sovereignty and epistemic justice. The study advocates for reconceptualizing quality assurance and recognition systems to inclusively value diverse epistemologies, promote culturally responsive higher education, and advance the legitimacy of Indigenous knowledge within global academic discourse.

Career counselling and guidance are critical in supporting students’ career decision-making in tertiary education, facilitating the transition from academic preparation to professional readiness. This paper examines the role of structured counselling interventions, assessment tools, and personalized guidance in enabling students to make informed career choices. Drawing on contemporary career development theories, including Super’s Life-Span, Life-Space Theory and Social Cognitive Career Theory, the study highlights how career guidance enhances self-awareness, goal clarity, employability skills, and alignment between personal values and professional pathways. Evidence indicates that students engaging in career counselling demonstrate greater confidence, proactive planning, and resilience in navigating complex labour markets. Institutional and contextual factors, such as accessibility, technological integration, and cultural responsiveness, influence the effectiveness of these services. The findings underscore the strategic importance of embedding comprehensive career guidance frameworks within tertiary institutions to promote student success, lifelong employability, and societal contribution. Implications for policy, practice, and future research in higher education career services are discussed.

The evolution of formal education in Fiji is inseparable from the broader historical processes of colonisation, cultural encounter, and socio-political transformation that have shaped the nation since the nineteenth century. This paper critically re-examines the historical trajectory of education in Fiji from the Deed of Cession in 1874 to the contemporary era of decolonisation, with particular attention to the roles of missionary enterprises, colonial administration, and the indentured labour system in structuring educational access, curriculum content, and social stratification. Drawing on historical and postcolonial scholarship, the study analyses how early indigenous systems of knowledge transmission were marginalised through the imposition of Western epistemologies, Christian moral instruction, and racially differentiated schooling models designed to serve colonial economic and governance objectives.

The paper further explores how education functioned as a tool of social control during the colonial period, reinforcing ethnic divisions between Indigenous iTaukei communities and Indo-Fijian descendants of indentured labourers, while simultaneously limiting pathways to higher education and leadership for colonised populations. Following independence in 1970, Fiji’s education system entered a complex phase of reform marked by efforts to expand access, promote national cohesion, and reassert cultural identity, yet continued to reflect deep-seated colonial legacies in curriculum design, language policy, and assessment practices. By situating Fiji’s educational development within wider global debates on decolonisation and postcolonial education reform, this paper highlights the enduring tensions between inherited colonial structures and contemporary aspirations for culturally responsive, inclusive, and equitable education.

The study contributes to the growing body of Pacific and global South scholarship by offering a historically grounded, critical analysis of education in Fiji, and by identifying key lessons for current policy and curriculum reform initiatives aimed at decolonising knowledge systems and repositioning education to meet the social, cultural, and developmental needs of a postcolonial society.

This article discusses the use of a semiotics approach in the study of International Relations. Semiotics is the study of signs and sign processes (semiosis), indication, designation, resemblances, analogies, metaphors, symbolism, meaning and communication. Semiotics approach is widely used in the studies of cultures, including in intercultural communication. In a simple term, intercultural communication is defined as human flow across national boundaries.  Intercultural communication generally refers to face-to-face interaction among people of diverse culture. Intercultural communication is not a phenomenon that only takes place in the domestic sphere of a country, but also occur within the scope of global or international relations. International relations, according to some scholars, is a cultural phenomenon and the processes that occurred in international relations is essentially an intercultural communication or cross-cultural communication. Therefore, the processes in international relations can be explained using a semiotic approach. 

The accelerating integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into education, research, and innovation presents both transformative opportunities and profound ethical, cultural, and sustainability challenges. This paper examines the role of sustainable education in empowering individuals to make informed decisions and take responsible action for a sustainable future in the age of AI. Grounded in the principles of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), the study conceptualises education as a lifelong, values-driven process that integrates technological advancement with social equity, environmental stewardship, and cultural integrity.

Drawing on global policy frameworks and contextualised through the Pacific and Fijian higher education landscape, the paper explores how AI-enabled research and innovation can support inclusive, locally responsive, and sustainable development. It argues that without deliberate ethical governance, professional capacity-building, and inclusive digital infrastructure, AI risks reinforcing existing inequalities and marginalising Indigenous knowledge systems. Conversely, when embedded within culturally grounded pedagogies and sustainability-oriented research cultures, AI can enhance educational access, knowledge co-creation, and resilience-building.

The paper proposes a conceptual framework that positions sustainable education, ethical AI governance, research innovation, and cultural contextualisation as converging pillars for resilient futures. It concludes by emphasising the responsibility of tertiary institutions, policymakers, and educational leaders to proactively shape AI integration in ways that prioritise sustainability, equity, and long-term societal wellbeing. In doing so, education is repositioned not merely as a responder to technological change but as a critical architect of sustainable and resilient futures.

Contemporary education systems are increasingly shaped by market-oriented logics in which curricula, credentials, and learning pathways are designed, priced, and promoted as investments in future employability and social mobility. Within this configuration, critical questions arise regarding who determines what counts as valuable knowledge, who profits from its delivery, and who ultimately bears the risk when educational promises fail to translate into meaningful life and labour outcomes. This paper critically examines the political economy of education by interrogating education as a traded promise, one sold by institutions, regulated by policy frameworks, and purchased by students under conditions of profound uncertainty.

Drawing on human capital theory, critical political economy, and constructivist perspectives, the paper argues that contemporary education systems increasingly externalise risk onto learners, while decision-making power over curriculum relevance, credential value, and labour-market alignment remains concentrated among policymakers, accrediting bodies, and education providers. Students, positioned as rational consumers, are expected to invest time, debt, and aspiration without reliable knowledge of whether educational offerings will remain relevant amid rapid technological change, automation, and shifting labour markets. This asymmetry of information and power fundamentally challenges assumptions of informed choice and meritocratic reward.

The paper further explores how this risk transfer disproportionately affects learners in the Global South and marginalised contexts, where structural constraints, limited labour-market absorption, and uneven digital transformation exacerbate uncertainty. By reframing education not solely as a public good or private investment, but as a contested site of risk allocation, the study contributes to contemporary debates on marketisation, accountability, and equity in education. The paper concludes by calling for more transparent, participatory, and ethically grounded approaches to educational governance that re-centre learners not as consumers of promised futures, but as co-constructors of meaningful and socially responsive education.

The rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is profoundly reshaping higher education, research practices, and innovation ecosystems worldwide. While AI offers significant opportunities to enhance knowledge production, learning personalisation, and research efficiency, its uncritical adoption risks reinforcing technocratic, inequitable, and ethically fragile educational models. This paper argues that current higher education responses to AI remain overly focused on technological capability and efficiency, with insufficient attention to learner agency, ethical judgement, sustainability, and social responsibility. Drawing on heutagogy (self-determined learning) as a central pedagogical framework, the paper proposes a repositioning of research, innovation, and sustainable education in the age of AI.

Using a critical and integrative conceptual approach, the paper synthesises literature across education for sustainable development (ESD), AI ethics, higher education pedagogy, and innovation studies to demonstrate how heutagogy operationalises responsible and human-centred engagement with AI. The analysis highlights how heutagogical principles, learner autonomy, reflexivity, capability development, and lifelong learning, enable individuals and institutions to move beyond information acquisition towards informed decision-making and responsible action. The paper further examines the implications of heutagogy for AI-enabled research and innovation, emphasising research integrity, ethical governance, interdisciplinary inquiry, and societal relevance.

Importantly, the paper situates this discussion within Global South and Pacific Island contexts, where digital divides, cultural knowledge systems, and sustainability vulnerabilities necessitate contextually grounded and decolonising educational approaches. It argues that heutagogy provides a powerful mechanism for integrating indigenous and local knowledge with global AI technologies while safeguarding cultural identity and community wellbeing. The paper concludes by outlining strategic policy and practice implications for universities, positioning heutagogy as a critical enabler of ethical AI adoption, sustainable innovation, and future-ready higher education systems. In doing so, it contributes a timely conceptual framework for aligning Artificial Intelligence with human values, sustainability imperatives, and the public good.

School administration, planning, and reporting are central to school governance, yet they are frequently enacted as discrete and compliance-oriented functions rather than as interconnected processes supporting educational improvement. This paper critically examines the interrelationships between administration, strategic planning, and reporting within the context of Fiji’s education system, situating the analysis within broader international debates on educational leadership, accountability, and reform. Drawing on contemporary leadership theory and Pacific education scholarship, the study synthesises literature to explore how centralised governance structures, leadership capacity, and cultural values shape school-level practices.

The analysis reveals a persistent tension between accountability-driven administrative requirements and the need for adaptive, learning-centred leadership. While national frameworks have strengthened coherence and transparency, planning and reporting practices are often constrained by standardisation, limited contextual flexibility, and uneven data-use capacity. At the same time, Fiji’s strong communal values, relational leadership traditions, and emerging digital systems present significant opportunities for participatory planning and culturally responsive governance.

The paper argues that effective school improvement in Fiji depends on repositioning administration as strategic educational leadership and integrating planning and reporting within a coherent governance framework. It concludes by proposing policy-relevant directions that emphasise leadership development, flexible planning structures, streamlined and learning-oriented reporting, and broader conceptions of accountability that reflect Pacific educational values. These insights contribute to international scholarship on school governance while offering practical implications for small-state and developing education systems.