Marshallese women are considered the finest and most productive weavers in Micronesia. 
Since World War II there has been a gradual loss of knowledge of the traditional form of fine weaving and the beautiful symmetrical designs that characterized Marshallese clothing mat-making artistry.  
 
Traditional leader and activist Maria Kabua Fowler and Dr. Irene Taafaki, University of the South Pacific felt it critical to revive and share traditional mat designs.  They shared photographs from the Bishop Museum collection with local weavers and held an exhibit/auction of 19 mats in April 2007.  Namdrik weaver Patsy Herman took first place receiving $1340 in prize money and auction proceeds.  All mats were sold, one purchased by the Bishop Museum and one mat on display at Outrigger Reef hotel in Honolulu. 
 
Based on the overwhelming success of the 2007 event, a 2nd exhibition and auction of mats will be held on March 14, 2008 at the Marshall Islands Resort in Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands. 
 
More than 20 mats from Namdrik, Arno, Ailinglaplap, Ujae, Mejit, Kwajalein and Majuro atolls will be on exhibit and available at the auction. Iroij (high Chief) Michael Kabua will exhibit family heirloom mats and the Bishop Museum photos will be on display.  Honolulu based collector/dealer Caroline Yacoe will assist with the exhibit and facilitate sales of the mats to private collectors and museums. 
 
Guests staying at the Marshall Islands Resort will receive a ticket to attend the exhibit and participate in the auction.   Special room rates will be extended by the hotel.
 
This is the third in a series of collaborations between Maria Kabua Fowler and Dr. Irene Taafaki.  The first collaboration began in 2001 with a Marshallese Herbal Plant Workshop and culminated in their recent book Traditional Medicine of the Marshall Islands- the Women, the Plants, the Treatments (University of the South Pacific Press and available at Na Mea Hawaii in Honolulu, Hawaii).
 
The Republic of the Marshall Islands is located just north of the equator and 2400 miles southwest of Hawaii.  1,225 tiny islands form 29 atolls and five single low islands.  The Marshall Islands is served four times a week from Honolulu by Continental Airlines.  The largest hotel, formerly operated by Outrigger, is the Marshall Islands Resort, www. Marshallislandsresort.com. 
 
For  further  information:
About the Project, Exhibit and Auction, contact: Dr. Irene Taafaki: Taafaki_i@usp.ac.fj
Travel information: Marshall Islands Visitors Authority: www.visitmarshallislands.com
      Bill Weza,General Manager, Marshall Islands Resort: mirhtl@ntamar.net  (692) 625-2525
For photos of the 2007 exhibit: Caroline Yacoe:cyacoepp@aol.com or Marylou.foley@outrigger.com

KOJELLA

 
            MIVA emoj an karoke bwe week en kein Karuo ilo March 2008 (March 10th-15th) ej TOURISM WEEK.  Juon ian kebojak ko enaj komon iloan week en ej Kawinin kin Jaki Ed eo kein karuo an Marshall Islands. 
 
          Kemij kir im kelewetak aolep kora bwe ren komone juon, ruo ak jonan eo remaron eje non ien kawinin kin Jaki Ed in enaj komon ilo March 14, 2008.  Jaki Ed kein rej aikuj kojerbal wot maan, lo im atat.  Kojerbal wot kauno kilmej ak brown.  Drettan juon Jaki Ed enjab aitoklok jen 3 ne.
 
I.                   Naj wor etali im jejji (judge) jaki kein ilo lajrak kein
(a)   Tiljek im Mejerik
(b)  Mej in etto ko kojerbali
(c)   Jonan airik in idren jaki
II.                Kawinin ko
(a)   First Prize        -        $1,000.00
(b)  Second Prize    -        $   600.00
(c)   Third Prize       -        $   400.00
(d)  Naj bar lelok nebar non lalim (5) jaki kin
$100 juon.
III.             Enaj wor ien an Jikul ko im armij otemjej aluji jaki kein
IV.            Jaki kein naj wiakaki ilo juon kain wia etan “Silent Auction”
V.               Jouij im kotobrak tok Jaki kein non Majuro mokta jen week en iman ilo March 2008.  Jilkintok non Dolores deBrum-Kattil ilo MIVA, ak Irene Taafaki im Maria Fowler ilo USP Marshall Islands Campus.
VI.            Komol im Jeramon non ro renaj bok konair ilo Kawinin kin Jaki Ed in.

Marshall Islands Aims High for Tourism Development – Majuro, MH.

In an effort to step up tourism development over the next few years, the Marshall Islands will conduct a series of strategic planning exercises through the end of 2007, including a Strategic Tourism Summit scheduled for November 9 and 10 in Majuro. The strategic planning process, headed up by the Marshall Islands Visitors Authority (MIVA), will help to clarify the RMI’s tourism development vision and objectives and will ultimately produce a National Tourism Development Plan covering the years 2008 to 2011.
 
This month marks exactly 10 years since MIVA began operating as the national tourism organization. MIVA was established in October of 1997, the result of a technical assistance grant from the Asian Development Bank to the Government of the RMI. MIVA was one of the first RMI public agencies to have a majority of its Board members representing the private sector.
 
While tourism development in the RMI remains in its early stages, with Majuro Atoll (the capital and gateway) seeing just under 8,000 air arrivals and anywhere between 100 to 2,000 sea arrivals a year (depending on yacht and cruise ship traffic), overall growth in visitor numbers as well as private tourism investment has been steady. For example, throughout the 1990s, the RMI saw just 200 to 300 scuba divers a year, while today that range has jumped to between 500 to 1,000 divers a year.
 
The years 2006 and 2007 are landmark years for tourism, with the arrival of the first-ever direct charter flights from Japan to Majuro (which will impact visitor numbers significantly), ongoing improvements at the Amata Kabua International Airport, and significant private investment flowing into both new and expanded hotel and resort facilities on the main island of Majuro and across the lagoon in the northern islands area.
 
“We’ve made steady progress in the past decade,” says MIVA General Manager Dolores deBrum-Kattil. “It’s a good time to take stock and to talk about what kind of destination we want to become. These strategic planning exercises should help us clarify where we are today, where we want to be in the future, and what it will take to get there.”