At the Re-Thinking Pacific Education colloquium held at the University of the South Pacific in 2001, a group of key Pacific educators came together to discuss issues and challenges in Pacific education and to explore new directions and alternatives for Pacific education (Pene, Taufe'ulungake, and Benson, 2002). The metaphor of a 'Tree of Opportunity' was used to describe education in the Pacific and this set the stage for the people present to reconceptualise Pacific education and think about ways of reclaiming the education process. The discussions at the colloquium were wide-ranging and they laid a solid foundation for the initiatives and plans of action that were to emerge over the next few years. One especially important development that has since been promoted by Pacific community groups throughout the region is the development of early childhood education. In particular, these community initiatives have developed early childhood (ECE) curricula and in this respect, they have affirmed the call from the 2001 colloquium members to develop ideas and content which reflects Pacific cultural values and aspirations. These recent initiatives have also foregrounded meaningful, authentic and contextualised models of learning drawn from a Pacific perspective (Pene, Taufe'ulungaki and Benson, 2002). Thaman (1999) argues that it is only when Pacific contexts are reflected in meaningful ways that education becomes transformative and can actively contribute to the cultural and linguistic survival of Pacific communities.