Exploring through the power of personal stories

South Pacific Stories is an outsider’s journey into island life. In 2018, we traveled to a world defined by the ocean. This place is the home of great navigators and artists and the site of both historic oppression and modern resurgence. We learned about life from the people who live here, where islands are so far flung they rarely appear together on one map.

We listened, followed, and asked the people we met to choose new sources and locations. The stories you find here will come from those experiences.

This project began as a scouting mission in the summer of 2018. We began in Tahiti, traveled through some of the Tuamotus, on to the Marquesas, and back to the Society Islands.

Journalist and storyteller Jennifer Kingsley, the project founder, worked with photographer Eric Guth and filmmaker Matt Mastrantuono.