THE University of the South Pacific's new publishing arm, USP Press, was launched yesterday with the release of five new books at the Oceania Centre for Arts Culture and Pacific Studies.
USP Press was established this year to provide a publishing outlet for authors throughout the Pacific region and create a publishing base for academic research undertaken at the university.
USP Press is seeking partnerships with other institutions and publishers in a strategy to extend its reach and provide opportunities for content to be published on a broad cross section of topics
Managing editor Jonathan Griffiths believes the relationship will enable USP Press to build a publishing network throughout the world.
"As well as being able to take advantage of USP's regional structure to source content, USP Press will look to increase its visibility and distribution reach by encouraging these partnerships," he said.
Prof Vilisoni Hereniko, director of the Oceania Centre, sees the books as a way of promoting the work of local and regional artists.
"These handsome books contain some of the most beautiful paintings by contemporary artists living in Oceania today," Prof Hereniko said.