A Tongan student has found a South Pacific beverage is helping keep his culture alive.
Edmund Fehoko, aged 24 has graduated from AUT University with his Master of Arts after researching weekly kava drinking sessions and its effects on NZ-born Tongan males.
Fehoko has studied the history of kava drinking from a Tongan male perspective for an entire year. He found the Tongan culture is being strengthened by drinking kava and practising the language, singing and conversing.
“Participating in a kava session can be an alternative to alcohol and youth gang affiliations and issues that our young people face today,” today says Edmund Fehoko.
He says the hope and the challenge is for his community leaders to stand up and voice the importance of culture and one way is through kava.