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About Pandanus Books

Pandanus Books, established 2001, is a scholarly and literary imprint within the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (RSPAS), Australian National University. Pandanus Books, an editorially independent enterprise, publishes with a focus on the School's range of disciplines, and in particular Southeast Asia and the Southwest Pacific. The Press also produces a number of annual publications on behalf of RSPAS, including the Directory of Research, Annual Report, Catalogue of Publications and the bi-annual literary journal Conversations.

The list embraces a variety of genres and locales, and includes fiction and poetry set in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, The Marshall Islands, New Zealand and Samoa, Hong Kong, Indonesia; memoirs from Burma and India, Japan, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Bougainville, Fiji; and general and scholarly non-fiction ranging all over the region. Ian Templeman, the head and guiding force behind Pandanus Books, sees the imprint as producing both books which have a small audience in a defined area and also those which will be more general.

Editorial Board

The Pandanus Books' Editorial Board is responsible for monitoring overall performance and develoment of the publishing program. The Board meets four times each year to discuss the publishing list and to provide advice to the Chairman and the Publisher on editorial issues, manuscript selection and assessment, balance within the publishing list in terms of genre and subject, marketing promotions, business planning, sponsorship and development strategies. The Chairman of the Editorial Board is Professor Darrell Tryon, Deputy Director of the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies. Six members are appointed from within the School. All have particular interests in the publishing program.

The remaining four members of the Editorial Board represent the general Canberra community and have a broad range of skills which include academic literary studies, knowledge and experience in the federal bureaucracy, media and business.

All members of the Editorial Board are appointed by the Director of the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies on advice and recommendations from School staff.