Despite the acceptance of this general model of Island Southeast
Asian origins for Polynesians and their Lapita ancestors, questions
still remained: How was the Polynesian Triangle itself settled?
What were the immediate origins of the New Zealand Maori or the
people of Rapanui? How much interaction was there between the
Lapita peoples in western Remote Oceania with the Papuan populations
of Near Oceania? Where was the homeland of the Lapita
peoples and their culture? Ancient DNA provides a unique opportunity
to address many of these questions but requires a multidisciplinary
approach and collaboration and engagement with local
communities. We might also be able to further engage with and
encourage Pacific communities to participate in whole genome
studies (both ancient and modern) to begin to address questions
about how Pacific populations might have adapted genetically to
the range of Pacific environments and specific challenges. These
approaches could help us better understand why Pacific communities
today suffer from higher than normal rates of particular
diseases such as diabetes, gout and other metabolic disorders
(Hancock et al., 2008; Phipps-Green et al., 2010; Buckley, 2011).