Most energy efficiency policy in the Pacific is borrowed. Appliance labels, rebates and awareness campaigns are designed in Australia, New Zealand or Europe and then adapted, lightly, for island markets. They assume that households weigh up costs and savings and choose the efficient option once they have the right information. My doctoral research at the University of Otago tested that assumption in Tonga and found it rarely holds.

The study worked with 102 households on Tongatapu, using talanoa (open conversations), surveys, time-use diaries, observation and photographs, with cooking as the main lens. It applied the Energy Cultures Framework, which looks at how people's norms, everyday practices and the things they own interact with outside pressures to shape energy use. The finding was clear: energy decisions in Tongan homes were seldom driven by economic calculation. They followed social, religious and cultural values.

Several forces stood out. For many households, religious obligations such as tithing and contributions to church events come before energy savings, and families make decisions that honour those commitments whatever their financial position. Others are family-oriented decision makers who manage limited money carefully, but out of necessity rather than a deliberate focus on efficiency. Remittances from relatives overseas shape what households can afford and often decide which appliances arrive in the home. Community leaders and churches carry far more influence than a government awareness campaign. And there is widespread misinformation about what actually saves energy.

The material side matters too. Many homes run a mix of efficient and inefficient appliances, many of them old or poor quality. Tonga has had no appliance performance regulations, so low-quality and counterfeit products reach retail shelves, while second-hand appliances without energy labels are sold on the street or sent by family abroad. At the same time, traditional cooking with 'umu pits and firewood stoves remains part of cultural identity, not just a cheaper option.

The policy lesson is that measures must be centred on what households prioritise. A rebate that assumes people are chasing lower bills will not move a family whose priority is meeting church and family obligations. Programmes work better when they connect efficiency to those priorities: freeing up money for family and church commitments, working through church leaders and congregations, and using trusted community voices rather than leaflets. Minimum standards for imported appliances would also stop inefficient products entering the country in the first place, which protects households regardless of their energy culture.

None of this is unique to Tonga. Pacific Island Countries share many of the same social structures, and the same approach can be applied elsewhere in the region and beyond energy efficiency. The starting point is to understand the culture before designing the policy, rather than importing the policy and hoping the culture adjusts.

Dr Kakau Foliaki, Director, Teulava Consultancy. Based on the PhD thesis "Energy cultures amongst Tongan households: implications for energy efficiency policy" (University of Otago, 2024).