Aporosa, S. 'Apo'2019-01-0920172019-01-092017Aporosa, S. ‘Apo’. (2017). Kava (Piper methysticum): Demythifying the Pacific’s cultural keystone species. Presented at the Tālanga Seminar Series, University of the South Pacific, Tonga, 12 Oct.https://hdl.handle.net/10289/12255Kava, in both its plant and drink form, is Pasifika’s ‘cultural keystone species’ and a potent icon of identity with some of its medicinal efficacy legitimised within Western pharmacology and research. However, for every positive concerning kava there appears to be a counterpoint: kava is being ‘abused’; kava causes liver damage; kava encourages men to stay away from home for lengthy periods negatively impacting the family; kava turns it’s drinkers into Zombies incapable of functioning the next day, etc. This presentation will address these claims while also seeking reasons as to what motivates kava criticism.application/pdfen