Anchored in the Pacific · Reaching the World

AnchoredHoldRI

The ocean separates us — but the anchor holds.
Knowledge bridges what distance divides.

Founded by Rebekah Immanuel

Pacific geopolitical strategy, research, and education. Finding the gap. Building the bridge. Based in Aotearoa New Zealand, working across the world.

"The anchor does not fight the ocean — it holds its position within it. So does rigorous knowledge in a world of shifting power."

24+
Countries Worked Across
3
Languages
20+
Years Field Experience
PhD
Candidate · Viva Aug 2026
About

Grounded.
Reaching.

AnchoredHold exists because the most important questions about the Pacific don't get asked from within it. They get asked from Paris, Brussels, Beijing — and answered without enough Pacific voices in the room.

This is that voice. Rooted in Fiji, shaped by diplomacy across 24 countries, sharpened by academic research at the highest level, and grounded in the lived reality of Pacific communities navigating a world that makes decisions about them without them.

The name says it all. An anchor doesn't resist the ocean — it holds its place within it. That's the work: finding where the gaps are, and building something solid enough to bridge them.

— Rebekah Immanuel · Christchurch, Aotearoa New Zealand
Languages
Fijian
Mother tongue
English
C2 Proficient
French
B1 Independent
Areas of Expertise
French Foreign Policy Indo-Pacific Security Pacific Sovereignty EU–Pacific Relations China–Pacific Dynamics Geopolitical Strategy Nuclear Policy Sea Power Theory Pasifika Communities Diplomacy & Consular Affairs
What I Do

How AnchoredHold works with you

01
Speaking & Keynotes

Conference presentations, diplomatic seminars, and keynotes on French foreign policy, Indo-Pacific security, and Pacific geopolitics. Complex strategy made accessible — never dumbed down.

02
Strategic Consulting

Advisory work for governments, NGOs, and think tanks navigating Pacific policy. Field credibility and academic rigour in one engagement.

03
Research & Analysis

Policy papers, strategic assessments, and research reports. Specialising in French and EU engagement in the Pacific, China's regional influence, and small island state security.

04
University Lecturing

Guest lectures, workshops, and geopolitical simulations for undergraduate and postgraduate students in international relations, European studies, and strategic studies.

05
Facilitation & Chairing

Experienced chair of diplomatic seminar series featuring ambassadors and senior officials. Creating conditions for honest dialogue between people who rarely share a room.

06
Training & Workshops

Customised workshops on geopolitical literacy, Pacific context, and cross-cultural analysis for organisations working in or with Pacific communities and governments.

PhD Research

The work that anchors everything

French Foreign, Security & Defence Policy in the Indo-Pacific Maritime Territories: An Analysis

As the only and current nuclear power in the EU with 93% of its EEZ located in the Indo-Pacific, this research questions whether the attention, security and defence policy France is allocating towards its sovereign territories in this region is sufficient or robust enough to cater for the increasing geopolitical security tensions this region is facing.

This region is home to most of the world's nuclear powers, strategic trade routes, and some of the largest and fastest growing economies — contributing to 60% of the world's GDP. The complexity of associated security threats makes this region ripe for miscalculation at any time. China's assertive rise questions and challenges the rules-based order that France and the EU value in harmony with international law, democracy, and human rights.

With the increase in innovative technology, globalisation, and security threats from non-state actors such as piracy, terrorism, and asymmetrical warfare, even states with hard power capabilities must grapple with the reality that weapons systems have become sophisticated enough to threaten their very existence. The central question: how can policies created in Paris be effectively implemented when the temperature on the ground is different? What if the perspective from Paris is different from the view on the ground? Using French Polynesia (Tahiti) and New Caledonia as case studies, this research examines that gap — and what it means for the future of the Indo-Pacific.

📍 University of Canterbury — NCRE
📅 Thesis Submitted March 2026
🎓 Viva · August 2026
🔬 Political Science / European Studies
Speaking History

Rooms I've been in

JAN 2025
Indo-Pacific Still a Chessboard for the Great Powers
AACaPS / ANZSA / NCRE Conference — University of Canterbury
JUN 2024
Talanoa Coastwatchers 2.0: China–Fiji Relations
Talanoa Conference on Foreign Interference in the Pacific — University of Canterbury
AUG 2023
The EU and Security in the Asia-Pacific
EU Network Asia Pacific Project Workshop — University of Canterbury
AUG 2023
Co-Chair — The EU, Aotearoa NZ & Indo-Pacific: Rethinking our Future
Diplomatic Seminar Series — Speaker: Ambassador of Poland
JUN 2023
France's Foreign, Security & Defence Policy in its Indo-Pacific Maritime Territories
EUSAAP Conference — Bangkok, Thailand
MAY 2023
Co-Chair — The EU, Aotearoa NZ & Indo-Pacific: Rethinking our Future
Diplomatic Seminar Series — Speakers: French & German Ambassadors
NOV 2022
What Role for the EU in the Indo-Pacific Maritime?
NCRE Roundtable — Guest Panelist
Work With AnchoredHold

Let's build the bridge

No gatekeepers. No lengthy procurement. Just a direct conversation about what you need and whether AnchoredHold is the right fit for it.

🎤
Speaking
Conferences, seminars, keynotes
🧭
Consulting
Strategy, policy, analysis
🎓
Teaching
Lectures, workshops, simulations
✍️
Research
Papers, reports, assessments