About Teina
Teina is in her third year of the Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in Indigenous Knowledge, History and Heritage, and Management. She grew up in Perth and belongs to the Yindjibarndi people from Roebourne, and Te Atiawa from Taranaki, New Zealand. She is a volunteer mentor with the Deadly Sista Girlz program run through the David Wirrpanda Foundation at Gilmore College in Kwinana. Her past volunteering roles have included Projets Autochtones du Québec (PAQ), a homeless shelter for Native Peoples in Montréal, and Oxfam Shop in Fremantle. She enjoys live music, travel and good coffee.
UWA people and places
I remember coming to UWA when I was in high school and thinking how beautiful it was and how cool it would be to be here. Back then, I thought that I wasn’t smart enough to go to university and that if ever I did go, it wouldn’t be until I was much older. Making the decision to come to UWA to study what I love has been one of the best decisions of my life. It has not only been about a connection to the people I have met here, but also about experiences outside of UWA, like my exchange semester in Montréal, as well as programs run by the School of Indigenous Studies (SIS). The grounds are magical and being able to take a study break over the road, looking across to the Derbal Yerrigan (Swan River), always makes me reflect on how grateful I am to receive a great education in such a beautiful place.
Opening doors
I am lucky to have been given opportunities while at UWA that have helped in shaping the direction of my life. In August last year I went to the 5th University Leadership Symposium in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, along with two other Indigenous students. We heard from humanitarians from around the world and were able to meet with other like-minded students from various backgrounds.
I have also been able to participate in Human Rights education through the Diplomacy Training Program (DTP) in Sydney and recently in Myanmar. The program is designed to provide education in human rights advocacy through quality training aimed at building skills and capacity of human rights advocates. I recently got home from the program in Myanmar where I met with Indigenous human rights advocates mostly from South East Asia, all of whom are tireless human rights defenders working on the ground, often at risk and without access to the same kind of support that I have here in Australia. We met with and were trained by human rights experts, some who have worked at the United Nations and other human rights organisations. We were taught how to advocate through various formats: be that by lobbying governments and NGOs; using the power of video to expose human rights abuse and promote better human rights; and in general how to use UN mechanisms in international law to advocate for human rights. It was very empowering and inspiring, and has led me to further training with DTP over the next twelve months. The program helped to cement in my mind the desire to study for the JD of Law next year. None of these opportunities would have been possible without my education at UWA.
Shaping the future
I am a university-educated person who had the good fortune of being born in the right place, at the right time, to the right family; because of this I am a person of immense privilege. I would like to use the education I have gained from UWA, along with my passion gained from family, to empower Indigenous peoples both here in Australia and in other parts of the world. I try to always maintain my connection to community which I believe forms the necessary basis for good human rights work-to always remember who you are advocating for, and what their needs are. It is very important to note that I am just one of many young Indigenous people aspiring to bring about change for our mob. We all continue the work left to us by our elders, and it is our strength and determination as a collective that will shape the future for our next generations.