SameSame Different - This is Western Sydney
This podcast series leverages the beauty, richness and uniqueness of cultural diversity, and highlights the triumph and strength of participants who represent cultural diversity. We seek to highlight the triumphs and shared humanity across cultural groups through our podcast series, to break the stereotype of the quintessential Australian, and strengthen and improve attitudes towards cultural diversity.
Pod One
'Everyone should get a fair go' - Uncle Malcolm
Meet Uncle Malcolm. Uncle Malcolm’s mob is from the Hunter Valley. His mother is a Kamilaroi woman, and his father was Scottish. He came to Sydney in 1945, when he was 4 years old and he’s been on this land for 78 years. His ancestors are the oldest living culture on earth and have not been offered a treaty.
Pod Two
'I’ve chosen the same pathway' - Zinah
Today is her birthday. In this episode Zinah talks of her experience overseas in Iraq, of her passion for learning and how reading by the light of a fire during the war kept her hopeful. She shares her motivations and challenges and how arriving in Australia has changed her life forever. Her mother and mentor in life inspired her to follow a path of caring for others and she shares how strength and passion manifest in her everyday life, in her studies and relationships.
Pod Three
'Inclusion comes from acceptance' - Lucy
Meet Lucy Reggio. Lucy has an Italian heritage and is a champion and advocate in the disability sector. She is President and Founder of the Special Needs Ability Program Providers (SNAPP), and Catena, organisations supporting people with disability in sports. Lucy’s son Alex was one of only a handful of people in Australia to be diagnosed with the rare genetic disorder Robinow Syndrome.
Pod Four
'Art are the valves that can air our feelings' - Bashar
Meet Bashar Hanna. Bashar joins Western Sydney MRC on our new venture of the discovery of Western Sydney. In this episode, Bashar shares his time living and working in Iraq, a country that he loved dearly, to then having to leave and his time rebuilding his life in Australia.
Pod Five
'Finding peace and happiness in the small things' - John
Meet John Tran. As soon as John begins to speak there is a sense of calm that washes over us. Today he shares his personal history of growing up in a Vietnamese family, amidst his school challenges and being labelled as a slow learner. Fast-forward a few years, we hear about John’s experience as a Mental Health Nurse, and how he uses life’s lessons to influence his profession.
Pod Six
'Romance is Everywhere' - Tanya
Meet Tanya Nellestein. Tanya’s story and connection to Western Sydney are broad and rich – like most of our guest speakers, and has many talents, visions and passions. Tanya is a self-claimed aspiring novelist…. Her appetite for writing, romance and love evolve daily.
Pod Seven
'I think we are pioneering' - Najla
Meet Najla Turk. Najla joins Western Sydney MRC on our new venture of the discovery of Western Sydney and its rich diversity through storytelling and the amazing world of podcasts. As an Australian-born Middle Eastern Muslim, Najla struggled to accept her bi-cultural identity yet today Najla Turk is a person of influence.
Pod Eight
'When I say I am Samoan I encompass a value' - MaryJane
MaryJane is Co-Director of Matavai Pacific Cultural Arts, a Pacific Cultural Centre based in Liverpool. She is a Mother of 3, and wife to Fred. She shares with us her experience of representing Samoa as Miss Samoa and Miss South Pacific in the late ’90s, an actress, radio producer and broadcaster, and a passionate advocate for Pacifica people and climate change.
Pod Nine
"Get rid of the negative and fill it with positive" - Amanda
Meet Amanda Rose. Amanda is Strategic connector, confidence builder, founder Business Woman Media, founding director Western Sydney Women and keynote speaker (on conflict, confidence and connecting). Busy Much… yep absolutely.
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Meet our sponsors and funding body
Funding for this podcast has been provided by NSW Government.
