Scholarship Recipients
Youna Kim
2022-23
Scholarship recipient
Youna Kim is a Board Director of Lucy’s Project, a national peak body working to improve access to supports for people and animals experiencing domestic and family violence. She firmly believes everyone has a role to play in stopping and preventing family violence. Family violence is alarmingly prevalent as police attend a family violence incident every six minutes in Victoria yet still hidden and ignored. Pets are often the easiest and forgotten targets in family violence therefore bringing vets, family violence practitioners and policymakers together is an important step towards streamlining responses that safeguard the victim survivors with pets.
With over 25-year professional experience base focused on leadership, strategy and innovation in social work and corporate business, Youna Kim demonstrates an enduring commitment to sustainable outcomes whilst upholding values of social justice, cultural sensitivity, gender equality and equity.
Youna received 2020 Alumni of the Year Award in International Contribution at Australian Catholic University. She holds Bachelor of Arts, Master of Social Work (MSW), and Master of Business Administration (MBA). She has recently completed Governance Foundations for Not-for-Profit Directors Course at Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Lan Diep
Lan Diep is a Regional Advisory Council Member with the Victorian Multicultural Commission, change practitioner with Neami National, passionate volunteer with Vietnamese Scouts Australia and Initiatives of Change (global movement of people of diverse cultures and backgrounds), and multicultural storyteller through the professional network LinkedIn. Below is more on Lan’s story in her own words:
Born in Vietnam. Belongs in Australia.
“Changing is not just changing the things outside of us.”
--Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese zen master and peace activist
As a first-generation Vietnamese refugee and immigrant to Australia since the late 70’s, my lived experience acknowledges and honours my history of adapting to a new place, a new culture, a new language and a new peoples. It’s been a tremendous change process and these words are borne not only through experiences with my family, but for many CALD communities learning to integrate to changing environments. These words are alive in me and speak to feelings of risk and vulnerability and also to the ways that change forces positive adaptations.
I am honoured to be selected for the scholarship from CALD2Lead for the diploma of governance, as it seems to me that Thich Nhat Hanh’s words speaks to this understanding that our internal changes are reflected in our words and deeds. Wise governance would be born from this kind of understanding.
On most days, I continue to adapt to ‘change’ in a values-based organisation that aims to be a voice and space for personal, community & societal wellbeing. On other days, I explore and find timeless interconnections between ecology, culture, and spirituality. Inspired, these experiences are synthesised by creating haikus (poetry) which speak to the heart of being a Vietnamese-Australian in Naarm (Melbourne).
2022-23
Scholarship recipient
Florence Dato
2022
Scholarship recipient
Florence Dato is the Co-founder and Vice President of The Empowered Australian Multicultural Society; Co-Founder and President of Association of Filipino-Australian Generation of Inspiring Leaders; and the Co-Founder and Director of Philippine-Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
She is a member of various advisory committees such as the Victorian Multicultural Commission, Regional Advisory Council for North-West Metro Region; the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria, New and Emerging Policy Advisory Committee; and the Wyndham People’s Advisory Panel to name a few.
She is also an advocate of workers’ rights and safety through her work at Victorian Trades Hall Council. She also participated in WorkSafe Victoria’s first most inclusive and wide-reaching multicultural campaign to date, “Workplace Safety is our Common Language.” She is currently working as a community organiser at Migrant Workers Centre empowering migrant workers and their families to realise the collective power of their communities to win dignity and respect at work and to fight for a fairer society.
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2022
Scholarship recipient
Nasreen Rahman
Nasreen (Winnie) Rahman from the Burmese Welfare Association is our 2022 Scholarship recipient. Winnie is currently the treasurer (executive member) for the Burmese Welfare Association Victoria.
Through her role in the Burmese Welfare Association, Winnie brings together different ethnic and religious groups to work together to meet common goals like bringing support groups from other countries to help the people of Burma. This includes American, Sudanese, Vietnamese, Indian and Chinese communities to help with fundraising to support the Burmese people in Myanmar.
Congratulations Winnie on securing your scholarship against some tough competition! CALD2LEAD is excited to be working with Winnie and the Burmese Community in 2022 and beyond!
2021
Scholarship recipient
Margarita Rojas
Margarita Rojas is our 2021 Scholarship recipient and is currently undertaking a Diploma in Governance at the Institute of Community Directors Australia.
CALD2LEAD is co-funding Margarita’s Diploma in proud partnership with the Institute of Community Directors Australia, Spanish Window Community Services (Ventana Hispana), & Margarita herself.
Margarita is the 3rd recipient of funding support from CALD2LEAD and is dedicated to empowering the Australian Hispanic community in Melbourne’s South East. This Diploma in Governance will not just help Margarita’s own leadership journey, it will also help deliver her passion to strengthen the governance at the not-for-profit Spanish Window Community Services where she has volunteered for over 10 years.
CALD2LEAD continues to focus on providing multicultural leaders like Margarita the top quality leadership and development programs they deserve.
We congratulate Margarita and look forward to supporting her leadership journey through the Diploma and beyond!
John Kuot
2020
Scholarship recipient
John Kuot was our 2020 Scholarship recipient and successfully completed Leadership Victoria’s signature Williamson Community Leadership Program in January 2021.
CALD2LEAD has co-funded John’s program participation jointly with Leadership Victoria & John himself.
John was the 2nd recipient of funding support from CALD2LEAD. Since graduating from the Williamson Program John has been awarded a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship with Columbia University in the City of New York.
We congratulate John and look forward to following his Leadership journey to New York and beyond!
Ring Mayar
2019
Scholarship recipient
Ring was awarded the 2019 Leadership Victoria Alumni Scholarship for the Folio Leadership Program. The Scholarship was co-funded by the LV Foundation in partnership with 2017 Folio Program Alumni including the co-founders of CALD2LEAD.
Ring’s biggest takeaway from Folio was learning how to influence interactions positively. “Now I have a softer mind and heart; it’s not just ultimatums. I learned that everyone’s stories matter. Listening to them is vital.”
Folio took him out of his comfort zone, giving him the confidence to open himself up to the world. “It makes you willing to take the risks, risks you can manage because you have the leadership skills to mitigate the risks.”
Ring was recently appointed as a Field Manager at The Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Based on an article published by Leadership Victoria and published with permission.