Immigrant Journeys: Recent Episodes
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Aotearoa is an immigrant nation – from the first peoples to colonial settlement, we have crossed the oceans to call this place home. Immigrant Journeys reveals the rich diversity that our most recent immigrants bring to Aotearoa New Zealand. Through their different skills, cultural backgrounds, and experiences they strengthen and add immense value this country. You can watch these full stories at www.immigrantjourneys.org.nz Immigrant Journeys is an original idea of the Lady Khadija Charitable Trust whose creation has been made possible by the efforts of Telling Lives and Janneth Gil Photography. The project has been funded by the Ministry of Ethnic Communities and Rāta Foundation.
Coming from Delhi to Lincoln was a sharp contrast , but Surinder and Archana received warmth and love when they arrived to New Zealand.
Originally from India, Henry landed here on a crisp Canterbury winter’s day. He came to New Zealand to study aircraft engineering and met his wife Anne here. Henry believes the divisions we’ve created stops us from thriving as human kind.
Nadeem and Naema Khan have been in New Zealand for more than two decades. Originally from Pakistan, Nadeem and Naema share with us their challenges and how they made New Zealand home not just for themselves but others too.
Rev. Philomeno Kinera is passionate about unity in diversity. Coming from Singapore, a multi-ethnic society, she wants to break down the barriers so we can see the good in each other
A leading triathlete and high performance coach, John Hellemans has spent his career promoting sports medicine in New Zealand. He was 25 when he arrived as a young medical student determined to make his mark. In 2020, he was awarded MNZM (Hon) for services to triathlon.
Izzie’s father visited Aotearoa frequently as a businessman. He returned home with stories that inspired Izzie to follow his footsteps. Izzie came as an international student to Christchurch and now specialises in social media in promoting Christchurch to the world.
Heidi is immersed in virtual reality and cutting edge technology. Originally from Germany, she moved to New Zealand with her family in 2018. She loves the friendliness of the people of Aotearoa and the family friendly lifestyle.
Cristene was a dreamy 11 year old when her parents decided to move from Phillipines to Aotearoa for a better life. Giving back to New Zealand and her local community is the focus of her work.
Algeria to Aotearoa, Souhila’s journey started when she moved here with her husband. As a podcaster and life coach she believes in empowering women, especially from immigrant backgrounds.
Faisal comes from Pakistan, he left his own country in 2015 after a terror attack on a local school which killed more than 140 students. He chose to move his family to New Zealand because he thought it was safe. But in 2019, he was at a Christchurch mosque when another terrorist struck.
Shubha describes her passion and life as Montessori. Shubha arrived in New Zealand 23 years ago from Bengaluru. She is now the co-head of Nova Montessori School in New Brighton. She believes kindness and respect should be part of every child’s world. Shubha shares her colourful journey and how it all started in Balclutha.
Sandeep has been in this country for six years. His focus is championing relationships between Aotearoa and Indo-Pacific countries. Sandeep speaks about the added value that immigrants bring to Aotearoa.
Nathan describes himself as “Indian by birth but kiwi by choice.” He came to Aotearoa New Zealand from Punjab, India in 2009. Nathan has a can do attitude which he shares with his wife Suchi. In their story, Nathan and Suchi share their challenges and experiences, what they value and how they are preparing their children for a future in Aotearoa.
Juan came to Aotearoa New Zealand from Argentina in 1997 to study. He met his wife Virginia who is from Uruguay here in Aotearoa. They’ve been here now for over two decades and this is very much home. Juan and Virgina’s journey is one of courage - the courage to take risks, the courage to leave home, the courage to believe in a new future.