This is a project of:


Victorian Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Coalition

 

The Victorian Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Coalition (VIRWC) is the peak representative advocacy body for immigrant and refugee women in the state. The VIRWC is affiliated with national and international women’s networks whose goals are to empower women to become ‘change agents’ of society.

For more information about the VIRWC,
please visit our website www.virwc.org.au,
email us at virwc@virwc.org.au
or ring us on (03) 9654 1243.

 

Funded by the City of Melbourne’s 2010 Community Cultural Development Arts Grant Program

 

Supported by

About the Project

“Lost in Transition, Mate!” is a result of City of Melbourne’s commitment to the Arts, as part of the 2010 Arts Grants Program.

This project is a 15 minute video documentary focusing on the journeys and struggles of female international students to assimilate in a new culture. In the video, students from different ethnic backgrounds speak about their experiences in Melbourne, their perception of multiculturalism and differences in values and culture vis-à-vis Australian society. This provides female international students a public voice in the continuing debate about international students in Victoria. The video will also serve as a tool to raise cultural awareness among the general public and assists in creating a culturally tolerant society through digital media.

The video will be installed in 5 boxes in key sites of Melbourne such as Queen Victoria Women’s Centre, The Couch and The State Library. The video will be looped and open for public viewing. After a month of viewing in the City of Melbourne, the video boxes will be installed in suburban local council libraries.

This is a project of the Victorian Immigrant and Refugee Women’s Coalition (VIRWC).  We have been in receipt of resilient and talented female international students who present with optimism but behind that is often a high level of anxiety and stress.  The VIRWC values and vision are about helping all women regardless of their race, gender, faith and status in life.

We hope this project will contribute to giving female international students a voice. We hope that through this project, mainstream Australians will understand them better, welcome them and assist in improving their quality of life while they are here to study.

We take this opportunity to thank all female international students who participated in this project.  We also thank all the students who had been on placement with the VIRWC.  We could not have gone this far in raising awareness about international students’ issues if it were not for the students’ openness to tell their stories.

We also thank all our volunteers who helped us undertake research and policy advocacy work on international students’ issues, which has now become an important part of our work as a women’s coalition.