Fusion foods: a Bite Out of History
Asian Australian relationships with our cultural foods are varied and complex. While many recipes and practices can be traced back generations – true products of a unique culture, tradition, and history – others have arisen out of a long and complicated relationship with the West. Just like the plethora of modern Asian-fusion restaurants in the…
AAP Editors’ Picks: May-July
*DISCLAIMER: This post was originally supposed to be published in May 2022. However, due to scheduling delays, AAP had to push back the publishing date to July 2022. The month of May was an exciting and eventful one for Asians in Australia, and also around the globe. I was lucky enough to spend this May…
In Conversation: Asian-Australians in Politics
Prior to the 2022 Federal Election, AAP spoke to emerging and established Asian Australian politicians to talk about how their cultures and identities have shaped the way they’ve interacted and influenced politics. Not often do we talk about our upbringings and how that’s affected the way we’ve interacted with the political system in Australia. From war…
Rachael Jacobs
Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? My family is culturally Indian. My dad was born in Chittagong, which is now part of Bangladesh, and my mother was born in Lucknow, which is in the north of India. So that’s where…
Sheneli Dona
Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? I’m Sri Lankan – my parents migrated to Australia in 2000 with my sister and I. at the time I was only 18 months. My dad got a job here – better opportunities. Prior…
Sujan Selven
சுஜன் Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? I am Tamil from Sri Lanka, I moved to Australia when I was 15 years old and went to high school and then went to Territory College. I did my Marketing and Business…
Sujit Mathew
Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? My cultural background – I’m Southeast Asian, my family is from India. I’m from a pure conservative catholic Indian family. As kids, we used to go to church almost everyday and specifically Sundays as…
Jenny Leong
梁珍妮 Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? I was born in Adelaide in South Australia, and you know, in colloquial, friendly circles I am known as an ABC– so, an Australian-Born Chinese. It’s always a bit of an amusing thing…
Mehreen Faruqi
مہرین Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become a politician? I grew up in Lahore in Punjab in Pakistan. Lahoris are very proud of who they are. There’s a saying which is very popular in Lahore: “Those who haven’t seen Lahore haven’t been born…
Penny Wong
黄英贤 Can you tell us about your cultural background, and where you were before you decided to enter politics? I was born in Malaysia and my father was Malaysian-Chinese. His dad was Cantonese and his mother, my grandmother, was Hakka. My dad had a scholarship to study at Adelaide University, where he met my mum,…
Chetan Sahai
चेतन सहाय Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? Both parents are of Indian descent, my father is from Bihar and my mother is from Sindh. My grandparents had to flee during the partition, there was lots of fighting and riots…
Apurva Shukla
Can you tell us a bit about your cultural background and where you were before deciding to become/run as a politician? I graduated last year – I studied a degree at UNSW and I’m now working in the IT sector. I was born in India and came to Australia when I was 1. Like so…
Zhi Soon
孙先志 Can you tell us about your cultural background, and where you were before you decided to become a politician? I’m a really proud Asian-Australian, I’m really proud of having that as my identity. I was born in Kuala Lampur in Malaysia in 1985, and my family migrated to Australia in 1989. So I come…
Decision Division: A View of Intergenerational Voting in Asian Australian Communities
“The job of every generation is to discover the flaws of the one that came before it. That’s part of growing up, figuring out all the ways your parents and their friends are broken.” The quote from American-Australian writer Justine Larbalestier’s Zombies vs Unicorns,was printed in 2010 – just over ten years ago. At the…
Rama-Done Well
As the first week of Ramadan finishes, I am filled with joy and gratitude that I am blessed to see another holy month, inshallah (God-willing). This past week, I gave a speech at an interfaith event where Muslim students broke their fasts with non-Muslim students. That night, a successful and supportive open dialogue was born.…
We Are Not the Same: Growing Up Without Asian Australian Role Models
Not all heroes wear capes or yellow full body tracksuits. These heroes aren’t necessarily martial artists or warriors of folk tales from bygone eras. Although Western societal stereotypes of Asian minorities are becoming more and more associated with contemporary ones, not all role models are doctors (or playing one), dancers or high earning data crunchers.…
一月十蛋 | One Month, Ten Eggs
“Have you eaten yet?”. Words of comfort from our family, friends, and peers. Those words we hear replace questions of “how are you?”. Food is unquestionably, inextricably linked with the way we interact with our cultures and how it has shaped our identity. Deborah Prospero shares a short story exploring how food is just another…
2021: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly? – The Wins and Triumphs
Reflecting on 2021 means remembering the positive as well. It’s difficult to think about the positive when the negative overshadowed a lot of the public and news coverage. Asian Australians had some amazing triumphs in 2021, from increased representation to our stories being told on a mainstream platform. As we start off the new year,…
Theatre, Representation – In conversation with Tiffany Wong
Deborah Prospero interviews Tiffany Wong about culture, identity in theatre. They talk about how to increase accessibility of the Arts to Asian Australians and the importance of diverse stories.
Why I Celebrate Deepavali
Diwali/Deepavali or the festival of lights is to celebrate various religious and cultural triumphs. The festival, usually known for it’s use of candles, lights and sweet treats, has been become increasingly popular amongst non-South Asians. A deeply personal and emotional essay, Harrini Ratnanesan deep dives in how this festival bridges the divide as an Asian…
The Psychology of Storytelling with Jim Punnett
Established actor Jim Punnett takes on a journey to understand psychology of the human condition and how this intertwines with storytelling in film. He talks about culture and identity growing up in Canberra and being your true self. Arguing that sincerity and truthfulness are what’s the most important to authentic storytelling.
xTRILLIAMS talks childhood, culture and belonging in his new EP ‘Home Away’
Rapper xTRILLIAMS talks about life, family and culture in Sydney. He opens up about his artistic background from battle rapping in school to being a bedroom musician, to releasing an EP. He talks about being your authentic self and living between Chinese – Fijian culture and Australian culture.
Meet the Team #4: Vishal Vivekananda, Legal & Finance Director
In this series, we want to share what has inspired our committee members to join the team, what issues they’re passionate about and a bit of their story. Vishal joined the Asian Australian Project this year, leading a new part of the executive team. When I was seven, my family moved to Australia, to the…
From the warm glow of our screens, it’s time to talk
Over the past year, we hosted two Fireside Chats Panels, where we have had the privilege to invite change makers and experts from the community. After our first panel, we were absolutely thrilled with the response from everyone, and with this momentum continuing after the second panel, we wanted to keep exploring new themes in…
Our Thoughts After Seeing ‘Minari’
After attending a screening of Minari, Angela and Humphrey from the team give us their thoughts on the historic nominated picture- what the film got right, and whether it’s worthy of the Oscar buzz. This review contains spoilers for the film. Angela: Last Thursday, I was delighted to watch Minari at a private screening held…
Meet the team #3: Sarah Choo, Design & Marketing Director
In this series, we want to share what has inspired our committee members to join the team, what issues they’re passionate about and a bit of their story. Sarah joined the Asian Australian Project in early 2020, leading the design and marketing teams. It’s only relatively recently that I’ve started to consider what it means…
And That’s A Wrap! The Asian Australian Project Cleans Up (a small bit of) Australia
On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, our volunteers assembled for Clean Up Australia Day on 7th March 2021 at Bondi Beach. Bondi was abuzz with patrons, with almost every square inch of sand covered in people, towels and umbrellas. A perfect backdrop for the day! Clean up Australia had supplied completely compostable rubbish bags for the…
6 Amazing Australian Initiatives Led By Women
International Women’s Day is all about celebrating women and their achievements. There are some amazing initiatives being run by women throughout Australia, and at AAP, we want to shine a spotlight on these initiatives and their founders, who are pioneering innovative and exciting projects in their fields of expertise. We’ve collated 6 Australian-Women led organisations…
Meet the team #2: Michelle Lim, Vice President
Being Asian Australian has been a relatively new experience for me. As an expat, I always identified as being Australian; while back in Australia, people identified me as Asian.
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.
About Us
The Asian Australian Project blog. Here you can read more about our events, meet some of the team and other musings on life from the Asian-Australian perspective.
Subscribe:
Hear about our events, and more content right in your inbox.
asianaustralianproject.com 