Applications for the New Colombo Plan 2025 Alumni Representative and First Nations Alumni Representative roles are open. In this 10th anniversary year, NCP will celebrate contributions to lifting knowledge of the Indo-Pacific in Australia.
As a key policy enabler of the national uplift in learning abroad, NCP has contributed to driving almost 50% of the Australian student mobility experience toward the Indo-Pacific.
Simon Watson, Senior Manager Global Mobility Programs at UTS and the IEAA Learning Abroad Network Convener, notes the “evidence is in the outcome. We’ve seen a quantum shift in learning abroad programming in Australia toward our region.”
The Koala celebrates this success.
How can Alumni continue to engage?
The NCP Alumni Representative Program, launched in 2017, supports NCP alumni from each Australian university (up to two at larger universities) to promote the NCP and the value of engaging with the Indo-Pacific region on campuses and communities across Australia. The program is one of two alumni bodies enabling DFAT to draw on the collective knowledge, experience and network of the alumni community.
With a broader remit, The DFAT Alumni Consultative Group is a strategic representative voice for over 40,000 alumni to shape the NCP. Raymart Walker, Co-Chair of the Alumni Consultative Group, progressed through the DFAT graduate program and is now Policy Officer at DFAT. In 2019, as a University of the Sunshine Coast student Raymart was an NCP Scholar to Japan. As co-chair he says, “we have a laser-sharp focus on alumni engagement and one of our key roles is to work with the NCP Secretariat to support them in ensuring the delivery of alumni initiatives align with the aspirations and interests of the alumni community.”
Raymart exemplifies the NCP experience. Growing up in regional Australia, he was the first-in-family to attend university. As a child of two immigrants, he says, NCP “shaped my worldview, grew my aspirations, expanded my interests and best of all, enabled me to meet incredible like-minded people in Japan, Australia and across the world; many of whom, I remain connected to today.”
The call for Alumni Representatives is for alum who will have the opportunity to explore operational working relationships with the Consultative Group co-chaired by Raymart and Amalya Harding, NCP Scholar to Fiji and now PhD student and Pacific Islands food systems researcher.
There is unlimited upside for collaboration between the alumni representatives (that this call out is for) and the appointed Alumni Consultative Group. Back in early 2024, the formation and tone of the consultative group signalled a serious public commitment from DFAT, acknowledging the maturation and expertise that can be harnessed through the alumni community. These are the young Australians accelerating their careers and shaping Australia’s future engagement.
So the long-running representative program (since 2017) will continue to draw representatives from every Australian state and territory to profile the diversity of students participating in the NCP and showcase the value of undertaking studies and internships in the Indo-Pacific. Representatives will be tasked with encouraging future cohorts of scholars and mobility students across Australia.
This call for applications to the 2025 Representative Program cohort is open to alumni who have completed their award from 2023 onward. It is a key leadership position within the NCP community that enables on-campus representation for the NCP. Representatives engage with the DFAT NCP Secretariat and work closely with a range of other community stakeholders to promote the NCP.
Courtney Organ is now Brand and Communication Coordinator with MacDonnell Regional Council in Alice Springs. She was a Griffith University New Colombo Plan Scholar to Japan in 2015. Courtney notes her NCP experience took her from “the sky-high offices of an international bank in Tokyo to mountain trekking with a local tour guide in a lost samurai village”, establishing a community and connections she calls on today.
Now a member of the NCP Alumni Consultative Group Courtney sees the value DFAT affords alumni voices. “Everything we do is with our large cohort in mind, and I am honoured as part of the inaugural group to help shape the ACG’s future impact,” she says.
Courtney, as a member of the Consultative Group, will work with the upcoming representative cohort. She “sees immersion in the Indo-Pacific becoming a natural rite of passage for young Australians thanks to the NCP. This will lead to even stronger collaboration between Australia and our neighbouring countries in ways we couldn’t have imagined.”
Raymart is similarly motivated to ensure more people from diverse backgrounds are supported to undertake the transformative experience. He sees the impact in each subsequent cohort of students. “I’m keen to see the language experience be elevated, as it currently is, recognising it is a critical part of connecting with our region… and I’m very excited to see the alumni network grow, many of whom are already progressing fast in their careers. It’ll be exciting to see the professional heights the diverse group reaches over the next few decades,” he says.
The Representative Program will promote the NCP and the value of undertaking studies and internships in the Indo-Pacific region, both on campus and across Australia. Representatives will;
- Be the go-to person to spread the word about the NCP on campus.
- Build relationships with other alumni representatives from around Australia working together to inspire future NCP participants.
- Enhance their leadership and organisational skills, sharpen problem-solving abilities, and develop a professional edge.
- Expand their network and profile as a valued member of the expanding alumni community.
Selected representatives are supported through;
- A 12-month role that is personally and professionally enriching.
- Up to $1000 AUD to undertake the representative role.
The NCP Alumni Representative Program was previously known as the Alumni Ambassador Program. While the program name and position title have changed, the program and position description remain the same as in previous years.
Circling back to the influence of NCP, Simon Watson says, “This has been a game changer. The program has enabled awareness of diverse corners of the Indo-Pacific that could not have happened before. It’s created incredible goodwill across the region.” The Australian Research Council work of Professor Ly Tran also confirms the view held by Simon that “partners across the region and globally acknowledge this as a leading public policy initiative.”
James Fairley, a Griffith NCP Scholar to Vietnam, now Manager, Emerging Companies at PwC, says the NCP experience was “invaluable in viewing the world differently and navigating work in different contexts. I bring this perspective to my work every day.” James has seen NCP through multiple lenses; having served as an alumni representative, he now holds a role on the Alumni Consultative Group. His focus on workplace influence and employability speaks to the intent of NCP. This is the experience that alumni representatives are being called on to continue shaping.
So, within the suite of offerings across the Australian international education sector this is an exemplary annual opportunity for domestic students to engage in and influence educational service delivery. They can also play a key role in delivering on foreign policy, guiding the student experience and enabling Australian universities to showcase excellence in student outcomes across the region.
It is an exemplar of both student and sector consultation that should be celebrated and embraced for the critical stewardship role it plays in the New Colombo Plan lifecycle.
Next steps for the more than 40,000 strong Australian NCP Alumni?
For inspiration, view the cohort of 2024 Alumni Ambassador profiles here.
Check out the NCP Alumni Representative position description here.
Questions can be directed to NCP Support Services Alumni Team ncp.alumni@thepalladiumgroup.com
Applications here close Sunday 15 September 2024 at 11:59pm.
