Atlantic Fellows for Social Equity expands further into Pacific, welcoming 18 new Fellows

The Atlantic Fellows for Social Equity (AFSE) has welcomed 18 new Fellows, who will soon begin their journey to expand their knowledge and skills to realise meaningful, Indigenous-led social change.

The 2024 cohort – 11 based in Australia, 5 in Aotearoa New Zealand, and in an exciting first for the program, 1 in Fiji and 1 in Vanuatu – join AFSE with impressive track records of collaborating with Indigenous communities across the Pacific in fields such as media, education, agriculture, health, law and policy.

Next year, they begin a foundation year of postgraduate study at the University of Melbourne to develop an Indigenous-focused social change project.

The program engages Fellows with Indigenous thought and scholarship to provide pragmatic approaches that enable Indigenous agency, self-determination and capacity building, leading to positive social change impact for all communities.

AFSE is one of seven Atlantic Fellows programs worldwide established by the Atlantic Philanthropies, a foundation formed by the late philanthropist Chuck Feeney. After completing their first year, Fellows become part of a lifelong community of Global Atlantic Fellows who are bound together by a shared mission to create fairer, healthier, and more equitable societies.

Professor Elizabeth McKinley, AFSE Executive Director and Professor of Indigenous Education at the Faculty of Education, said the new cohort achieves one of its long-held goals by expanding its reach into the Pacific.

“I am thrilled to see the program has not only attracted exceptional fellows but also that the 2024 cohort expands AFSE's reach and impact in the Pacific region by welcoming fellows from Fiji and Vanuatu,’’ Professor McKinley said.

“At a time of increasing global challenges and a perceived ineffectiveness of Western approaches to addressing them, it is critical that Indigenous peoples across the Pacific are enabled to take the lead because it is our unbreakable connection to and knowledge of lands, waters, seas and skies that offer fresh insights for solving many of these pressing issues.”

Professor Barry Judd, University of Melbourne Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous), says the University is delighted to see the AFSE program grow.

“AFSE is undoubtedly one of Australia's most impressive, unique, academically rigorous, and importantly, all Indigenous-led programs focused on meaningful social change for Indigenous communities across the Pacific region, and the University is delighted to see it grow from strength to strength each year,” Professor Judd said.

“The University is also immensely proud to feature it as one of the signature projects in Murmuk Djerring, the University's recently launched Indigenous Strategy.”

For more information visit socialequity.atlanticfellows.org/fellows.