Solving a child malnutrition crisis caused by climate change in the Pacific nation of Kiribati has been the focus of a team of students at an international competition in Melbourne.
Five students from several courses, mentored by Lecturer in Social Work Dr Joselynn Baltra-Ulloa, have become the first team from the University to compete in the Indo-Pacific Global Health Case Competition.
The team known as The Mountain and River Collective – one of 20 groups representing universities from Australia, India, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Fiji – travelled to Melbourne to present their solution to the malnutrition challenge.
Teams were presented with the case two weeks before the competition and tasked with designing a response to the scenario in Kiribati, one of the nations most affected by climate change.
Drawing on their expertise in various disciplines, the UTAS team named their solution Kateira ma rabakaura bon kinnakira, which translates to: ‘Our culture and knowledge are our identity.’
The competition was judged by a panel of international experts.
“The initiative focused on community consultation and supporting Kiribati driven and developed interventions aimed at bolstering self-determination and shifting away from the business-as-usual paradigm of ‘West knows best’ handouts,” second-year Social Work student Ruben Sherriff said.
As well as students from Social Work, the team of Faith Tekavei, Tameika Wheeler, Jonathan Warwarek, Ruben Sherriff and Ipshita Pratap included members from the Colleges of Science and Engineering, and Health and Medicine.
They met key players in global health and networked with international experts and leaders working across the Indo-Pacific region.
“The Mountain and River Collective dedicated countless hours of research and preparation to proudly represent the University of Tasmania for the first time in this unique opportunity for cross-country, cross-cultural, transdisciplinary collaboration in learning and problem-solving,” Dr Baltra-Ulloa said.
“The competition not only strengthened experiential learning experiences for the students involved, but also offered the chance to develop unique skills in approaching multifaceted global challenges involving various cultural, economic, social and geographical complexities.”
The team named itself the Mountain and River Collective in an acknowledgement of its home, Lutruwita/Tasmania.
This year’s competition was taken out by a team from Indonesia.