Australia, regarded as one of the most ethnically diverse societies in the world, provides an ideal setting to discover and interact with the variety of ethnicities who make this country their home.  Its people identify with more than 270 different ancestries and speak more than 200 languages; 20% speak a language other than English. This diversity is a central feature of modern Australia, presenting challenges and opportunities for health and human services providers, community organizations, and many aspects of Australian society. 

 

• Students will engage in service learning activities working with varied ethnic groups that have immigrated to Australia as well as with indigenous people.

• The program also includes lectures and field trips to organizations providing multicultural services,

• Visits to ethnically diverse neighborhoods,

• Talking with people from many cultures,

• Eating food prepared by locals, and

• Gaining first-hand knowledge about a wide variety of cultures including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and more recent immigrant population groups to Australia (e.g., Vietnamese, Chinese, African, Middle Easterners).

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The program will culminate with a six day stay in Fiji, where the highlight will be a two night homestay in rural Komcave Village.  Here students will

• experience day-to-day life in the village and

• participate in service learning, a kava ceremony, and a traditional lovo dinner and Meke performance with members of the community. 

 

During your time in the South Pacific, you will experience

• snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef,

• a traditional aboriginal welcome,

• hiking Running River Gorge to a secluded swimming spot,

• spotting platypus,

• touring the famous Sydney Opera House and Botanical Gardens,

• throwing boomerangs,

• enjoying some beach time, and

• a relaxing catamaran cruise floating by beautiful Fijian islands

• ...and koalas and kangaroos

 

This program is open to students of all majors.  While there is a general focus on health, the knowledge and skills that students learn will help them to provide culturally appropriate services across many different fields and disciplines. 

 

Participants will increase their awareness of diverse cultures and develop critical cultural competency skills. 

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Courses that you can take on this program:

• HLTH 425 Working with Vulnerable and Diverse Populations

• HLTH 413 Refugee and Migrant Health

• HLTH 403 Special Topics

• HLTH 481 Applied International Health

• HLTH 491 Mentored Researh

• HLTH 492 Directed Readings in Public Health

• IAS 380 Cultural Proofs

• IAS 399 International Development Internship

• LFSCI 199 Non-research Internship

• HLTH 496 Health Internship (only under special conditions)

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Program Director:  Dr. Randy M Page, 2030 Life Science Building, BYU.  randy_page@byu.edu

801-422-1131

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To learn more go to www.byuglobalhealth.org and www.kennedy.byu.edu/australia-and-fiji-multicultural-health-and-cultural-diversity/

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