Ko ngati pakeha tōku iwi
Ko Taranaki tōku māunga
Ko Waitamata tōku awa
Ko Waitakere tōku kainga
Ko Macdonald tōku whanau  
Ko Annette tōku whaea
Ko Adam tōku matua
Ko Cody Troy tōku ingoa

I am a 21-year-old full-time student studying a Bachelor’s of Health Science (honours) in Counselling Psychology. I work part-time both as a support worker and office administration. I volunteer as a solo counsellor at Youthline. I have a huge passion and desire to help others.

Being able to partake in this opportunity has already began to impact me and will continue to throughout the rest of my journey. I understand this opportunity will be of an amazing experience, a true eye opener. I was born and raised in Auckland New Zealand and have very little cultural experience outside what we have here. A desire of mine is to become more culturally sensitive which is one of the many reasons why I choose a placement in Sri Lanka. Learning through experiences in different cultures I feel will strengthen me as a person and the way in which I will choose to practice.

I am extremely passionate about this project as I have always had a passion for people, an innate desire to understand people and the world around us. I aspire to use my developing skills and strengths to make a positive difference with in the community, by creating a safe, humorous environment where we can flourish and learn new things together.