Stories

Nazeera found community & connection through volunteering  

We sat down with Nazeera – former Ucan2 Volunteer and CMY placement student, and current MYAN Youth Council Volunteer, Settling Smarter Youth Facilitator, and CMY Operations Support Officer – for a chat about what led to her work with CMY. 

Nazeera migrated to Australia from Pakistan as a high school student, though her family’s roots are Afghan. Nearly a decade on, she recently completed two placement rounds with CMY – work she described as giving other young people the support she wishes she’d had. 

“When I was in high school, I really loved working with people, and I loved helping other people,” she says of the pull she felt toward youth work. 

“Coming from a different country and settling in here is really hard for a young person, and being a young person is already a little bit hard as well.” 

This drove her to complete a Bachelor of Youth Work and Youth Studies at RMIT University, where her first placement within the Ucan2 program inspired her to continue volunteering in her own time. “After I completed the placement, I really loved the program,” she reflects, feeling it was a way to connect with youth and support them in ways that are individually tailored. 

When asked if this individual support was important, Nazeera said “when someone is from my background, I can feel if and why they are struggling, or why they are hesitating to ask for help. I can connect with them.” However, she also emphasised that “it’s important to give everyone the right support,” and that despite shared community, “everyone’s journey is different … so it’s important to know how to support them”. 

Finding a place at CMY

She would continue to realise this philosophy in her work with CMY, undertaking a second placement and ongoing work with Settling Smarter, and currently serving as a Victorian volunteer representative on the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (MYAN Australia) Youth Council.

Unlike the many young people she now supports, Nazeera wasn’t a CMY participant herself as a teenager, finding the organisation as a university student.

However, arranging her first placement was, in itself, a challenge. Nazeera recounts that “I didn’t really trust organisations […] as a new arrival with no connection in the community it was really hard trusting people around me.” 

This mistrust made finding a suitable organisation difficult, a subconscious challenge to be overcome. Then she heard about CMY, mentioned in passing by a classmate. Some research into the non-profit lit a spark, and a few phone calls later, she had secured a placement. She hasn’t stopped since. 

Growing in confidence

Nazeera says her time at CMY has not only shaped her practice and enabled her to enact her values, but it’s also helped her grow as a person. She says, “[working at CMY] has built my confidence, and how to communicate when you’re supporting someone.” 

“I worked really hard to reach here, and I’m really grateful to be here right now.” 

Despite this, she also acknowledges the work isn’t always easy to carry with you, and that “some students have had really bad experiences, and when you hear it, it can be hard for you too.” 

Looking ahead, Nazeera wants to keep her focus at a grassroots level. “I want to connect directly with young people.” 

To anyone working with newly-arrived young people, she has a message that comes straight from her own experience: “Never underestimate the young person and what they can do. It’s all about giving the right support, the right guidance.” 

If you’d like to find out ways to help young people, visit Ucan2, Settling Smarter, or MYAN.