Growing up in Papua New Guinea and working for over nine years as an advocate and educator for disability inclusion, Maria John has seen firsthand the challenges faced by people with disability in accessing education, employment, and healthcare. In particular, she has seen how the absence of transitional pathways can limit access to education and employment opportunities.
Now working as a lecturer for Inclusive Education at the PNG Education Institute, she is committed to bridging these gaps through inclusive policies.
Through an Australia Awards scholarship, Maria pursued a Master of Disability Policy Practice at Flinders University, to elevate her skills to advocate for better employment policies for people with disability.
While studying in Australia, Maria took advantage of every opportunity for her professional and personal growth, including attending networking events, workshops and multicultural events, broadening her understanding of inclusion and showing her practical examples of Australia’s approach.
“It was eye-opening to see that Australia is a multicultural country with policies that promote cultural diversity, gender equality, respect, freedom, and equal opportunity for all.” she explained.
During her studies, she also participated in the Up the Hill Project at Flinders University, which helps people with intellectual disability go to university. Her exposure to the program taught her about an often-overlooked significant stages of policy formulation – consultations.
She says, “Consultation with people with disability is a significant stage in the process of formulating policies. Most times, people without disability make decisions for people with disability based on our assumptions.”
Armed with the knowledge and expertise from her studies, Maria is now working towards securing her dream job as a policymaker.