You’re going on a trip…
Twenty-one days spent in any location, can definitely change a person. When I got my acceptance email, I knew this trip was going to change me and I knew I was going to learn a lot about Australia, but I did not know how much and the end result was mind-blowing. My experiences in Australia changed me, for the better. Not only did I learn about the culture, I became the culture. I took from each agency a sense of pride for their work, a love for community, and a respect for diversity. Each team member, in every agency, were full of knowledge and they were excited to share it all with us.
It was exciting to learn this little country is organizing their communities and serving their citizens very well. These organizations care so much about the populations they are working with, the people they serve, the work they put into their passions, and they are proactive. The people in Australia were incredibly diverse, kind, and welcoming to us visitors.
From all the agencies, I learned how they started their journeys and how the agencies came to life. It takes a lot of hard work, care, an open mind, and passion. Although, the fight for funding and support can be difficult, they do not let that sway their goals.

From the beginning…
Australia did have a rough beginning, similar to the United States. When new settlers came to this country, the struggle for power and recognitions can be overwhelming and can leave a path of destruction and in the midst of this power shift, and the Aboriginal people were given the short end of the stick. They were torn from their homes, transported to different places, their children were taken away, and they were left powerless to the new settlers. They had no rights according to these new settlers and were treated like dirt. Taking this recent history into consideration, Aboriginal people need time to heal, healthcare, mental healthcare, and support to rebuild their communities. In saying so, mostly all the agencies we visited provided some kind of program and assistance specifically for Aboriginal people. That was great to see because they recognize that not everyone has forgiven the past and not everyone can, so they designed programs to help, without crossing boundaries and comfort. With such a small population, the programs and services agencies provide, can be more successful because they can serve a lot more people. The United States has a huge population, with a huge piece of land, programs and services can be hard to reach because there is not enough of these services proportional to the population.

Starting young…
It seems like the United States and Australia have a similar goal in protecting children and its young people. The ultimate goal is to make sure that the child is safe, cared for, and is stable. Overall, the agencies provided an abundance of resources for the parents and foster carers to utilize. The agencies focused on fixing the environment and the family as a whole, and not the individual. This strategy can be quite powerful because not only does it open the dialogue between family members, it helps each person see their role in the family system. I learned that it helps create a more honest conversation, and it allows more interaction between family members.
The biggest difference I noticed between Australia and the United States way of handling child welfare, was that social workers as mandated reporters. In Australia, social workers do not have the obligation to report, when a client tells them something, but in the United States, social workers are obligated and are punished if they do not report.
However, they care a great deal for their young population and most, if not all of the agencies we visited, had some kind of care and support aspect for young people. It was refreshing to see that Australians know that starting young is the key to prevention and intervention.

What a learning experience…
It was an amazing trip. I learned so much about Australia and its people and culture. It was interesting to learn about their healthcare system and their political influences. Their systems are quite different from the United States and we have a lot to learn about making our systems more effective. From all the agencies, I learned the importance of environmental influences, family systems, and relationships in general. These agencies care a lot about their work and it really shows.
It takes a lot of work and willingness to fix something and with that, it takes a lot of courage to admit there is a problem. To start a dialogue can be difficult and most of these agencies are very successful and have figured out a way to do it, in a caring, understanding manner, which is remarkable.

The future is bright…
From this trip, I have learned more about myself and the world around me. Professionally, I have learned that I need to speak up more and have clearer communication skills. If I want to be an advocate for my clients in the future, I need to be willing to say what I think and defend and support my client. I need to have a voice, before I give a voice to my clients. I also learned that networking and relationships go a long way. People will usually remember how you make them feel and so being your best, can pay you back later on. The relationships we build with others are extremely important and is the basis for being a human being. I learned that passion can spark a fire that can spread to great things, unimaginable things that become real. The agencies we visited all started small, but have grown into amazing organizations, but the idea to start the agency started with an idea and passion.
With my new knowledge and skills, I can take this with me for my future in social work. I hope to take it with me and create a better tomorrow for my clients and even friends and family. I want to help people because I like people and don’t think that people should be suffering, everyone should have someone as an advocate and a voice, and should get help, if they need it. Australia has opened my eyes and have made me so much more appreciative and thankful for what I have. With my background, my experience, and this experience, I have gained so much more insight and empathy.

They say it takes twenty-one days to start or break a habit. I think my new habit is learning more about the world around me, connecting to more people and my environment, and the desire to come back to Australia. If given the chance to change anything, I would not have changed anything about the trip. I learned so much and met so many amazing people, it was all fantastic. If given the opportunity to go on another trip like this, I would take it immediately…