My Australia Story: Nashid Chowdhury

Maggie Jiang: Welcome to season three of 'My Australia Story', a series that celebrates courage, contribution, and the many ways people from diverse backgrounds are helping shape Australia's future.

Today, we are delighted to feature Nashid Chowdhury, a strategic leader, global connector, and community advocate whose career has spent government, higher education, economic development, and international engagement.

With more than two decades of leadership experience across Australia and the Indo-Pacific, Nashid has built an impressive career, strengthening the connections between Australia and the world.

From supporting trade and investment across South Asia and the Middle East, to leading major international engagement initiatives in cities like Sydney and Perth, her work has focused on creating opportunities that benefit both local communities and global partners.

Today, as Director of Global Growth and Advocacy at the University of Western Australia, Nashid continues to shape new pathways for collaboration, supporting global partnerships, strengthening Australia's engagement with the Indo-Pacific, and helping position Western Australia as a place to study, invest, and innovate. Welcome Nashid.

Nashid Chowdhury: Thank you, Maggie.

MJ: Let's start from the beginning. Can you tell us a bit about your family story and what was growing up in Australia like?

NC: Absolutely. So, a bit of family history. My parents actually migrated or moved from Bangladesh and India respectively into Australia in the 1970s. So, I was born and brought up in Melbourne. So, you know, I'm a mixed breed. I'm half Bangladeshi, half Indian, and then born and raised in Australia.

In terms of the childhood, there was this sort of thought process amongst my family with my parents where it was very important to be very much understanding the culture and the heritage and the roots that we come from but also being a very big part of community.

My parents were very involved with the community in Melbourne and were active leaders. There was probably not a night in our life where we wouldn't have friends over or family over. And it could be anything from celebrating a moment to dealing with relationship counselling. And we'd watch that over the years and despite whether you've got exams on or what have you, the house would be full of people and there'd be a lot of food on the table.

But my mum was probably the biggest sort of helm and educator for us, because Dad used to spend a lot of hours and months away where he would be travelling for business and building up the family business. So, that was incredibly exciting because there'd be someone always coming in.

And it was all about relationships. We would have a lot of Dad's clients come over and he and my mum have built up the business where they're exporting to over 25 countries.

So, you would have a lot of these clients from all over the world come into our home and have a meal and learning about that and being a part of a very big family was really, really always, there's always a twist and a turn in our lives.

So, yeah, it's been a very family-centric, friend-centric, relationship-centric sort of upbringing, you know.

MJ: That's amazing. So, how did this growing up experience between different cultures' perspectives shape the way you see the world today?

NC: Yeah, I think there's a term— I don't know if you've seen this movie called American Born Confused Desi, which is A.B.C.D. So, often we used to joke, as friends, like in our community that we're Australian-born Confused Desis. So, you're sort of here and there, but you're neither anywhere. So, I think what I did learn over the years was that it's so important to have your own identity.

And I think not being unabashed or ashamed of being who you are was really, really important. I used to remember my mum wore saris for years, like in the 1970s, in the 1980s. She continued wearing a sari and be it to a shopping centre. That was her daily attire, and it just, I think, taught us about, you know, having your own identity and authenticity is really, really important as you grow up and relate.

There are things that we couldn't do often. You know, we wouldn't be going to clubs. We wouldn't be going to socials, for example. There's been things like that where parents were really, really strict.

But that didn't take away from the experiences. If I think about the camps that we went to at school, it was life-changing. It built up so much resilience. I think all in all, if I reflect on my childhood, I think it was a mix of both, but I think you find your journey through the whole process.

And I couldn't be more grateful for how multicultural we are in Australia, because I had friends who were from China, from Indonesia, from India, from, you know, all parts of the world where you come together. Into uni as well, or even at school, and you're learning about each other's cultures. You're celebrating each other's cultures. You know, in Drama, we learned about the Greek gods. So that worldly vision sitting here in Melbourne, for me, was great and insightful.

MJ: That's wonderful. So, as someone with roots in South Asia and a global career— How does living in Australia shape your sense of belonging?

NC: Yeah, that's a really good one. Because, when you are going overseas, often Australia is termed to be racist, or there are perceptions of that. And it's interesting, there are instances that you face as you sort of go— When I went through school or on public transport, for example.

But I think how did that sort of shape my Australian story in that sense is, I think when I went in for my first job—I was a programmer by background—and I went in and it was having a fair go. You know, being able to be there on the table, being able to represent who you are, the skill sets you bring in. Coming in with that perspective was really, really important. And having that, what can I say, we're a democracy.

Being able to be vocal about it was really important as well.

So I think that sort of shaped at school, at university, I'm a Monash [University] graduate, and Monash Uni has one of the biggest global footprints in the world as a university. So if you think about there being a group of a— There was a lot of international students. So being able to be with them and have this sense of comfort that here we are different, but we're same. And I think that was really, really a bit of a touch point as well. Looking at what happened in Sri Lanka over the years with the war but, in Melbourne, the Sinhalese and the Tamils would be celebrating things together. You know, so that sort of unity was really interesting to see.

So I think the key thing was, as my parents had sort of built [and] nurtured us, I think it was always about being very open, accepting and embracing different cultures. Embracing the moments of a puja and Diwali, where I'm from a Muslim background, you know. So being able to celebrate those moments— Chinese New Year, look at what happens in Sydney and even here. It's amazing, and being able to embrace that and celebrate that is so important.

MJ: Thank you, Nashid. And your career spans from economic development, international trade and now touch education. So can you share with us what originally drew you at this intersection between global engagement and economic development?

NC: Yeah, it's actually quite accidental. So as a— When I was in school, I wanted to be an optometrist. I didn't get the marks for it so I went and studied business systems and I became a programmer. I was a hardcore programmer. And my first role was in LogicaCMG. They're an IT company that provides support to utilities, et cetera, and I was consulting there.

And then I moved to Dubai for personal reasons and I was working in an IT company there, ICICI Bank, which is one of the largest banks in India, their info-tech division. And I was programming there and I was programming with hardcore developers. A

nd they were mainly from South India because South India has one of the largest, the largest global engineers being exported across the world. I couldn't keep up with them. You know, you'd be breaking a code at two in the morning. And I remember at one stage I walked in and don't know if you want to edit this or not, but I walked in and I was trying to crack a list of values, which is a programming code that you do. And I walked in after three days and I'm like, "I can't make love. I can't make this love. I can't make this love."

And I had a bunch of programmers, all men, as well as the director, who all just went red in the face and the programming director called me and he said, "I can't have you programming anymore in this team." I'm like, "Have I lost my job?" And he's like, "No, no, we're putting you into marketing because I think you can talk about the content really, really well."

So that's where my role transformed into marketing, communications, PR. And then I landed a job very randomly with Austrade, the Australian Consul in Dubai as well. So that's where my stream went from programming into international trade and investment.

And also, I think, underlyingly, Maggie, over the years, watching my dad export and mom export to all of these markets— They do second-hand printing machinery, they refurbish and they export, plus other conglomerates. So being a part of a family which runs in SME [Small and Medium-sized Enterprise], you need to be nimble. You need to build on those relationships. Till today, I see my dad drop his clients at two in the morning. It's all about relationships. And I think that has played a very big role to where I am today.

But I mean, the other angle I must say— My husband is originally from Bangladesh. He moved here. And again, his growth trajectory in his career, he served as the Australian Investment and Trade Commissioner. And just to see that opportunity and that push, as well, where he was always there sort of driving that empowerment. Like, "Go and push yourself harder, go and do this and go and do that." And I think that that partnership has played really strongly to where I am today and what I'm doing.

MJ: Very good. Thank you so much, Nashid. Nashid, much of your work has been focusing on strengthening the entire connection between Australia and the Indo-Pacific region. Now, can you share with us why you think this relationship is increasingly important nowadays?

NC: YI think this is so important. Perth is the capital of Australia's Indo-Pacific region. We share an ocean with this region. And I was thinking and reflecting on this question the other day. And I sort of thought, it's almost like me not knowing who my next-door neighbour is.

And there's just so much camaraderie that we have. We, as being in Perth and Western Australia, we are in such a region where there's so much potential. There's so much already happening, but so much being a part of the same time zone as Asia is so important.

But the Indo-Pacific region geopolitically, strategically, is such a key region for us to engage with. Be it India, be it China, be it Bangladesh, be it Indonesia, be it Vietnam, this whole belt of the region is where we have so much more to collaborate on.

But if you speak to an SME right now, in the now, and if they get an opportunity to go somewhere, where will they go? Maybe not so much to the US anymore, but Europe is very a natural place where our talent moves. Let's be honest.

So the more we can actually support, invest, engage on these markets and these regions, especially with such a growing diaspora, this human bridge connection will help catalyse that. And that's why the work that University of Western Australia, with the conviction of our VC that we need to be a leading provider in the Indo-Pacific region, is incredibly exciting to me. I think there's so much more that we need to unpack.

We've also obviously got Honourable Tim Watts who is now dedicated to be driving that Indo-Pacific relationship, and we need to leverage and catalyse that.

If we don't have strong relationships with our neighbouring regions, I think we're missing out on a massive relationship, be it economic, social, and community-based. And I think that's really essential for us to drive a lot of the critical factors that impact us. Be it about food security, be it about climate change, be it about technology.

Technology is also a key part, and it's also about learning and understanding each other about the critical risk of not being engaging.

We're obviously in the process of establishing two branch campuses as UWA, and I'm incredibly honoured to be able to support that initiative. But if you think about the ethos of what UWA is doing right now, we're operating in thriving economic social hubs of the Indo-Pacific region. So you can imagine that venturing out into the future.

It's incredibly sad to see what's happening in the Middle East right now. But there is a role that I think we can play to help support what's going on and enable, so that hopefully things will get better soon. I'm hoping, always hopeful. But again, a very key region for us in that Indo-Pacific remit of what we're looking at.

MJ: Wonderful. Thank you. And you've led many teams and partnerships in different cultural and political contexts. So, what have you learned or what would you like to share with us about leadership when you're managing different teams from different cultures?

NC: Yeah. I might go back to a point where I was working for the Victorian government and I was supporting the market development of four international offices. And then that grew to six. So we started with China, Indonesia, India, Japan, and Dubai. And then we expanded that network of education service managers and leaders into Latin America and also Malaysia.

So, what my learning was from that is there are some critical points that you need. And what I really feel—as I'm building up a team right now in India as we speak—is that they need to be very much a part of the conversation that we have at headquarters.

It's so important to have their say, their input, their involvement. They need to feel a sense of belonging and ownership because they're ultimately your brand ambassadors in those international markets.

Cross cultural difference; every culture is very, very different. But I think there's two elements of culture, Maggie. I think there's the culture of the market that we're working in. There's also the culture of the organisation. And you need to find the right blend and mix of two. And the moment you start having those dialogues about, oh, it's Holi or it's Chinese New Year or whatever it is, and building that up in how you engage and celebrate those moments, it creates that sense of belonging.

But simple things— Business planning, do a version online. Make sure that people are in the loop. Every Monday we have a stand up, for example. But apart from that, that one-to-one piece, being responsive, being accepted is very critical to how your colleagues are feeling as they start being empowered to deliver what needs to be delivered. And that's important. That shared journey is important.

Often people try and segment private and public life, and I actually don't believe in that. I think it's so important for me to know someone who's got child drop-off or someone who's got a mother unwell or what have you, because you're spending so many hours away from your family and engaging in work. And I think that part needs to be— You need to feel motivated to do that and you need to feel heard to do that. And I think that's very, very critical.

And the third part, which I sort of say is, loyalty is very, very important. You need to trust each other. You need to have a relationship to enable that. And you need to be on the same journey.

Diversity is important. Diversity of opinion is incredibly important. Something that works for China or Japan may not work for in Indonesia. So how do you then enable that? And as we learn in cross-cultural communication one-on-one, you've got the direct and indirect cultures. I might be forthcoming and say something into the Middle East and it's just, it's not responded to. But there's a different way of working that.

I think we need to get away from those day-to-day, that we need to e-mail people instructions or what have you; but much rather use a WhatsApp, use a Botim, use a WeChat to then engage in those markets and navigate and hear things. So I think that's been really important.

I must quote a mantra from one of my colleagues who have joined us recently, our senior project officer in India. When we sort of said, "What are we out here to deliver?" And he said, "Visibility, credibility, revenue." And I'm like, wow, brilliant. So, getting the team to have a say on these things are very fundamental to the success of what we do.

MJ: Wonderful. During your role as investment and trade commissioner for Western Australia in the Indian Gulf region you led many missions and initiatives. Now, can you share with us one initiative that you think you believe has had the biggest impact?

NC: Yeah, and that's a really easy one. There's quite a few moments, but I think I might touch upon two, Maggie, or three, if that's okay.

I think it was the mantra was Western Australia punching above our weight. In those days, when Honourable Premier Mark McGowan, the former Premier, had announced we need to reconnect with the world post-COVID, it was pretty much go and really reach out and re-establish those networks.

We'd been in Dubai [and] Mumbai for about twenty years at that point of time, roughly twenty years in Dubai. And there was no office in Chennai at that point of time in the region and the remit was quite sparse. It was South Asia, Middle East, and Africa. And I remember very clearly, as I was about to join, my boss said, "You need to go and meet the Premier." So we went over to meet the Premier and he said, "Look, I'm just going to, I want to apologise in advance. We're going to take a mission to India very soon." And this was in March of that year, 2022. And I'm like, "Okay, sure. Obviously we'll support all of that." And I'd been working at federal and state government. So this felt like a no-brainer.

And it was going to be a mission of about thirty or forty people, and it's great. And then as we started building the program and pulling things together, it became a six-streamed thematic mission, which covered agriculture, creative industries, mining, energy, innovation, education.

It wasn't just the Premier. It was also the Minister for Education. We also had three MLAs from Indian origin who also accompanied the mission, and about 160 delegates on that mission. And that was not going to be in November, it was going to be in June , June-July, basically. I'd only joined the organisation in March, and then you sort of set the task of putting this— And I only got posted into India in June. So I remember I'd be working off the kitchen benchtops—

But huge gratitude to the ecosystem back in Perth that worked mountains to get this mission happening and the conviction of our now Premier to get this moving, because it was the largest delegation that was led in the history of Western Australia and that to come into India. It was the first mission into India post-COVID of that large nature. Also the work and the support that was given by the federal government. Maybe sometimes they were a bit worried about it, but it worked an absolute treat.

You know, when you sort of say, what's the point of these missions? Often people perceive it as junkets, but those relationships that were built really laid out all this work for us over the years as we were building up the post and the credibility of the work and dealing with those clients. Because automatically you've got an acceleration of clients that you're servicing in the process.

So that did lead to a huge amount of trade investment, goodwill, and even an outcome of that, as our vice chancellor says, that the branch campuses that we're building today is an outcome of that as well. So, what was so significant about it, I think it really set a benchmark.

Like if you look at India—north, south, east, west—Punjabis are probably the loudest, most vibrant communities and— You know everyone is vibrant. 28 states in India. Don't get me wrong. But I felt like we were the Punjabis of Australia going into India to really make a mark. And we didn't even hit one city, we did four cities. We did Delhi, Mumbai, Visag, where we had a sister state relationship, and Chennai, where we then when the Premier opened an office there.

So, if you look at the diversity, we were touching all parts of India in some shape or form. It was phenomenal. And I remember some of the delegates were like, "Oh, my God, I've never experienced India like this." Or, "I feel like I was in a past life an Indian." So it was not just a business transactional piece of work. It was an emotional journey.

And I think that was really fundamental to set the tone. And I remember on the last day, I sort of said— Usually when I move cities— So, Maggie, after I got married, I think every three years we're sort of moving various cities. And I used to remember my parents would come in and support us, and they did the same for this time.

But for the mission and what we were trying to establish as an investment trade commissioner—what a privilege, where you've got your premier, you've got ministers, you've got your DG, your DDG. You've got the whole entire Western Australian economy, it felt like, that came in and came behind to really set the benchmark on our engagement with India. So that was incredibly, incredibly memorable.

Another two instances, if I may, one was when we opened our Chennai office. So, we didn't have an established office in Chennai, so it was really setting up that office, but also the team and the network. The people created what we have today.

We had longstanding members across the ITBA network, across Dubai and Mumbai. And then in Chennai, we built a team. So being able to do that, for me, was this massive, massive excitement because you then create an ecosystem of WA ambassadors who are sitting there, and live and breathe the values of WA, and then they're there to serve the WA ecosystem. So the incredible moments around that and the clients that came in were incredible.

Another benchmark I would say that we really did set up and punch above our weight, when Honourable Premier Mark McGowan came to Qatar. So again, post-Covid, paying gratitude to the work that Qatar Airways had done during COVID, that level of loyalty and respect was so well received in the market.

And looking at how activated Qatar is now, not only by the WA government, but other states, has been incredible to see, and gratitude to the ambassador there as well. But also in Saudi Arabia. So Saudi Arabia is one of the leading sort of growing markets. But there are some elements where I think it's a market that's not discovered enough. So, having Honourable Minister Whitby go in that time and set that mark of, we've got very similar dry arid conditions, but it's a major export where we're doing a lot of export into agriculture. Those milestones are invaluable.

You know, the other thing I want to say, lobsters, lobsters, lobsters. So not only did the premier at that time during the mission come in with these delegates, he came in with 200 kilos of Western rock lobsters. So that was a milestone moment for us. And today, I think we've got over 15000, if not more lobsters coming in [to India]. Obviously a very high-end branded product. Lots going into China. But it was great to sort of see a pivot where people get a taste and a flavour from, where India is quite different in that way. But that being accepted and embraced into the market was quite phenomenal.

MJ: That's amazing. Very impressive. And congratulations to your achievements. Fantastic. Thank you. So you worked in local government, international trade, and now education. So how do you see institutions like university and cities are contributing to Australia's global engagement?

NC: Yeah, I think it's pivotal. I think local governments have such a strong role to play because of the grassroots work that's done. I think what we don't do well enough is joining the dots between local and state, state to federal, where you could actually work hand in hand to drive a lot of delivery.

And it's not just about going into market. It's the receiving of people. So when I was at City of Sydney, we used to do, the Lord Mayor would do a welcome to international students. There was so much power in that. Kids would take the certificate, a welcome certificate from the Lord Mayor. They've kept it and treasured it. These small pieces of diplomacy make such a big difference.

But if I think about investment work that we did, we worked on major leads that would come in from the federal government, coming into the state government, and then we would play a local role in enabling that. So there's power in doing those things.

And I think it needs to be a lot more well recognised. I really feel that local government need to have a place on the table when these discussions are going on rather than an ad hoc, here's something that's come to you. And I think there's more of formalising of that that needs to be done.

I think education is incredibly powerful. If I think about my own life and how intergenerational change is very, very important, education empowers that.

There's a beautiful body of work that we do with Tata and Sons and that was initiated through our Provost Chancellor of Global Engagement, Professor Jennifer Howell, where we offer two fully funded scholarships to school two girls every year from an underprivileged background, which is a philanthropic project of Tata and Sons.

But just seeing that relationship evolve and how that's changed that community, where the girls have started to trust and believe that this will change the norms and how that changes those families, is incredibly powerful.

We're doing that with quite a few states now in India, where we work on grant students coming out. So that change is really, really important.

But if I think about how these branch campuses are setting up, it completely changes the opportunity. And the more I think about it, if you think about India or the Middle East, for that matter, people want their kids to be close to home. You know, we're in nuclear families today. So the opportunities around T and E are incredible.

I feel universities and city councils, especially when I saw COVID, are those safe havens. It's a place where you can connect, you can feel a sense of belonging and a sense of place. And I think that's incredibly important for us to create as we build these two branch campuses, but who we are here today.

And I've seen that at TAFE. I've worked at TAFE as well. And I used to work at North Metro TAFE. And what I loved about it was you will have anything from a Year 10 student to someone who's had an amazing global career but come back to do a Cert 4 in design, for example. And to see that fact that there is a place for all, that's important. And I think that's where those cities, universities or education providers can transform lives.

MJ: Fantastic. Thank you. And looking back at your career so far, what are the achievements that you feel most proud of in terms of connecting Australia or Western Australia with the region, with the world?

NC: Yeah, it's a really good question. I think often if anyone asks me what's your biggest achievement, I think having my children are my biggest achievement, because I think that's something that you don't have a guidebook on.

There is no book for dummies on how to raise children. It's so different every day. And you and I have a shared journey on that.

I think the biggest achievement is the energy and the ecosystem we have today. You have a network of people who understand the value proposition. And for those who don't, they're willing to give it a go again. And I think it's the people. I think the talent.

Yesterday, we met with SRM students off the back of an articulation partnership we have. The students are live here. It's like, "Oh, my God, this is real." And Brod[sp?] and I were talking about that, that this is what we should be doing.

But in terms of Western Australian achievements, I could name so many. Be it innovation activation. Be it avocadoes, the first commercial shipment going into India. You know, that was quite a moment. But all in all, if I talk about it, it's those clients really better understanding India and the Middle East.

But also when you have moments where you have your international delegates choose Perth over other destinations because of the goodwill that we've built. And it's about energy, goodwill, feng shui maybe to some extent. And I think that that is very, very important. You forget about the instance of what happened. You remember the energy.

MJ: Wonderful. As a woman who has had senior leadership in government and a university now, have you had any occasions that you had to get through challenges? And how did you approach them?

NC: Yeah, it's a really interesting question. And it's quite interesting because there are markets I'm working in which are predominantly male dominated, or you get pictures where there's not proper gender diversity, or opportunities like that.

But I think being a voice on the table is really important. Having an opinion is really important. Being able to challenge the status quo is also really important. And I think I really do credit my parents for really investing in our education and giving us that. We're three sisters. So, making sure that we learn to stand up for ourselves. But more importantly, we create that tribe. And that's really, really important.

So there are many instances, be it going into some of those markets— I probably won't name what those markets are. But being a core part of that conversation and making sure that you are heard in the process and that you've got logic and evidence to back up your conversation is incredibly powerful.

And it does change the dial for people who don't get it. And I think being able to bring that to the table then sets a precedent or an example on how you enable that.

Parallel to that, I think, in every city I've gone to, I've had the privilege of having a women's tribe as we create it. We just celebrated Women's Day in about three cities across India while we were there. It was incredibly liberating to do that because everyone has various stories.

But I think it's really important that you, again, go in with your own authenticity. It's okay to be vulnerable.

And I think being able to put that on the table is incredibly important and go in unashamed. And I think what I've learned in the short journey that I've had at UWA is like—and both the vice chancellor and the provost chancellor quote this a lot—is that it's okay to muck it up and give it a shot. And that's really important, and that's what I really tell a lot of the girls I mentor. I do that ad hoc, but I do it quite often, and over the years I've been mentoring a lot of kids. And that's really important, I think. Give it a go. Put yourself out there. Don't be afraid. Face your fear, and that's really important. And never not take that opportunity. You never know where it's going to land you.

MJ: And Nashid, many young migrants and international students that aspire to your global career. And what would be your advice to this cohort?

NC: My advice is just like I said before, give it a shot. Go to the next networking event. Go and reach out to someone on LinkedIn. Go and ask. If you don't ask, you won't get. The worst case is they'll say no.

But it's so important to put yourself out there and have that dialogue, have that conversation, but come with a call to action. Be clear on what you want. And that's really, really important.

And be open to adjustments as well. Life is a lot about negotiations. The other day I was mentoring someone, and she was like, "This is just not fair." And I'm like, "It's not always going to be fair, but you have to have logic with what you're going with." And that's really, really important.

Another really important issue that I see in international trade and investment, and Maggie, tell me if you feel the same as well. But, you know, often you sort of get pressured, like, "This needs to be done now." And sometimes you've got to take the pedal off and take a breather from it and then come back to it. Because apart from someone about to die on a hospital table, nothing is urgent. But it's important to keep that relationship going and warm, etcetera, and responsive. But not to the point that you're pressured into doing something that you don't necessarily feel that you've done the right kind of work behind.

MJ: So, Nashid, looking ahead, what type of role do you think, or you hope, Australia will play in contributing to the, you know, Indo-Pacific region?

NC: Yeah. It's a very interesting time. May I say it's a very, very interesting time.

And I think Australia is in a very unique position to make a difference into the Indo-Pacific region. So, if I think about it from in terms of that inter-relation piece, how do you deal with individual markets, but then how do you deal with it as a whole is going to be particularly important. And I think, we were talking about this at a dialogue yesterday about like-for-like engagements. But I feel like Australia needs to have its own position on this and drive that position.

There's a massive multicultural diaspora here, which I believe should be influencing how that shapes our position. And I think we need to own that, and I think that's particularly fundamental in terms of how we engage with the Indo-Pacific region.

I think there's a lot more to be tapped. I think there is a lot more support, incentives, mobility that needs to be created for the Indo-Pacific and be centralised on that to then enable those relationship-building activation pieces, which then helps you yield things.

And, some of the amazing work that you're doing, like, you know, bringing in leaders to come in and understand Australia or Western Australia, is particularly important.

And I think we've got to stop acting in silos. I think it needs to be holistic in our approach. Industry, government, academia coming together to provide those solutions. And I think bringing the diversity of the people on the table.

So our role shouldn't be just about here is the people across the board who are Australians sitting across the table and having those discussions. You need the talent from Indo-Pacific to be sitting with you hand in hand and changing and evolving that and vice versa.

So I think there's a huge amount to be unpacked on that and individual markets need an address and then you need to have a holistic strategy as well.

MJ: Nashid, thank you for sharing your story with such insight and generosity. Your journey reminds us that leadership is often about building bridges between countries, sectors, communities and ideas. Through your work across government, industry and higher education, you have helped strengthen Australia's connections with the Indo-Pacific and beyond, creating new opportunities for collaboration, growth and shared prosperity.

From leading trade and investment initiatives to shaping global engagement strategies, your work demonstrates how thoughtful leadership and strong partnerships can create lasting impact both locally and internationally.

We are grateful for the role you continue to play in connecting communities and building a more globally engaged Australia. And this is what ‘My Australia Story’ is about: individuals whose vision, commitment and leadership help shape the Australia we are becoming.

Thank you for joining us for this episode of ‘My Australia Story’. We look forward to sharing more stories of leadership, connection and impact.