Melanie Macfarlane on Belonging, Migration, and Kindness

MM Migration founder Melanie Macfarlane shares her story on the Migration Matters podcast, reflecting on being sent to a UK boarding school at age 10 and enduring bullying, which contrasted sharply with her earlier idyllic childhood in Sierra Leone and Vanuatu. A stop in Kathmandu exposed her to poverty and shaped her sense of justice, while the trauma left her searching for belonging, which she later found in language studies and communities in Russia, France, and Indonesia. Migrating to Australia in her early thirties felt like a spiritual home, leading her to become a licensed migration agent and, in 2007, to found MM Migration and Veta Education; she says the businesses have helped bring around 10,000 people to Australia through skilled migration, sponsorship, and student visas. She also discusses her mother’s injury, her father’s death, his legacy of equality and diplomacy, criticizes governments using immigration to divide, and concludes with her “happy people, happy world” belief in kindness.

00:00 Why Migrants Matter
00:09 Podcast Series Intro
00:39 Boarding School Trauma
01:51 Idyllic Island Childhood
02:33 First Glimpse of Poverty
03:34 Searching for Belonging
04:00 Finding Home in Australia
04:37 Becoming a Migration Agent
05:25 Building a Migration Business
06:06 Reframing Family and Gratitude
06:36 Loss and Returning to Scotland
08:25 Father’s Legacy and Values
09:04 Politics and Immigration Fear
10:18 Happy People Happy World
11:04 Kindness as the Conclusion

Saying Goodbye to England: From Doubt to Adventure

Kieran Barton describes shifting from excitement to doubt and fear about taking his kids and family away from everything familiar in England, questioning whether they would find true friends like they had at home.

Despite feeling anchored to home, he wanted to make the most of the adventure.

As flight details echoed over the intercom, he looked out at the beautiful autumn countryside with turning leaves, mentally said goodbye to England, and reflects that this moment began a journey that would change them all in ways he could not have imagined.

00:00 Doubt Before Leaving
00:14 Searching for Friends
00:18 Choosing Adventure
00:26 Autumn Farewell
00:33 Goodbye England
00:40 A Life Changing Journey

Catalina Rivera: From Colombia to Sydney, Rebuilding Love and a Nursing Career

In the Migration Matters podcast, Catalina Rivera recounts leaving Colombia to reunite with her husband in Sydney after two years apart, arriving on May 20 with two suitcases and about $500, feeling hope, excitement, and fear on her first overseas trip. She traces the decision back to 2007 when her boyfriend, later husband, committed to moving to Australia for better nursing opportunities, prompting a rushed marriage to simplify visas while she stayed behind due to health and financial constraints. She shares humorous advice from her 90 year old grandmother about keeping intimacy alive over Skype, and describes the challenges of reunion, cultural adjustment, and rebuilding their relationship. Catalina details starting work as a cleaner, then caregiving, improving her English, and later having her nursing degree recognized. In May 2014 they gained permanent residency via a skilled independent visa, became citizens two years later, and she has since worked over 10 years in a Sydney public hospital, valuing multidisciplinary work to improve patient safety.

00:00 Grandma’s Wild Advice
00:11 Welcome to Migration Matters
00:42 First Arrival in Australia
01:38 The Australia Decision
03:17 Rushed Wedding Plans
04:44 Long Distance and Skype
07:42 Finally Flying to Sydney
08:23 Reunion Reality Check
08:44 Falling for Sydney
09:31 Starting Over with Work
10:25 Permanent Residency Win
10:56 Building a New Life
12:02 Lessons and Thanks

Rugare Gomo: Finding Freedom, Power, and Love in Australia

In the Migration Matters podcast limited series, Rugare Gomo, originally from Zimbabwe, shares how moving to Australia 23 years ago for education and opportunity became a freedom journey of healing and self-discovery. He acknowledges the sacrifices of the women in his family and describes growing up being told he did not belong, then arriving in Australia with low self-esteem and limiting beliefs shaped by race, sexuality, and social expectations. He recounts pivotal moments of acceptance and advocacy, from a classmate affirming that black is beautiful, to Margaret Kennedy encouraging him to use his voice to pursue university and later challenge employment barriers as a non-citizen, leading him to become an Australian qualified lawyer and one of the first Black and African lawyers in his firm. He credits Australia with resilience, power as a self-expressed gay African Zimbabwean Australian, and love, and closes with a poem honoring Australia and acknowledging Traditional Owners.

00:00 Resilience and Love
00:09 Podcast Introduction
00:40 Meet Aro Gomo
01:04 Roots and Belonging
02:26 Freedom Journey Begins
03:34 Finding Confidence
05:16 Doors to University
06:18 Breaking into Law
08:39 Gifts from Australia
09:43 Book and Poem Setup
10:14 Poem to Australia
12:19 Closing Thanks

Oksana Koriakova: From Armed Robbery to a New Life in Australia

Oksana Koriakova recounts preparing to travel to Australia for a six month English course when three armed men broke into her home, assaulted her and her mother, and stole bundles of money she was taking for the trip; police arrived, her mother was treated at hospital, and despite the criminal case (two robbers later receiving eight year sentences), she secured tickets to Moscow and flew on to Sydney, arriving on 13 September. She describes the first six months as the hardest of her life, homesick, broke, with little English, using dictionaries, post it notes, and living with Australians to learn. After planning to return home, a conversation led her to an immigration lawyer, permanent residency, and starting businesses, including an award winning corporate gifts company, followed by a second company she has run for 21 years, crediting Australia for the life she created.

00:00 Armed Robbery Shock
00:10 Podcast Series Intro
00:51 Bon Voyage Morning
02:27 Masked Men Break In
04:24 Aftermath And Hospital
05:41 Fighting To Fly Out
06:41 Goodbye To Dad
07:11 Landing In Sydney
08:32 Hardest Six Months
09:17 Learning English Hacks
10:29 Avoiding Russian Bubble
11:54 Funny English Mistakes
12:36 Decision To Stay
13:56 Starting A Business
15:11 Success And Gratitude
15:48 Closing Quote

Aminata’s Story: Survival, Belonging, and Motherhood in Sierra Leone and Australia

In the Migration Matters podcast, Aminata shares her experience of the Sierra Leone civil war, describing how rebels separated her from her father, her kidnapping and repeated rape, and how her faith and her father’s love sustained her until her release through a peace exchange and evacuation after the UN identified ongoing danger. Now living in Australia, she reflects on stereotypes and assumptions faced by refugees and Black Africans, and argues that inclusion is belonging, representation matters, and people should be judged by character and integrity. She explains how her early experiences shaped her commitment to give back, and outlines her work as founder and CEO of the Aminata Maternal Foundation, focused on ending infant and maternal mortality, highlighting Sierra Leone’s extreme childbirth risks and urging community action and support.

00:00 A Moment of Terror
00:09 Podcast Series Intro
00:40 Meet the Speaker
01:47 War in Sierra Leone
03:41 Kidnapped and Surviving
04:48 Release and Forgiveness
06:58 New Life in Australia
07:58 Stereotypes and Curiosity
10:38 Belonging and Representation
12:05 Maternal Health Mission
14:51 Call to Action and Hope