Pass the Mic

May 15 2022 1
Pass the Mic Podcast artwork

Sharing the stories and experiences of fifteen New Zealanders from migrant and former refugee backgrounds, this series is a community-led collaboration in partnership with Belong Aotearoa, Sport Waitākere and Storyo, hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva. Elina is the co-creator of Storyo, and moved to New Zealand from Kazakhstan in 2011. 👉 FOLLOW @passthemic.aotearoa and @story.co / Visit storyo.co.nz for a transcript of the episodes!

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Pass The Mic Episode 15: Kat Eghdamian

May 15 2022 39 mins  
Dr Kat Eghdamian is an Iranian-Kurdish New Zealander and former child refugee. She has six degrees and works as Lead Advisor for the Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner. Kat shares stories about her country of birth, her journey to Aotearoa, and her work on migrant exploitation and modern slavery. She and Elina discuss how to go about changing hearts and minds, and the impo

Pass The Mic Episode 14: Nina Santos

May 15 2022 25 mins  
Nina identifies as a first-generation migrant from the Philippines and is a passionate advocate for ethnic communities, migrant rights and gender equality. Nina has been recognised by the Asian New Zealand Foundation and YWCA as a young person to watch, and in this episode, Nina shares her work with the “Mind The Gap'' campaign and ethnic pay gap reporting.

Pass The Mic Episode 13: Ajaz Patel

May 15 2022 22 mins  
A New Zealand Cricketer, Ajaz Patel made his international debut for the Black Caps in October 2018. In this episode, he and Elina talk about his culture and identity, faith, having a sense of belonging, and the secret role of food in creating inclusive sport environments.

Pass The Mic Episode 12: Marie Ysabel Landingin

May 15 2022 31 mins  
Marie was born in Manila, raised in Auckland and currently works on major infrastructure projects at Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency. She is a 'third culture kid' dreaming of inclusive cities and is a part of the Multi-Ethnic Young Leaders Network and Authenticity Aotearoa. Marie explains urban planning and her passion for putting an ethnic lens on it, and she and Elina discuss ide

Pass The Mic Episode 11: Ashley Petau-Ah Poe

May 15 2022 23 mins  
Ashley is of Samoan-Chinese heritage and spent her childhood in Hong Kong before moving to Aotearoa when she was six years old. She and Elina talk about Ashley’s feelings of being displaced, her connections to her roots and culture, the importance of finding community, and what good (and bad!) leadership looks like.

Pass The Mic Episode 10: Suki Xiao

May 12 2022 28 mins  
Suki is a Chinese-New Zealander, Career Coach and Founder of "As You", empowering women of colour to have confidence and clarity in their career and leadership. A former Agile Coach at Xero and other tech companies, she is now mentoring people to find their purpose and redefine their grind. She and Elina talk about impostor syndrome in the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion space, def

Pass The Mic Episode 9: Lovely Dizon

May 12 2022 32 mins  
A 1.5 generation Filipino-Kiwi who grew up in Aotearoa, Lovely is currently a PhD candidate and her research focuses on supporting 1.5 and second-generation Southeast Asian migrant adolescents as they negotiate their ethnic identity. She is passionate about youth health and ensuring that Asian young people have access to culturally safe health services, in particular mental health

Pass The Mic Episode 8: Medulla Oblongata

May 08 2022 21 mins  
Meet Medulla, a drag queen performer who competed in the first season of House of Drag and a non-binary former refugee from the Maldives who lived in Malaysia, before finding their home in Aotearoa New Zealand. Elina and Medulla talk queer culture, living their truth, behind the scenes of drag, and discrimination.

Pass The Mic Episode 7: Andrew Tui

May 08 2022 29 mins  
Andrew Tui is a podcaster and a career practitioner who loves coffee and a ukulele jam. In this epsiode, he and Elina explore Andrew’s Samoan-Chinese heritage and his connections to faith and the rainbow community. Andrew shares some practical insights and advice that organisations can and should take when it comes to equity, diversity and inclusion, especially around Pacific you

Pass The Mic Episode 6: Nilofer Faizal

May 08 2022 33 mins  
Nilofer Faizal recently moved to Auckland and has travelled and lived in India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania and Morocco. She and Elina discuss Nilofer’s travels, culture, sense of belonging as a Muslim woman and how her headscarf makes her feel empowered.