177 Nations of Tasmania highlights : New episodes from Guatemala, Zambia, Belize and Jersey and library talks

It's been quite a busy past month or so, with four new episodes, after a bit of a prolonged hiatus, featuring participants from Zambia, Guatemala, Belize and Jersey. The photo exhibition has also started to appear across the state at different libraries and for Harmony Week we did a number of "In Conversation" sessions at libraries in Hobart, Launceston, Devonport and Rosny, along with a number of the podcast participants. It was a great opportunity to engage with people who were interested in the project and it was great to talk to people afterwards, and hopefully this is going to lead to a few more interviews and possibly some other interesting collaborations.

The exhibition will be touring the state until the end of the year, and will be appearing in various guises at not just the main libraries in Hobart and Launceston, but also in diverse places such as Queenstown, Scottsdale, St Helens and Huonville.

Check out the Libraries Tasmania website to see where its exhibiting currently - 177 Nations of Tasmania - Libraries Tasmania

ZAMBIA - RENELLA

I had been looking for a Zambian for some time, as according to my census list there were over 100 Zambians living in Tasmanian, so I was very pleased that Renella approached me. She's perhaps not a typical Zambian migrant, but then I think a lot of people I've interviewed could be considered a bit atypical of their country, but that's what makes these stories interesting. In Renella's case, her father had migrated to Zambia from Malaysia as a young man and met her mother at the bank where she was working. It was interesting to hear about her experience of growing up in a small town in southern Zambia with family from both the African and Chinese Malaysian sides.

GUATEMALA - JULIO

Julio's story was to me so compelling in multiple ways, but most of all because some of his personal experiences in the US in particular, reflected current issues going on in the region and the world today. I think listeners will really feel they are going in a journey with Julio's story. A story with what is so far a happy ending in Tasmania.

It was also remarkable to find someone from Guatemala living in Tasmania, after numerous people in the Latino community in Tasmania assured me there weren't any. If there are any other Guatemalans around, I'm sure Julio would be happy to hear from you.

BELIZE - WILLOH

If finding a Guatemalan in Tassie was unexpected, then discovering there was someone from Belize here too was absolutely unbelievable.

Willoh's story, or perhaps as much her parents' story, of being born and bred in Belize is perhaps one of the most unusual and unique ones I've heard. I'm not going to spoil it here - go and listen to the podcast. Personally, I enjoyed this one immensely as I felt I got quite a bit of insight into a country I knew little about until recently. Also, I found government stats that show there are 74 Belizean born people in Australia, and Willoh would like to find them all !

JERSEY - TAYE

Sometimes, when interviewing someone from a place which is, at least on the surface, culturally similar to Tasmania, it can be challenging to find the best approach or to find an interesting angle. Although, an island like Tasmania, Jersey is quite different, both because of its geography and its history, and I think it was hearing stories of Taye's Jersey family story from WW2 and the places that were important that gave me insight into Taye's enduring emotional connection with her place of birth.