Let’s Talk | Pushing for change with Kimberley Chu

And not just because she didn’t know anyone.

Online searches of Shepparton returned stories of crime and recurrent threads related to drugs and alcohol, coupled with Facebook posts tarnishing the town — Kimberley was worried.

“I got so freaked out, I didn’t know what to do,“ she said.

Arriving in Australia in 2020 after completing degrees in engineering in Hong Kong, Kimberley and her partner moved to Melbourne.

Her partner was offered a regional position in engineering, and Kimberley a role in community services.

And so, they took the chance and relocated.

On arrival, she was shocked to find a rather placid country town, but not without its faults.

After having to leave their initial stay in a share house, Kimberley found herself somewhere she never imagined — right in the middle of the housing crisis.

Both Kimberley and her partner were working full-time and though they applied for house after house for more than a month, they had no luck.

They stayed in an Airbnb paying upwards of $100 per night, eating into the majority of their combined wage.

“There was nowhere to stay so we just had to,” she said.

“It worked for us because we were both working, but what if some people aren’t?”

Kimberley said their applications were up against those from more than 50 families for each rental.

“Homelessness is real, some people would think it might be for people experiencing mental or other barriers, but it actually can affect anyone,” she said.

“It’s scary, very scary.”

Soon, Kimberley had made contacts in the community who were able to assist in helping her find somewhere to live.

She noticed the same theme in more than one part of the community — it wasn’t what you knew but rather who you knew.

Migrating to a town with no connections, she’d felt isolated.

She said in the early days, shyness almost got the better of her, and so she threw herself into groups and places she never would have before.

She found a support network in the Shepparton Community Connector program, volunteered at a myriad of events with the Rotary Club and also became a part of the Fairley Leadership Program.

She grew her confidence and on the way, found her people.

On the flip side, her work focused on finding jobs for people struggling, while the volunteering saw people day after day experiencing disadvantage, domestic violence and addiction.

Kimberley was exposed to the many facets of the town.

In a bid to make further change, she joined the north-east Victoria Youth Parliament team.

“I think Youth Parliament has changed my life so far,” she said.

In contrast to her life prior to Australia, for the first time she felt as though she had a voice and it could be heard.

“I never thought I’d be a part of Parliament, but it gave me an insight,” she said.

“I am always working on the ground with people directly, making little changes, but once I got into the Parliament and speaking, it felt different, like I could work on a bigger picture, I could work on bringing more impact.”

Kimberley and the team are pushing for regional economic development to give regional residents the same chances to succeed as their metropolitan counterparts.

“Someone who’s come from overseas to Shepp, it’s so different; it’s great, but I think there’s more that can be done,” she said.

“But policy, I mean, it takes years and years to work on it. So if you don’t start now, when?

“I don’t know how my voice can influence policies and things like that, but I feel like in the future, the advocacy we’re doing can hopefully lead to changes to benefit the community.”

∎ Caitlyn Grant and Megan Fisher are opening the conversation for young people on all things from mental health to success stories in their weekly column, Let’s Talk. If you or someone you know has a story, contact caitlyn.grant@mmg.com.au or megan.fisher@sheppnews.com.au