WOMEN OF THE ISLANDS - SELA MAKA

Sela is 20 years old and was born in Tonga. The first recipient of the King Tupou VI Coronation Scholarship and received recognition from Ministry of Foreign A airs and Trade as one of the top academic achievers in 2018. In her first year at Massey University, Sela was part of a team who won the Creative Solutions Award for the Wine New Zealand industry in her engineering project course. She was also selected as a summer intern in a global engineering consultancy GHD in Palmerston North.

Currently a mentor at Massey University Pasifika Students association, Sela hopes to inspire others and has previously tutored for the Amanaki STEM Academy. She joined Tonga Youth Leaders, a non-profit organisation focused on providing opportunities for the next generation of young leaders.

Sela is working towards becoming an experienced and chartered process engineer. She also wishes to have direct involvement with the Pacific community by using her degree to find solutions and opportunities towards Pasifika engineering-related issues.

Why do you do what you do?

I am Tongan and I recognise that my identity is not just about me as an individual but as a people.  So, I do what I do for our people and I believe that everything that I do in my own career pathway, I can also empower other people and other young Pacific Islanders in their own journeys as well.

Why is it important for Pacific people to be representing in this way?

I think it's important because Pacific people have been navigators & story tellers since the beginning and to be able to bring that forth into today is important because we need to recognise that our history is not just about the past but being in the present and thinking about the future using what our people have been doing.  I believe that Pacific people contribute so much to diversity and with that diversity it breeds creativity and I believe that some of the worlds issues can only be resolved through Pasifika solutions.  

What do you think are the coolest things about Pacific Young People today? 

The coolest thing is that they can navigate between two worlds.  The fact that they can acknowledge their identity as a Pasifika individual and excel in a foreign context but at the same time staying grounded and staying humble.  

What excites you about being a young Pasifikan in Aotearoa? 

What excites me is what makes me different, which is that I actually come from the islands.  I came straight here just for tertiary education in Aotearoa.  It excites me because I get to share my view from back home here in Aotearoa and I get to learn from Aotearoa about how they function here.  Thats a win/win situation because I learn just as much as I give.  

What are your plans and dreams for the future?

My long term goal is to become a successful Processing Engineer on the chemical and bio processing side and to be able to use that platform to be able to empower more Pacific Islanders especially young females who look just like me into this field of study.  I want to be able to create a network where we all come together and form Pasifika Engineering solutions.