Taking every opportunity to engage in international learning has been the hallmark of the educational journey for Queensland's 2022 Rhodes Scholar, Tahlia Smith.
And it is Tahlia's love of languages and their importance in cultural understanding that is a mainstay for the New Colombo Plan alum as her international career unfolds.
Now employed as a senior project officer for the Oxford Global Security Programme while she completes her Masters of Public Policy at the University of Oxford, Tahlia is a long way from that first-year student at the University of Queensland who simply wanted to study French and Spanish and explore the world.
“I suppose like quite a few students I didn't have a clear idea of what I wanted to do with my life, so I chose my degree, a Bachelor of International Studies and a diploma in languages, based on the things I really loved,” she says.
“What I quickly discovered was that the University offered a range of ways to combine study and professional development with travel and genuine international experiences.”
Her first global experience was a semester exchange in Colombia, studying Strategies of Negotiation, International Relations as well as Spanish and French, including eight months of study, travel, and volunteering at the Pontifical Javeriana University (la Pontificia Universidad Javeriana).
It is something she credits with not only building her confidence but also opening her mind to new perspectives on international issues and global politics.
Her next international foray came when she was selected as one of only two University of Queensland students to join the U21 Social Entrepreneurship CORPS in Ecuador.
“In Ecuador I worked with international students from universities across the world to help local communities solve issues at a grassroots level,” she says.
But it was her experience on an NCP mobility project in New Caledonia in her final year of university in 2019 that consolidated her ambition to work international affairs.
The NCP grant supported Tahlia to undertake an intensive French language program in New Caledonia where she developed a research project investigating the history, theory, and practice of multiculturalism in the country.
“Increasingly the biggest challenges that are facing Australia are international in nature,” she says.
“What I really came to grips with in New Caledonia was the importance of language and intercultural competency.
“Being able to communicate with someone both personally and professionally in their own language makes an enormous difference because it opens up significant cultural nuances.
“Without these soft intercultural communications skills there is more chance of misunderstandings.”
It was also this experience that helped Tahlia realise the opportunities for collaboration on her own doorstep.
“Through the NCP, I discovered diversity of languages and cultures that sit on our doorstep in Indo-Pacific,” she says.
“It made me realise that I want to learn more about this region and since returning, I have started learning Mandarin as well.”
Post study she has used these skills in roles with the Australian Trade and Investment Commission, the Ecuadorian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Australian Attorney-General's Department.
Tahlia has also been a passionate advocate for the NCP program and its ability to provide Australian undergraduate students with transformative learning experiences in the Indo-Pacific. In 2022, she was the NCP Alumni Ambassador for the University of Queensland, where she helped promote the NCP to her peers on campus.
Today Tahlia is fluent in Spanish, French, possesses intermediate Portuguese and is studying both Mandarin and Australian Sign Language.
As a Rhodes Scholar, she completed an MSc in Global and Area studies at the University of Oxford where she examined how inequalities in access to the space sector affect conceptualisations of security in developing countries. As part of her research, she represented Oxford University at the United Nations 2022 Outer Space Security Conference.
At the Oxford Global Security Programme, Tahlia now coordinates research projects that investigate security dynamics in the context of armed conflict, transitions from war to peace and responses to insecurity to provide policy briefs and recommendations to the United Nations, NGOs, and government bodies.
Named a 2023 Young Woman to Watch in International Affairs she says while international relations are increasingly complex and challenging, she feels inspired by the dedication and passion of colleagues and mentors.
“It is phenomenal what we can achieve when we break down barriers and collaborate across borders and disciplines,” she says.
