Tomisin Opaleye

Studying abroad is a great way to reflect on your indigenous community in your home country, and find common ground with people who might seem to be different from you.

The Māori concept that there is no “wrong” worldview is something I try
to remind myself when dealing with other people from different places.

Understanding the history and culture of the indigenous owners of the
land is important to being more mindful in living and working on their
land. In the United states, indigenous knowledge is a lot less known
and it causes a lot more misunderstandings.

I respect and appreciate the efforts of Māori people to restore their
culture in Aotearoa. I think that this zeal and persistence is something
that I would like to encourage Nigerian tribes to be more intentional in
practicing.

I think a lot of settler colonial countries have a lot more work to do in
terms of acknowledging the damage they’ve done to their
indigenous communities. While Aotearoa isn’t perfect, they’ve done
a lot more than I’ve seen in the U.S. While you cannot change the
past, it’s the responsibility of pakeha to support and re-strengthen
these communities.

I’ve always been proud of my heritage and eager to work to improve
our lives, but being here has led me to ask so many more questions
and read a lot more on decolonizing the mind.

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