AustLit

'Sylvia Nakachi is a descendant from the Eastern Islands of Erub in the Torres Strait Islands, and has lived all her life in the community of Bamaga. Through her mother’s bloodline, she is a Meuram (worshipers) Tribe woman whose totem is the Beuger (Fridget Bird). Through her father’s bloodline, she is a Peidu (warrior) Tribe woman, whose totem is the Dabor (Mackerel). She was raised by her grandparents who became her parents through traditional Torres Strait customary lore and adoption. Nakachi has an undergraduate degree in Education, a graduate certificate in Childhood Studies and a Master in Human Services Childhood Studies degree. As an emerging writer, Nakachi recently completed her first fiction novel about the journey of a young Torres Strait Islander boy who becomes a man, who lives life before contact with white men, London Missionary Society, and colonization. A passionate child advocate, Nakachi also teaches and works through different schools to embed indigenous perspectives.' (Source: International Writers program website)