• Conferences
• About PPSEAWA
• News
• Peace Ambassador
• International Bulletin
• Reports
  • Women, The Family And Health
  • Children, The Family and Health: What it Takes to Give Children Long Life
  • Current Situation In The Cook Islands on Convention Against Discrimination In Education
  • A Life Worth Living: Teenagers, The Family, and Health
    • Delhi, India
    • Nelson, New Zealand
    • Bangkok, Thailand
    • Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia
    • Pago Pago, Americal Samoa
    • Taipei, Taiwan, ROC
    • Karachi, Pakistan
    • Lautoka, Fiji
    • Raratonga, The Cook Islands
    • Seoul, Korea
    • Kent Town, South Australia
    • Honolulu, Hawaii
    • St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
    • Apia, Western Samoa
    • Langafonua, Tonga
    • Sabangan, Mountain Province, The Philippines
• Member Countries
• Related Sites

A Life Worth Living: Teenagers, The Family, and Health

Kent Town, South Australia - 3 May, 1997

Present: 26 PPSEAWA members and 35 invited guests from women's organisations and youth groups.

Seminar opened by Necia Mocatta, Vice-President International Council of Women and President of the National Council of Women, South Australia. Mrs. Mocatta's address was based on the contribution mind, body and soul give to a life worth living, likening our bodies to an engine without fuel. Minds need oiling or they rust, bodies need exercise and tender loving care, soul development grows with experience and as one ages. We all need to have stimulation and as we only have one chance at life, we should use that life to the fullest no matter what age we are - age is just a state of mine. We must be able to change direction and meet new challenges but above all, a life worth living must be lived with enthusiasm.

Guest speaker: Dr. Lynne Cobiac, Department of Human Nutrition, SCIRO, South Australia. Topic: Food worth eating. Dr. Cobiac is involved in the consumers science program looking at the different cultures and foods of the Asia region and sharing in research studies of chronic disease and diet related illnesses in which food is the important component. We were asked to imagine an ideal setting for a meal and a mouth watering menu. this delicious meal contained fish (good for us because of the omega 2 content), dark green leafy vegetables and fruit (a must), cheese (high calcium content needed for fight against osteoporosis) and herbs and spices which are a source of antioxidants, negating or taking away damaging effects from free radicals in the body. Dr. Cobiac then went on to elaborate good and bad in diets and said some of the old home remedies are proving sound. She said she never goes sailing without some ginger with her. Ginger Beer is good for nausea. Closing Thought: "A life worth living would be enhanced using Food worth Eating."

Guest speaker: Associate Professor Eleanor Bourke, Aboriginal Research Institute, University of South Australia. Professor Bourke brought to our notice that we were in "Tandania" - the place of the red kangaroo and acknowledged the people of the area. Prof. Bourke had been given consent to enter this territory and perhaps it would have been appropriate for us to have given similar recognition and we should be cognisant of this courtesy in the future. This lack of knowledge on our part made it plain to all that there should be a "willingness to enter into meaningful dialogue with emphasis on the meaningful." Professor Bourke gave us the history of the development of aboriginal education. Her information on education, health and welfare gave much food for thought. Aborigines in remote communities and in urban communities may suffer from diseases of poverty and an education system which does not meet the needs of their people. Professor Bourke's talk concluded with the need for dialogue and effective partnerships between Aboriginal people and other Australians. Obviously a "Life worth living" is not yet a reality for many.

Guest Speaker: Xavier Minniecon, radio presenter and T.V. Weather Man, Adelaide. Xavier began with an account of his very varied family background, from the Pacific Asia and Europe. He had learned from all his diverse family members. He tries to help people, there is no shame in serving, there is a pride in giving to others and contributing to their betterment. His advice is "expect to get it." Identify what you do/do not like about your situation, then see what needs to be changed and try to change yourself to cope, releasing a need to control what you can't, and move on. Is unpaid work unimportant? What you learn comes from everything you do, not just from books but from all your experiences. In this world the rewards you get are many; money, respect, partners, security... But it is important that a Life worth Living needs to be lived with enthusiasm (try hugging someone each day!!)

Guest speaker: Sally Burgess, member of Guides Australia (youth section 18-30 age group) Law student, Flinders and Adelaide Universities. Sally defined life as a "condition of growth period between life and death" and presented us with word play on "life." Life savers, this is your life, humourous life, serious side of life, God gave us life - we should not take it away. She asked what is the true value of life and said "life is so easily lost," "life means a lot to some, little to others." Sally spoke about social and cultural pressures and how they affected youth, reminding us that Australia has the highest incidence of youth suicide in the world. Challenges in life are important to self growth. If one believes in oneself one can do anything. She likened life to ships which go at various speeds, some drift along, the cruiser is majestic as some people are with grand lives and some are like the cargo ship loaded down with cargo, the passenger liners are always on the move, the catamarans enjoy the ride to catch the wind. All the ships have the choice of safe harbours, exploring uncharted waters which are never still, sailing against the tide or going with the flow. Sally emphasised the need to plan and set goals and to relise the value of life: It's not the length of the day but what you put into it.

Discussion Groups: The meeting divided into five groups, which all discussed the way the speakers had approached the topic, with the help of facilitators. Each group had a wide age range and a mixture of cultural diversity. Reports were given by a member of each group, summarising their findings.

Simulation Game: "Participation across Cultures" Kiri Hata and Eileen Torres. Kiri and Eileen had conceived an idea which involved everyone present experiencing first had the challenges facing many island nations in the world today. Kiri took the part of an island chief and summoned her people to debate the pros and cons of allowing a multi-national corporation to build a vast dam on the island. Members were divided into groups such as the young men, the missionaries, the N.G.O.'s, the environmentalists, the farmers, etc. and each group had to entreat the chief to our particular cause as to why the dam should or should not be built. All members enjoyed the activity but were sobered when Kiri informed the room that this situation is a reality of today (multi-national corporation prepared to pay vast millions of dollars to the chief), the complexities could tear people and nations apart endangering all the good aspects of traditional customs that made "a life worth living."

Guest speaker: Sarah Goulding, Vice-president, YWCA of Adelaide; member, Women's Advisory Council of South Australia. Sarah's talk empasised the need for honesty, commitment and enthusiasm in anything you do in life, illustrating it with incidents from her experiences.

The day was great success. A wide age range, 17 years to over 90 years made for a few sharing of views. The few young men who attended took an active role in their discussion groups. All speakers obviously had put a tremendous amount of work and thought into their speeches which addressed the theme "A Life Worth Living" with their perceptions of life and gave all who attended must to digest. The seminar demonstrated that Australians are indeed a multicultural society with much to learn and appreciate from each other. It is important to keep open the lines of communication, to live in harmony with each other and so achieve "A LIFE WORTH LIVING."

The question has already been asked - When will we (PPSEAWA) organise another seminar? Our thanks to NESTLE and UNESCO for their support.

Reported by J. Bennett, M. Cabretta, V. Nicholas

Last Modified: November 29, 2002