Sistas, Let's Talk

From gender-based violence to unequal access to opportunity, women in Vanuatu continue to face significant challenges. 

For Sabrina Brown, change starts with empowering the next generation. 

As CEO of Vanuatu Young Women for Change, she helps young women build confidence, develop leadership skills and find their voice, giving them the tools to advocate for themselves and their communities. 

Sabrina speaks to Natasha Meten about balancing life as a nurse, a mother and a leading advocate for women's rights in Vanuatu. 

Childhood sexual abuse survivor Maluseu Doris Tulifau has turned her personal experience into a mission to protect others. 

She founded grassroots organisation Brown Girl Woke to challenge the culture of silence surrounding sexual abuse and other taboo issues in Samoa.  

Since then, the movement has grown beyond its original focus, empowering young Pacific women to speak up, lead, and drive change in their communities. 

Now, Doris believes it's time to take that impact even further. 

On Sistas Let's Talk, Doris speaks with Natasha Meten about nurturing the next generation of Pacific women leaders, the evolution of Brown Girl Woke, and her ambitious goal of one day becoming Samoa's prime minister. 

Listen on ABC Radio Australia. 

When life got tough for Samoa’s Maiava Fia’ailetoa Shantel Netzler, sport became more than just a game.  

It gave her confidence, purpose, and a sense of belonging.  

Combined with the strong and varied education she gained in Samoa, those experiences helped shape the leader she is today. 

Now she’s the first Pacific Islander to head up QSport, where she is helping drive the future of sport across Queensland.  

On Sistas Let's Talk, Shantel reflects on her upbringing, the lessons she learned through sport and education, and the path that led her to break new ground in sporting leadership. 

Theonila Roka Matbob grew up surrounded by the toxic legacy of Panguna mine in central Bougainville.  

Now a politician and human rights advocate, she refused to accept the damage left behind. Mobilising her community, Theonila took on mining giant Rio Tinto – and won.   

Her campaign has earned her global recognition, including the the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize. 

In this episode of Sistas Let’s Talk, Natasha Meten speaks with Theonila about growing up in the shadow of the mine, her fight for environmental justice and what justice means for her people. 

This edition of Sistas Let's Talk was a repeat of the program broadcast on the 25th of June 2026

What motivates a person to tell the stories of everyday people in their community?  

A passion for writing combined with the advice of her late father motivated Haitelenisia Afemui 'Uhila Angilau (Sia) to start the Facebook page Ordinary Tongan Lives.  

When he was alive her father had said when she feels self-pity or sadness she should go out and serve others. 

Instead of focusing on Tonga’s high-profile people, Sia writes about the everyday people she meets on the street.  

She shares her own story with Natasha Meten on Sistas Let’s Talk.  

Listen on ABC Radio Australia.  

When big environmental events happen in the Pacific, who tells the important stories?  

In Vanuatu, it’s Tiffany Baldwin. 

A climate change reporter for Vanuatu Broadcasting Television Corporation, Tiffany is passionate about environmental journalism. 

She's been telling these stories through El Niño and cyclones, even when her own family is dealing with the fallout from disaster.  

Tiffany speaks to Natasha Meten for Sistas Let’s Talk about being a woman in journalism, how disasters in Vanuatu impact women and what she does to unwind.  

Listen on ABC Radio Australia.

For more than 40 years, Waso Mathews has been the person others turn to for support.  

From her childhood in Rabaul, Papua New Guinea, to her life as a respected chef and community leader in South Australia, she has spent decades helping families build new lives, creating connections across cultures, and championing the wellbeing of her fellow Wantoks. 

Waso has done everything from bringing comfort to people in nursing homes, feeding troops as they trained to go to war, to putting artefacts to sleep in a Melanesian lullaby.  

On Sistas Let's Talk Waso chats to Natasha Meten about everything from her childhood to her life in Australia.  

Listen on ABC Radio Australia. 

When the Bougainville conflict erupted in 1988, Rose Pihei was living away from her village on the south of the island.

After the conflict – which led to killed 20000 people and saw many more displaced – Rose saw the crucial role women played in rebuilding their communities.

Inspired to create lasting change, she co-founded the Bougainville Women's Federation, empowering women and fostering peace in the region.

Rose speaks to Natasha Meten on Sistas Let's Talk about the future for women in the autonomous region of Bougainville.

This edition of Sistas, Let's Talk was a repeat of the program broadcast on 13th June 2024

How do you improve communication in Pacific families with the aim of preventing domestic violence?  

Carol Kuisma and her daughter Jessica are Tongan women living in Australia. They have developed a set of cards aimed at starting conversations and encouraging healthy, non-violent relationships.  

The idea was born out of what they saw in their social services jobs as an obvious need for more Pasifika-aimed domestic violence prevention tools.  

The mother and daughter speak to Natasha Meten on Sistas Let's Talk.  

Listen on ABC Radio Australia. 

For Indonesian human rights lawyer and activist Veronica Koman, exile from her home country isn't enough to stop her from speaking out about Indonesia's rule over West Papua. 

Veronica received a humanitarian award for her activism and she's used it as another chance to continue advocating for West Papua. 

So what makes this remarkable woman tick? 

Veronica speaks to Natasha Meten from Sistas Let's Talk about West Papua, activism and exile. 

Listen on ABC Radio Australia