A record 17 undergraduate students from The University of Western Australia will have an amazing opportunity to study at universities across the Indo-Pacific region after being named 2026 New Colombo Plan Scholars.
The scholars are among 328 selected from Australian universities to undertake study, language training and internships in their host locations for up to 19 months, beginning in 2026.
The New Colombo Plan Scholarships program is an Australian Government initiative that aims to increase knowledge of the Indo-Pacific and Asia, by supporting Australian undergraduates to engage in the region.
The program, expected to grow to 500 annual scholarships by 2028, aims to build a cohort of work-ready, Indo-Pacific-capable Australians, and increase Australia’s understanding of and economic engagement with the region.
The 2026 cohort includes a record number of scholars heading to Indonesia and India, and the first cohort to study in Timor-Leste under the program.
UWA Vice-Chancellor Professor Amit Chakma said the program provided students with an extraordinary opportunity to increase their own knowledge and skills, while developing essential capabilities for Australia’s future prosperity.
“The practical and immersive nature of the New Colombo Plan scholarships gives students an opportunity to develop critical skills and build lasting relationships in the region – experiences that will shape both their own futures and Australia’s presence in the region,” Professor Chakma said.
UWA’s recipients will embark on diverse experiences across Singapore, Fiji, Japan, Hong Kong, the Republic of Korea and China, and include:
• Vishwanathan Sabarinathan, Mandana Yaghoobi, Hannah Waldron, Delphery Lin, Aurelia Xiuli Lye-Cull and Riley Baddock, who will all study at the National University of Singapore
• Alisa Mcdonnell and Cleo Gregory, The University of the South Pacific in Fiji
• Raul Otsuru Inoue Paiva de Toledo P, Kobe University in Japan
• Eva Coulter, The University of Hong Kong
• Xaria Pik Fung Wong and Finlay Gordon, Korea University in the Republic of Korea
• Anna Mae Plaistowe, Chuo University in Japan
• Scott Caporn, Zhenyang Liu and Adriaan Van der Berg, Tsinghua University in China
• Nicholas Marcello, Nagoya University in Japan
Bachelor of Commerce student Alisa Mcdonnell will tap into her own Indo-Pacific roots when she heads to Fiji to study the integration of Indigenous practices, land management and law, work with local communities displaced due to climate change, and see how Australian aid is distributed and integrated in Fiji.
Born in New Zealand to a Samoan mother and Kiwi father and brought up in Perth, Alisa – who plans to study law at UWA after finishing her current degree – has travelled frequently to Samoa to visit family but never to Fiji.
“One of the reasons I chose the University of the South Pacific is it highlights the unity of all the Pacific cultures,” she said. “I’m really excited to learn about Fiji, but also how that integrates with my Pacific background and my Australian background.”
During her six months in Fiji Alisa will undertake an internship with a project funded by the Australian Institute for Agricultural Research, which is helping to relocate Fijian Indigenous communities affected by rising sea levels.
“Because these communities are mainly coastal, it’s working out how to move them inland in a way that still celebrates their culture and connection to land,” she said.
Alisa, who applied for the scholarship on a whim, said it still hadn’t sunk in that she had been selected.
“I never thought I would ever be the recipient of such a prestigious scholarship, but hearing what previous scholars have been able to achieve has been really exciting,” she said.
Another of UWA’s 17 NCP scholars, Bachelor of Psychology and Bachelor of Arts student Finlay Gordon, is looking forward to reacquainting himself with the Republic of Korea after visiting the country on a holiday with mates after graduating high school.
He will head to Korea University to explore cultural perspectives on psychological theories and treatments, also using his year-long stay to deepen cultural connections via his hobby of producing music.
“The biggest aim of my scholarship is to better inform myself both on Korean culture more broadly, as well as how psychological practice there is reflected by their culture or through their culture,” Finlay said.
Image at top: (left to right) Vishwa Sabarinathan, Eva Coulter, Scott Caporn, Xaria Pik Fung Wong, Riley Baddock
Thumbnail image, preview page: (clockwise from top left) Nicholos Marcello, Mandana Yaghoobi, Raul Otsuru Inoue Paiva de Toledo P, Alisa Mcdonnell