Media Release: Areti Metuamate among Australia’s top 100 brightest young minds
Thu 24 Jun 2010: Media Release: Areti Metuamate among Australia’s top 100 brightest young minds
Ngāti Raukawa/Ngāti Kauwhata, Areti Metuamate, based at Australia’s leading university, has been selected as one of the 100 brightest young people in Australia to participate in the Brightest Young Minds Summit 2010.
Mr Metuamate, 25, who is living in Canberra and completing a masters degree at the Australian National University is “absolutely blown away” by his selection to be one of 100 young people selected from across Australia who will participate in the major summit, Brightest Young Minds (BYM) 2010.
There are more than 3.5 million people aged between 18 – 28 living in Australia and organisers said thousands of them applied to be part of BYM.
Mr Metuamate, who submitted an application at the suggestion of a fellow New Zealander living in Australia, was surprised to be shortlisted and interviewed. “I was even more shocked to be told that I was selected. I’m usually good at guessing my fate, but I really didn’t expect to be selected for this”, he said. “I am really grateful and happy to show that Kiwis can also compete with the best here in Australia”.
Organisers selected the brightest young people not only on their academic ability, but based on the attributes of Leadership, Passion, Creativity, Initiative, Intelligence, Charisma, Communication and Perseverance. Mr Metuamate, who is a Freyberg scholar, was recently elected one of two student presidents at the Australian National University. A first for a New Zealander.
The BYM summit will take place from Sunday 4 to Friday 9 July in Sydney.
Short bio of Areti Metuamate:
Aged 25 and of Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Kauwhata, Waikato-Tainui, and Ngai Tahu, Areti was born in Palmerston North and raised in Lake Tekapo, where he still refers as home. He was Head Prefect and Dux of the Maori Catholic boys’ boarding school, Hato Paora College in Feilding, studied at Victoria University, and was awarded the Freyberg scholarship to study at the Australian National University (ANU) where he was recently elected Postgraduate Student President, the first New Zealand to hold that office.
For more information contact: Danny Karatea-Goddard, 021 509 431
Areti Metuamate will also be available for interviews on his Australian mobile +61 4 3109 8200
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