About Abdi
ABDI ADEN – a work in progress
I was forced to flee my home in Mogadishu due to Somalia's shattering civil war. Separated from my family, I spent the next years doing what I could do to survive in Romania before arriving in Melbourne alone.
At this time I was just a young boy of around 16yrs old. I had no
family and found it difficult without any support from family and friends.
Although my connection with the Australian system was dysjointed at the time I knew my link was to get involved. After struggling my way through English language studies and secondary school I pushed myself further to be more engaged and give back to the country that had supported me by following the career path of Community Development at a tertiary level.
I now have been working with young people over the last 14 years as a youth worker. This gives me the chance to give to the community by advocating for the rights of people who are from a disadvantaged background.
I participated on the award winning documentary called ‘Go Back To Where You Came From' and 'Insight' on SBS and have appeared in many newspaper articles with the goal to empower people. Life has thrown many hurdles in my path and I have chosen to see this as stepping stones towards the goals I hope to achieve. I now speak at many schools, workplaces, community groups. I hope to inspire and motivate and truely believe that we can all triumph over adversity.
A highlight of my career has been being acknowledged with the 2007 Victorian Refugee Recognition Awars, and this year as the Refugee Council and Red Cross Ambassador.
I am very proud to release my memoir in May 2015 'Shining - The Story Of A Lucky Man'
Abdi