Meet our graduates: Christina Joy Aga – second generation Crawford School scholar
Christina Joy Aga is an environmental manager from picturesque Pango village on Efate Island, Vanuatu. Growing up in a tropical island nation, Christina’s love for the environment was nurtured from a young age. “As a kid, I would climb trees, go swimming nearly every day, collect rocks, and go camping”, she recalls.
Christina’s childhood curiosity about the natural world evolved into an academic interest in the environment while at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji, where she studied a bachelor’s degree in environmental science.
Despite initial challenges securing a job in her chosen field upon returning home to Vanuatu from Fiji after her studies, she eventually found her professional calling with a role at Vanuatu’s Department of Water Resources.
“Growing up in an urban area, I took access to tap water for granted, but this job was a game changer. Connecting with communities and understanding their issues around access to water deepened my passion”, she shares.
Working in environmental science in a male-dominated culture pushed Christina to hone her skills and knowledge through further study—and become a role model for other Ni-Vanuatu women.
Taking her education further with a higher degree at the Crawford School of Public Policy was an easy choice for Christina; her mother is a Crawford alumna. “I have always looked up to her role and her influence on my life”, she explains.
This family connection, together with Crawford’s global reputation for expertise in public policy and environmental issues, prompted Christina to choose to study a Master of Environmental Management and Development degree at Crawford.
While at ANU, she pursued a wide range of academic interests. She found herself particularly drawn to the interplay between water resource management, social impacts, and governance.
Her professional experience taught her that managing water resources in a Pacific Island country requires “effective community participation through both modern and traditional knowledge approaches, as well as equitable policies”.
Christina found a supportive and intellectually stimulating environment while at the Crawford School.
Her experience was enriched by the vibrant student community, who provided unique perspectives and fostered a collaborative spirit.
“I was impressed by the different backgrounds of students that I had the opportunity to interact with”, she recalls.
She says she found the courses at Crawford “both challenging and stimulating”, and they pushed her to develop her critical thinking skills.
Christina describes how she has incorporated what she has learned into her professional life: “I enjoyed how the courses were designed to address real-world problems and apply relevant theoretical frameworks”.
“Balancing theoretical and practical aspects is crucial for the management and development of water resources” by policymakers so that they can better appreciate the impacts of their policy decisions on communities and livelihoods, she says.
Christina’s research subjects were a particular highlight of her Crawford studies. Under the guidance of Associate Professor Siobhan McDonnell, she returned home to Vanuatu to run a research project that explored vulnerability to flood hazards in a community on Espiritu Santo Island.
She says she valued McDonnell’s practical knowledge gained working in the Pacific and “her dedication to telling the story accurately from the perspective of Indigenous and local people”.
She says her research project gave her “hands-on experience” that deepened her understanding of the issues and provided insights she can use in her career.
With her higher degree under her belt, she says she is better equipped now “to critically analyse policy issues and contribute meaningfully to them”.
After graduating, Christina plans to return to her former job with Vanuatu’s Department of Water Resources.
Beyond that though, she says her Crawford degree has also given her a newfound confidence to pursue other career options in the wider Pacific region: “I will see where that takes me, but I am also open to other opportunities”.
For prospective students considering studying at the Crawford School, Christina advises to “be open to challenges and embrace them as opportunities to grow and expand your understanding—you’ll surprise yourself with what you can achieve”.
“You'll benefit immensely from interacting with professionals and professors in their fields, as well as experienced peers who can offer new and nuanced ways of thinking and addressing complex societal issues".
"Dive in with enthusiasm and an open mind, and you'll find the experience incredibly rewarding”, she recommends.