Hello! My name is Milania Lucia Soares da Costa, and I am from Timor-Leste or East Timor. It is an island located between Indonesia and Australia. Fun fact: I was born before my country restored its independence. Therefore, I have grown up alongside my country, so I have experienced and witnessed my country growing as well with development.
One of the experiences I treasure the most in my UWC years was the fact that UWC is a place where people are coming from different backgrounds, cultures, and countries. So, it allows me to explore different ideas and perspectives, which helps to be more open-minded. I have decided to attend Lewis & Clark because it shares a similar environment, which is an inclusive and diverse community with a student body consisting of people from different backgrounds. Moreover, Lewis & Clark has great support towards the International Students Community, and it has a beautiful campus and location which attracted me.
Furthermore, I like Political Science and Sociology and Anthropology because coming from a conservative community, I have experienced and seen many social norms that discriminate and devalued women’s participation in society. Therefore, I think as women it is important to understand how the policy works, and how social patterns that build in the society work, in order to help empower more women and girls’ rights in my community. Besides that I like doing community services, working with young people for a good impact in a local community, watching documentaries about different cultures and education around the world, reading, drawing, farm, cooking, and playing with children.
I have been to Brazil as an ambassador of my country for a Student Exchange Program with Rotary International Club. Before that, I went to Australia for an orientation. Furthermore, I have been to Japan for a science program which is called the Sakura Science Program.
Lastly, I hope to build a friendship connection with people that I will meet in Lewis & Clark, either students, faculty, employees, or the community in general, which can last for a lifetime.