Culture: The Invisible Architecture of Belonging

Talks on Tuesdays: Real lectures in your favourite venues. 45-minute lecture + Q&A with Huda Cadeki Talks on Tuesdays is a live event series bringing big ideas, real experts, and curious minds together - at your favourite local venues. Think thought-provoking lectures, audience questions, and post-talk mingling over drinks and dinner. This isn’t a uni lecture. It’s a social, intelligent night out.Come alone or with friends, leave with something to talk about. Event Schedule: 6.30pm Arrival & Doors Open 7pm Lecuture Starts 7.45pm Q&A 8pm Talk Concludes 8.30pm Event Closes. *Please arrive close to 6.30pm A La Carte menu and full bar available throughout the night - pay as you go. Your Topic: The myths and miseries of Modern Slavery: Insights from my 30 years at the UN The invisible architecture of belonging: Why can two people walk into the same room and have completely different experiences of belonging? We often think of culture as food, language or tradition, but culture also shapes the invisible rules that influence who feels welcome, who feels understood and how communities are formed. Through stories of migration, identity, the immigrant experience, everyday conversations and human connection, this talk explores how culture quietly shapes our relationships, why some people spend years learning the invisible rules of a new place, and how genuine belonging is built through curiosity, not similarity. Blending personal stories with practical insights, Huda invites audiences to rethink loneliness, inclusion and community, leaving them with simple, tangible ways to create spaces where more people feel seen, known and welcome, and to build stronger bridges across cultures, generations and communities. The longing to belong is universal. What differs from culture to culture is how we build it, express it and invite others into it. Your Speaker: Huda Iman Cadekiwala is a storyteller, community builder and founder of Qaim Collective, a Melbourne-based sustainable fashion label that reimagines textile waste while celebrating cultural heritage. She is also the co-host of the podcast Glad I Asked, where she explores the conversations many people are curious about but rarely have - bringing together personal stories, research and lived experience to challenge assumptions and foster greater understanding. Growing up as a Pakistani-Australian Muslim and later marrying into an Indian family with Hindu and Sikh traditions has given Huda a unique perspective on navigating different cultures, faiths and identities. Experiencing the challenges, misunderstandings and expectations that can arise across cultural and religious boundaries has provided her with lived experience that informs much of her work today, inspiring her to build bridges through curiosity, conversation and shared humanity rather than division. Over a 9-year career in Victorian Government spanning investigations, compliance and stakeholder engagement, Huda developed a deep understanding of human behaviour, trust-building and navigating complex issues across diverse communities. That professional experience continues to shape the way she approaches conversations about culture, identity and belonging. Her work sits at the intersection of culture, belonging and human connection, with a simple belief at its core: the smallest acts of curiosity can change the way people experience the world - and each other.