Sink or swim

Swimming is a favourite sport and leisure activity in Australia, and in summer, it’s seen as a basic right to navigate the heat, but as our climate changes and temperatures continue to rise, and inland populations grow, will swimming become an essential survival skill? 

Angelica Ojinnaka-Psillakis is 26 years old and has lived in Blacktown for most of her life. Until last summer, she couldn’t swim. Sink or Swim is a new podcast following her journey learning how to swim as an adult, in the sweltering heat of Western Sydney, where one in ten Australians live. With just five public pools in the Blacktown LGA for over 430,000 people, the ‘blue space’ inequity is stark compared to other parts of Sydney such as Randwick, which has nine pools for fewer than 150,000 people as well as beaches.

Produced by Impact Studios at The University of Technology Sydney, with support from the Paul Ramsay Foundation (PRF), Sink or Swim takes listeners on a deep dive into an experience of living in NSW’s largest LGA and explores critical issues around education, access to swimming and climate change. Recorded over a scorching Western Sydney summer, and one of the worst for drowning in Australia, the podcast delves into the urgency of water safety in a rapidly warming world. 

The podcast is a personal story and powerful investigation into how urban heat, social determinants of health, and cultural diversity intersect in the struggle to stay cool during Australia’s increasingly harsh summers. 

Growing up in Blacktown as the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, Angelica is no stranger to challenges. The youth affairs leader, public speaker and public health researcher has spent her life breaking barriers – but she had never learned to swim. 

“Australia likes to believe it's a nation of swimmers,” says Angelica. “We mostly live near the coast, and our sandy beaches are world-famous. But the reality is, many of us don’t have easy access to a beach or a pool. And even if we do, we don’t always feel safe or welcome in these places.

“Learning to swim was something I’d always avoided, but as the temperatures climbed each summer, I realised it wasn’t just about learning a new skill — it was about survival.” 

Each year, Australia records an average of 288 drowning deaths, with one in four of those victims born overseas. Sink or Swim highlights the cultural and logistical barriers that can prevent people from learning to swim, particularly within migrant communities. 

Sink or Swim is part of a place-based audio storytelling project, Welcome to Blacktown, generously supported by PRF. The project celebrates community-led initiatives that generate positive social change in Blacktown, making accessible individual and community stories as critical evidence that can guide place-based approaches to policy and social change.

PRF CEO Professor Kristy Muir said Angelica’s story was an example of powerful storytelling that illustrated the need for deep community listening. 

“We went to Blacktown to listen to and capture voices on the ground, to hear first hand about the experiences of residents – what they love about the area and the challenges of living there,” she said. 

“Listening to community can reveal gaps which might otherwise go unnoticed. This is one such story revealing a deep divide within this country.” 

Visit Welcome to Blacktown for more information about the project.

Available Now:

Sink or Swim is available to listen to for free on any podcast player, or visit Sink or Swim.