Marselina de Araujo Balamba (Lina Hinton)

 

Lina, born and raised in Aileu, Timor Leste (2 hours south of Dili), studied English for 4 years in Manado, Sulawesi, Indonesia and returned to Timor Leste in 2006 and worked as a translator in health, with ASSERT, (Disability and rehabilitation services) AAI, (Australian Aid International) and with the United Nations, (UN police). She mainly assisted in community policing and medical evacuations from Atauro to Dili. At present Lina is a Women’s representative (voluntary) for Atauro Island working in raising local Atauro womens’ awareness of basic human rights, education, health, and livelihood opportunities. She was also the president of the Atauro Tourism Association (ATKOMA) 

 

Barry Hinton

 

Barry, born in Gladstone and raised in Rockhampton, in Central Queensland, Australia, was a primary school teacher, physical education teacher, and acting Principal at Ubobo and Woorabinda (an Aboriginal community school) for 10 years. He came to Timor-Leste in February 2001 as a PALMS Australia volunteer and volunteered for over  6 years at Dili National University (Teaching English, (ESL)) in Ermera district (community development), and Atauro Island with the local NGO Roman Luan in a capacity building, livelihoods building, eco-tourism project as well as establishing home gardens and introducing permaculture to the local Beloi community. He was the PALMS Australia In-country manager for  Australian volunteers in Timor-Leste from January 2007 until January 2024.

 

 

Barry and Lina have twin boys, Micky and Mardy who now reside in Dili and attend Year 11 at the  Dili International school. They miss their island home terribly and return for school holidays and breaks!

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With Lina’s background in language, assisting in health and community policing, and Barry’s in education and community development through livelihood/ capacity building programs, the Lodge has evolved into a permaculture based, social enterprise and networking  hub, to help deliver livelihoods and links for the Atauro community and to assist in their specific needs.

 

A social enterprise is a revenue generating business with primary social objectives (human and environmental well-being) whose surpluses are reinvested for that purpose in the business or in the community, rather than being driven by the need to deliver profit to external shareholders and owners.

 

Both Lina and Barry have a strong commitment to ethical tourism, community development and mobilisation. Barry has a very healthy hate of marine plastic that washes up on Atauro's beautiful coast-line. Hence the plastic recycle program 'Ekipa Tasi Mos Atauro.'