When Jacquelene Tsovolos thinks about identity, she thinks about inheritance, “the stories you’re handed down before you’re old enough to understand.”

It’s simply who she is. What she didn’t expect was that this quiet inheritance would lead to a nomination for the Australia Cyprus Achievement Award, to be presented at the inaugural Australia Thanksgiving Gathering on 26 February 2026 at the Chau Chak Wing Museum in Sydney.

One of the youngest honourees shortlisted for these awards, presented by the Cyprus Community of New South Wales, Tsovolos says she was genuinely surprised.

“When I think of awards, I think of people who have dedicated their whole lives to the community. So it was an honour to be nominated. I see it as a celebration of Cypriot Australian identity and how well our community has maintained it.”

For Tsovolos, identity began at home, in a Greek-speaking household shaped by migration, memory and resilience. Her grandfathers are from Karyes and Galatas in the Peloponnese, one yiayia from Florina, and her Cypriot yiayia from Farmakas, a village outside Nicosia.

Greek was the language of childhood, of sacrifice, of stories, of pastitsio shared around a crowded table.

“I grew up hearing about the struggles of my grandparents… how they came here without knowing the language, without knowing much about Australia,” she says. “Those experiences and values are a big part of who I am. I’m very grateful for that.”

From Cyprus, she inherited something deeper than recipes or dialect.

“Hearing the stories from Cyprus, I learnt how history lives inside families,” she says. “You understand that what happened there still shapes how people feel, how they see the world.”

Finding Cyprus

Though immersed in Greek community life growing up, including serving on the UTS Hellenic Society committee, her conscious turn toward her Cypriot heritage came later.

“I had always grown up more on the Greek side and wanted to explore my Cypriot heritage,” she explains.

A social media post about a NEPOMAK conference in Sydney nudged her forward. She signed up alone.

“I didn’t really know anyone, but I wanted to be involved. And the rest is history,” she says.

At that first conference, the diaspora suddenly felt small. Sitting beside a stranger at lunch, she discovered his grandfather had grown up next door to her yiayia in Farmakas.

“That sense of horio (village) is important,” she says. “We’re not in the horio anymore. So it’s important to create your horio here.”

Today, Tsovolos is Vice President of the Cyprus Community of NSW Youth Group and NSW Representative for the World Organisation for Young Overseas Cypriots (NEPOMAK).

Her focus is simple and urgent: continuation.

“A lot of cultural communities have an ageing population. We want to continue the legacy and memory of Cypriot-Australians into the future,” she says. “Young people are busy with university, work, life, but it’s important to keep traditions and history alive.”

Through social media campaigns, university events and joint Greek-Cypriot celebrations, the youth group is building momentum and widening the circle.

“It’s a celebration of culture. Anyone is welcome,” she says.

Distinct but shared

For Tsovolos, protecting Cypriot identity doesn’t mean distancing from Hellenism, it means honouring specificity.

“While Cyprus shares culture with mainland Greece, it has its own dialect, its own history, its own issues. It’s important to recognise that distinction,” she says.

She has broadened her global perspective by attending NEPOMAK and SEKA summits, including the Melbourne summit bringing together the Federation of Cypriot Communities of Australia and New Zealand, PASEKA and NEPOMAK.

“I’ve realised how many Cypriots there are globally, and how passionate they are about promoting our history and discussing the Cyprus issue,” she explains.

But she approaches that history with care.

“It’s a complex issue. There is still a lot of hurt. Even in Cyprus, younger generations who weren’t alive during the invasion, still feel the impact. It’s nuanced. After all, you can’t hate someone just because of where they were born,” she says.

Finance and community

Outside her volunteer work, Tsovolos works in funds management as an Associate, Portfolio Management Analyst. Her academic record — a 99.65 ATAR, graduating from UTS with a High Distinction average, and completing her Chartered Accounting qualification — is formidable. But she sees numbers as tools, not trophies.

“The understanding of numbers helps in the most unexpected ways,” she says. “When we were interviewing applicants for the Nepomak Discover Cyprus Program, I built an Excel model to score and rank candidates. Those skills translate directly into community work.”

For her, there is no contradiction between corporate life and cultural service. “Diversity is embraced in finance. Greeks and Cypriots are minorities, as are women. My experience is that you can balance a demanding job with cultural involvement.”

Her advice to young women of Cypriot descent considering finance is refreshingly direct: “Just get involved. Things seem bigger and scarier from the outside looking in. It’s a great career if you enjoy working with numbers.”

Building the modern horio

Connection, she believes, is everything.

In Greece, she met the co-founders of Yitonia, a community-focused organisation promoting Greek local businesses and history. The relationship has grown collaborative and enduring.

“Meeting them in Greece has been invaluable,” she says. “We’ve supported each other over the years, going to each other’s events, promoting initiatives across Nepomak and Yitonia social media, sharing advice.”

It all returns to the same idea: you rebuild the village wherever you are.

Looking ahead

The Australia Cyprus Achievement Award is approaching. But Tsovolos is already thinking beyond ceremonies.

“We have a lot to do to build up the Cyprus Youth Group in NSW,” she says. “I want to stay involved, helping with events, social media, ideas that are relevant to young people. Meeting new people. Strengthening those connections.”

She hopes to take part in further NEPOMAK programs, return to Cyprus, and continue strengthening ties between Australia and the homeland that shaped her family’s story.

“I wouldn’t be here without the people who welcomed me into the community,” she reflects. “That’s what I want to continue — making sure the next generation feels that same welcome.”

For Jacquelene Tsovolos, identity isn’t static. It’s built conversation by conversation, event by event, village by village, wherever Cypriots gather and choose to belong.

She invites others to do the same by joining NEPOMAK and helping build the next horio here in Australia.