Bic Walker, a native of Vietnam, fled her war-torn homeland in 1979 at the age of four. Her journey as a refugee provided inspiration for her first publication, “A Safe Place to Live,” a poignant children’s narrative illustrating her family’s escape aboard a small boat. Their perilous voyage, fraught with encounters with pirates and drifting without fuel, culminated in their rescue by a Canadian oil tanker. Six months later, they found refuge in Australia.

Raised in the multicultural milieu of Melbourne’s Fitzroy Housing Commission flats during the 1980s, Bic was exposed to a diverse array of cultures. Pressured to adopt an anglicized name by Catholic nuns, it was not until her graduation from university as an architect and subsequent relocation to Sydney that she reclaimed her birth name. Along her journey, Bic has contributed as a lecturer at Melbourne and Sydney universities, authored five books, and established and managed three businesses spanning technology, art, and fashion.

In collaboration with her daughter Indi, Bic co-founded Dibo Bodi, a sustainable fashion enterprise, amid the Covid lockdown in 2020. The venture rapidly gained prominence on social media, and established a global following. Throughout this trajectory, Bic and Indi have navigated both the positive and negative ramifications of social media, particularly as it pertains to a teenage entrepreneur managing a following of half a million.

Bic is an active public speaker, addressing critical themes such as racism, human rights, migration, cultural diversity, entrepreneurship, and social media marketing. Her advocacy extends to empowering young creatives to break through the “glass ceiling,” encouraging them to promote their ideas even before feeling entirely prepared and to challenge stereotypes and preconceptions about unfamiliar cultures.