As part of the SBS Media Mentorship Program at Macquarie University, a practical and dynamic media mentorship program for CALD, Indigenous and low SES students, second year media students produced videos, blogs, podcasts, and social media assets about SSI’s City2Surf fundraiser and the SSI Community Kitchen, which the fundraiser was supporting. The content has been produced into a website.
The students created a website to showcase the stories they collected.
At the program’s recent end of year showcase event held at Macquarie University, SSI General Manager, Public Affairs and Communications Shannon Kliendienst praised the efforts and professionalism of the students, and the outcomes of the project.
“You have done a remarkable job in capturing the myriad stories and perspectives behind both the City2Surf and the Community Kitchen. But beyond these initiatives, you have documented stories that showcase the talents, dreams and backgrounds of newcomer Australians.
“And this is what we set out to do every day at SSI – demonstrate the valuable and diverse contributions individuals are making to society in their new homeland.”
But these stories can only be told with a media that is equipped, open-minded and understanding. There is a pressing need for greater diversity in our newsrooms, and a media that understands that multiculturalism means positively highlighting diverse voices and stories happening in these communities.
Indeed, the SBS Media Mentorship Program is helping to achieve this. With over 70% of graduates currently working in the media, the SBS Media Mentorship is successfully overcoming the barriers to media diversity to help build a more inclusive and harmonious Australian society.
Shannon agrees.
“From our work over this past year with these amazing, talented students, we think we’ll see a shift in the right direction.”
The SBS Media Mentorship Program is an initiative of SBS, NITV, the Ethnic Communities’ Council of NSW (ECC NSW) and Macquarie University.
The project can be viewed here.
Colombo Social has partnered with Settlement Services International (SSI) to provide vital employment opportunities to those from a refugee and asylum seeking background.
New arrivals will play a vital role in preparing delicious Sri Lankan fusion dishes and fruity cocktails. In fact, the talented chef cooking up a storm on Colombo’s opening night was Chandra Ravi, an asylum seeker from Sri Lanka who was recruited through SSI’s Employment Services program.
Colombo Social is also working with SSI’s Ignite small-business start-up program to source from refugee businesses as such Aunty’s Ginger tonic, as part of a commitment to an ethical supply chain.
Colombo Social is the brainchild of Australian-born Sri Lankan Shaun Christie-David and friend in hospitality Peter Jones-Best. The restaurant’s move to recruit and train asylum seekers and refugees was inspired by Christie-David’s experience of feeling like an outsider during his childhood.
“Colombo Social’s whole ethos is one of inclusivity. Growing up as an Australian-born Sri Lankan, I remember being embarrassed by the dahl sandwiches my mum packed in my lunchbox and similar small moments of isolation that made me feel different. Colombo Social is about embracing all backgrounds in a venue that celebrates the community-driven nature of Sri Lankan cuisine,” he said.
SSI CEO, Violet Roumeliotis, who attended the launch believes that Colombo Social is paving the way for the Australian business community to take action to support asylum seekers.
“This is a game-changer – businesses like Colombo Social have the opportunity to change people’s lives while tapping into a plethora of talented, hard-working candidates that are genuinely going to appreciate the opportunity to be part of this team,” Roumeliotis said.
The team has also engaged Chamara Pathiranage, who comes from Sri Lanka and has trained under Siro’s Restaurant Executive chef David Britton, to lead the kitchen. He has planned a menu that celebrates the bold flavours and colours Sri Lankan cuisine with playful nods to western favourites.
‘In-betweener’ dishes include soft shell crab roti tacos with homemade stretchy roti and a punchy mango salsa and traditional meals such as their traditional chicken village curry. The cocktail list is a definite crowd pleaser, feature zesty concoctions that offset the spice-driven dishes including The Invisible Mango Lassi.
Last year SSI’s Employment Services program helped place more than 5,000 refugees like Colombo Social chef Chandra. SSI with hopes more restaurant staff like Chandra will be recruited through the Employment Services program in future.
Guests celebrating at the SSI Mosaic Gala
The Mosaic Gala is a special fundraising event that brings together community organisations individuals and businesses to celebrate what can be achieved when we value differences and empower people to reach their full potential.
This year the Gala raised record funds to support people from a refugee background through SSI’s – Ignite® Small Business Start-ups and Refugee Scholarships. These programs focus on utilising education and employment as pathways to inclusion, independence and success when settling in Australia.
These programs support people like scholarship recipient Rami Suleiman and Hedayat Osyan, who spoke at the gala about his journey to Australia and subsequent success as an entrepreneur.
Hedayat was supported by Ignite® to found a tiling company, Nick Tiling Services, which now trains, employs and supports 25 other people from refugee backgrounds. Earlier this year, he was a speaker at TEDxSydney.
Guests at the Mosaic Gala enjoyed live entertainment and cuisine from various cultures. They also heard from Australian comedian, actor and writer, Anh Do, whose unique life was the focus of an inspiring keynote that began with his family’s journey from war-torn Vietnam in the late 1970s.
Speaking on the night, SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis said the Mosaic Gala was an opportunity to bring together businesses and individuals who share the goal of ensuring all refuges have the opportunity to live rich, fulfilling lives in Australia.
“Refugees come to Australia with hope, ambitions and a hunger to make the most of the opportunities presented to them,” she said.
“Research from UNSW shows that most of the stressful life events for refugee children relate to changing school or home, parental unemployment, marital separation and financial stress. That same research indicates that one of the ways we can minimise this stress is to support children’s education and support their parents to find and retain employment.”
If you couldn’t make the Gala, don’t worry! You can still donate and receive a tax deductible donation by making a pledge contribution to support refugee scholarships and entrepreneurs.
Click here to make a pledge
Thank you to our event sponsors: Buzz Speaker Hire, Exetel, Language Loop, Monash University, Optus, White Lion King and our major prize sponsor: Delta Airlines as well all the many prize sponsors who donated a gift for the auction.
Hassan meets a Kangaroo and volunteers at SSI’s Community Kitchen
“It was a very happy day when our plane touched down in Sydney. I was excited to get started working and building my life again,” he said.
Hassan and his family were forced to flee their home in Mosul, Iraq and relocate to a refugee camp in Jordan after their city was overtaken by hostile forces.
Hassan had been studying in his final year in a degree of pharmacology before his studies were abruptly cut short and his life was turned upside down. Despite his experiences, Hassan has never given up his drive to build the life he deserves and pursue a career he enjoys.
When Hassan arrived in Australia, SSI staff met him at the airport and supported him to become oriented to Australia, link into the community and start realising his goals in areas including English language development, education and employment.
Just three months after arriving in Australia, Hassan’s SSI case manager recommended he apply for an employment program through SSI partner, Allianz Australia.
“On the day of my interview I was really excited. I remember going into the city with my partner. A week later Allianz called me back and said I had the job. It was a great feeling,” said Hassan
Through the program, Hassan completed various placements around Allianz before he and his supervisors identified a suitable full-time role.
Hassan’s role allowed him to develop his English communication skills and business acumen, along with giving him a foot in the door of Australia’s job market – something that is often challenging for new arrivals who lack local work experience and qualifications.
Hassan is still employed with Allianz and has recently moved into its life insurance area. To date, 21 new arrivals like Hassan have been placed in a range of permanent roles at Allianz in areas including accounting and finance, data science, audit and customer service.
SSI staff and delegates at the AWMA awards night
In a ground breaking initiative to promote diversity and equality in the Australian music industry, SSI and AWMA joined forces for the second year running to turn the spotlight on culturally diverse female artists and music practitioners.
As part of the partnership, SSI Arts and Culture supported six female artists and music practitioners from diverse backgrounds to attend the 2019 Australian Women in Music Awards in Brisbane. The two-day event included a series of forums, a keynote address, networking opportunities in addition to the awards ceremony, which featured performances by prominent musicians Kween G, Dizzy Doolan and Kathy Noonan.
One of the female artists selected to attend the AWMA awards was Behiye Suren, a passionate singer and songwriter from Turkish/Arap Alevi background. She said she was thrilled to be selected to attend the event.
“As an artist from western Sydney who performs bilingual music with Middle Eastern influences this was a brilliant opportunity to boost my presence as a diverse voice in Australian music,” she said.
The AWMAs coincided with the completion of Behiye’s ‘To Home Seas’ album project, which provided her with the ideal platform to network and promote her upcoming release.
One of the artists to take centre stage and perform for attendees was Armenian-Lebanese jazz composer and artist Zela Margossian, one of six female artists who had the opportunity to attend AWMA with SSI in 2018.
Ms Margossian said she was honoured to perform at this year’s Australian Women in Music Awards.
“I’m so grateful to have been part of such an important women’s music movement and share the stage with so many of Australia’s finest female artists and musicians.”
SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis was given the honour of presenting the SSI Diversity in Music Award to talented indigenous pop singer and actress Christine Anu.
Violet described SSI’s involvement with the event as a unique partnership that has created a platform for culturally diverse female artists to receive recognition for the talent and creative perspective they bring to the Australian music industry.
This week, I had the remarkable experience of presenting Pema with the SSI Journalism Excellence Award at the Australian Settlement and Migration Awards. The reason this felt so remarkable was because the last time I saw Pema was two years ago when she was speaking at SSI’s Mosaic Gala about her journey to Australia and her disrupted education.
Pema is an alumni of the SSI-Allianz scholarships program, which helps refugees to overcome financial barriers to education.
With support from SSI, Pema has resumed her university education and is putting her skills to good use, reporting on wonderful local initiatives like Water Skills for Life’s swimming program. You can read her award-winning article here.
In a week where newspapers around the country have censored their front pages to protest press freedom, it is more important than ever that we acknowledge and recognise the positive contributions journalists make to our society.
The media plays an important role in shifting public perceptions about migrants, multiculturalism and social inclusion. Transparency and pursuit of the truth are core tenants of journalism, and this is particularly true when reporting on our new and emerging communities.
Media representation and language directly affects public perceptions. This has a trickledown effect to the everyday lives of community members.
We see this in our day-to-day work at SSI, where we support migrant and refugee communities to live rich, independent lives in Australia.
When new arrivals feel welcomed and included, they have a greater sense of belonging and can make an important contribution to their new home.
Journalists like Pema are playing an important role in fostering social inclusion and helping the wider community to understand the benefits migrants and refugees bring to our shores.
I was honoured to present this award to Pema on a night where so many of our colleagues in settlement received well deserved recognition. My heartfelt congratulations particularly go to our colleagues at Access Community Services, part of the SSI group of companies, which received the Settlement Innovation Award for its ‘no wrong door’ approach. You can read more about this here.
SSI employment program participant Tiba Obada captured at TEC.
“The most valuable thing I gained is I feel more confident as a new employee. I developed life skills; ones you need not just at work, but in life too,” Ms Obada said.
Ms Obada decided to participate in TEC after completing work experience at SSI, as she was seeking further professional development to increase her employment opportunities.
Before Ms Obada left her country, she was in her final year of a Diploma of Nursing and had completed three months of work placement in a hospital.
Passionate about pathology, she set forensic science as a career goal and studied a pathology collection in Australia at the same time she was completing her HSC.
Supported by the AMP Foundation, a simulated office learning experience, TEC allows participants to build practical experience and career skills which are transferable to real-life work environments.
While at TEC, Ms Obada gained experience in contacting companies and scheduling pop-up stores, searching for suppliers, producing brochures and social media content, and creating effective consumer research surveys.
“TEC was a new journey for me. I’d never experienced anything like it before,” Ms Obada said.
“As a refugee and newcomer to Australia, the TEC experience was so valuable and interesting.”
TEC has helped in improving Ms Obada’s communication skills and boosting her confidence. She has since found a job in her dream profession in pathology as a blood collector at St George Hospital.
“I will always have the ambition to be in the upper and highest staircase of success.”
Dress for success and their suited maniquine.
Employment is integral in the settlement journey for newly arrived refugees, migrants and people seeking asylum. It provides a valuable pathway to achieving independence. To highlight the opportunities available to new arrivals, SSI partnered with a number of specialist organisations to hold a targeted employment expo.
A young mother from Iraq, Sabha, had been in Australia just two weeks, but said she attended the event to gain knowledge about entering the Australian workforce.
“I would like to find work in the near future when my children are old enough to attend school and it is helpful to get some information about how I could do this and what work I could find,” she said.
The expo took place at SSI’s Community Kitchen – a fortnightly intercultural lunch event bringing together new and established communities. More than 10 specialist organisations participated, including Dress for Success, Navitas, Macquarie Community College, Centrelink, Fighting Chance and Futureability
Before a delicious Persian lunch was served, organisations shared tips and advice for jobseekers. Topics covered included; CV support, understanding worker’s rights and self-care when job seeking.
“Employment provides a valuable pathway to achieving independence and is integral to new arrival’s settlement journey. The Employment Expo was a fantastic opportunity to bring providers together and share accessible information on how individuals can be supported in their search for employment,” said SSI Director Employment Services and Social Enterprise, Kylie van Luyn.
Learn more about Community Kitchen here
Performers from the 2018 Mosaic Gala
I felt it was such an injustice that someone would not have the opportunity to realise their full potential simply because they didn’t speak English or their overseas experience wasn’t recognised here.
These were intelligent, hard-working people who could have contributed greatly to our country. And yet they were languishing in situations where there was an underutilisation of their skills and no hope for a brighter future.
I firmly believe every person should have the opportunity to realise their full potential – whatever those dreams and desires may be. It’s why SSI has made it our mission to help refugees and other individuals achieve independence. Next month, we are hosting our annual Mosaic Gala, and I’d like to invite you to join us to support initiatives that help refugees on the pathway to independence. Click here for more information.
Independence is at the heart of much of the work SSI does. Being independent means you have the strength to survive autonomously – without support from organisations like SSI.
Our vision is to achieve a society where all individuals and families can meaningfully participate socially and economically and, ultimately, reach their full potential.
If we achieve that vision, there will no longer be a need for organisations like SSI. But that future is still some distance away and, in the meantime, we need support to run self-funded initiatives like our refugee educational scholarships program and Ignite Small Business start-ups.
Along with raising funds, the SSI Mosaic Gala increases awareness of the positive contributions refugees make in our community. This is important because it challenges the narrative many of us hear about refugees from our media and political representatives.
The real story of refugees in Australia is the one you see when you walk through our neighbourhoods. You see friendships and wonderful acts of kindness and generosity between people from all walks of life.
It is something that fills my heart and reinforces the value of supporting refugee to live independent lives where they can meaningfully contribute and participate in our communities.
I hope you’ll join us at the Mosaic Gala as we walk towards that future.
Nicole (left) and Juliana (centre) in cultural dress and Kathy (right) at the FECCA Conference 2019.
At the 2019 FECCA Conference, First Nation women Juliana Nkrumah AM and Nicole Laupepa presented their paper ‘Recognising Makarrata through Sankofa’, which proposes the idea of realising makarrata (an Indigenous term for coming together after struggle) through sankofa (a word from the Twi language of Ghana that symbolises reflecting on the past to build a successful future).
Nicole and Juliana highlighted the deep spiritual and cultural connection between indigenous people from countries around the world and how these connections can be harnessed to assist the achievement of healing from cultural trauma and enhanced belonging. They also shared examples of work SSI staff are undertaking to foster this connection between new arrivals and our Indigenous communities.
Nicole said she was impressed that FECCA chose to walk side by side with indigenous Australians and acknowledge the value they present to broader multicultural Australia.
“I feel proud to be an Aboriginal woman that I am part of welcoming and the healing process of newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers coming to our lands.”
The conference saw over 500 delegates from all over Australia come together to share their lived experience and professional and academic knowledge to shape multicultural Australia into the future.
A core focus of the conference was leading the conversation on building an alliance between multicultural Australians and Australia’s First Nations Peoples so that together both communities can be stronger and more successful in achieving their goals.
Eleven SSI staff, including CEO Violet Roumeliotis, presented at the event, sharing their professional knowledge on a number of topics including multicultural youth, enhancing community led solutions and the NSW Settlement partnership.
FECCA is the peak, national body representing Australians from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. FECCA’s role is to advocate and promote issues on behalf of its constituency to government, business and the broader community.