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Mahdia is originally from Iran, where attending school was all but impossible due to social and financial barriers. Instead, she studied in private and went to an institute to learn English. But that all changed when she came to Australia by boat in 2013 with her mother and brothers.
SSI provided Mahdia and her family with essential support while their application for refugee status was assessed. Best of all, she was enrolled at Holroyd High School, where she caught up on her education with lots of hard work.
“Once I finished high school at Holroyd, I was given a full scholarship to study nursing at Sydney University and now I’m in my second year of nursing, and next year hopefully I will be graduating as a nurse,” she said.
But it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for Mahdia. Because of her visa status, she had to overcome many hurdles in order to continue her education after school.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. You’re working really hard but you don’t know if you’re going to get there or not. You see your friends, normal local students applying for uni. They don’t have to go through all the things you’re going through,” she said.
Mahdia is now working part-time as a child care educator. After she graduates, she plans to do a one-year graduate program to finalise her qualification. In future, she hopes to continue her education by studying for a master’s degree.
“I wish people would judge refugees from a different perspective. You might have not liked the way we came to Australia but we came here for safety, better education and better life. These all sound so cliché but you wouldn’t truly understand it unless you actually experienced not having those in your life,” she said.
“I wish people would understand that refugee is just a label and underneath it all we are all humans, we are all equal, and refugees have dreams and hopes for a better future like everyone else does.”
To find out how you can support people like Mahdia to achieve their full potential, click here.
Fast forward to September this year and Elaha was on the stage at the inaugural SSI Mosaic Gala talking about the important role education has played in her life.
After completing a university degree in India, Elaha had been halfway through her master’s degree when she was granted a humanitarian visa, giving her a permanent home in Australia. With the help of SSI, she is now in the final year of her degree and looking forward to graduating next year.
Over a night of entertainment, food and music, the SSI Mosaic Gala raised funds for SSI programs that help people like Elaha to overcome the barriers to achieving their full potential in the areas of education and employment.
Guests enjoyed a degustation menu featuring cuisines from around the world while learning about the important work SSI does to support refugees.
Master of ceremonies, Sunil Badami, managed a full program of entertainment, including traditional dance and musical performances, a speech from an entrepreneur supported by SSI and a keynote presentation by Magda Szubanski.
SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis said Elaha’s story showed the incredible impact everyday Australians can make in the lives of refugees.
“Initiatives such as educational scholarships or our Ignite Small Business Start-ups initiative put refugees on a level playing field with those of us who have been lucky enough to grow up in a country that is free from war and persecution,” she said.
“Thanks to the incredible efforts of the volunteers, staff, supporters and donors who contributed to the SSI Mosaic Gala, we can support more people like Elaha to live independent, fulfilling lives, where there are no barriers to achieving their full potential.”
Special thanks go to Verve Portraits, Humble Creatives, Blue Water Sailing, Amy Basnett Art, Pan Macmillan Australia, Turtle Beach Resort, Nikon, Carla Zampatti, Naomi Hamilton Photography, CKT Family Trust, The Star, Happy Buddha Retreat, BIG4 Holiday Parks, Jenolan Caves, World Apartments, Mineralism, Latin Dance Australia, Bluegums Cabins, Taronga Zoo, Belvoir, and Sydney Theatre Co.
*Elaha’s name has been changed for privacy reasons.
Connective Collective is a joint initiative between SSI and White Pages Australia that comprises a pilot program and welcome pack designed to help migrants and refugees to find the services and businesses they need to build their new lives.
Designed by White Pages Australia in consultation with SSI, the packs include flashcards to help new arrivals learn English and a directory introducing the small businesses that have signed up as Connective Collective members, including those with bilingual employees.
Connective Collective was launched in September by the Federal Minister for Small Business, Michael McCormack, at an event supported by Liverpool City Council Australia and Western Sydney MRC.
Addressing the event, SSI General Manager Peter Zographakis said building a sense of belonging in Australia was just as critical to successful settlement as finding housing or enrolling in school.
“The migrant and refugee journey necessarily disrupts established social networks and attachment to place. For those from refugee backgrounds, any sense of belonging comes under threat, affecting connection to family, peers, local community and country of origin,” he said.
“This is why SSI is so pleased to be partnering with White Pages in the Connective Collective pilot in Liverpool, helping new migrants find the services and businesses they need, to make connections, to feel at home.
“That can mean being able to find the fruit and vegetables required for meals they enjoy, being confident there is someone who understands their problems when they visit the doctor, or having a receptive ear while getting their hair cut.”
Mr Zographakis said rebuilding this sense of belonging also had benefits for the wider Australian community as it contributed to community cohesion, economic outcomes and purposeful multiculturalism.
SSI will distribute welcome packs to new arrivals in the Liverpool area in the coming months. To find out more about Connective Collective, click here or watch this video:
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It’s heartbreaking to see images of children strapped to their mothers’ chests, fathers carrying on their backs everything they own, and to hear of the arduous journeys individuals and families have undergone to reach safety.
While details vary about the exact situation in Myanmar, what we do know is that more than 480,000 Rohingya have been forced to flee to Bangladesh since August, joining hundreds of thousands of Rohingya already crowded into refugee camps in the neighbouring country.
The Rohingya are a stateless Muslim minority who are widely held to be one of the world’s most persecuted minorities. We count among the SSI community many warm, hardworking people from Rohingya background who have come to Australia to start lives that are free from war and persecution.
One such young woman is 14-year-old Asma, whose touching poem was recently shared in NSW Parliament by Senator Lee Rhiannon:
Seeking the future we have lost
The place where we all used to share our dreams
The place where we truly knew ourselves
The place where we go when we are hurt or sad
The place where our parents, grandparents and their ancestors grew up in
The place where we, the Rohingya Muslim minority have been living on for centuries
All we want is freedom.
I would encourage you to read Asma’s full statement.
For the past few years, the humanitarian crisis in the Middle East has gripped our attention and led to huge support for refugees fleeing the conflict in Syria and Iraq.
Now, with our own region in the midst of a refugee crisis, we have a responsibility to find a way to help. This might be by making a personal donation to frontline organisations such as UNHCR or running a fundraiser, like SSI staff did last month.
Over 80 staff members from teams across Sydney attended a lunch event in our Bankstown office where they raised $1,200 for the UNHCR Rohingya appeal. The money will go towards tents, food, sleeping mats, tools, and hygiene and other essential items.
You could also volunteer your time to support Rohingya people who are living in Australia — many of whom are new to our shores and have family and loved ones affected by the situation in Myanmar. You can support community organisations such as the Burmese Rohingya Community in Australia or volunteer with organisations that work with refugees and people seeking asylum.
Volunteers play a critical role in helping new arrivals to build a sense of community. They can be people’s neighbours, the fellow mum at the playgroup or the smiling face at the community garden, when we who work in funded settlement services cannot.
If you’re unable to support offshore efforts, I would encourage you to reach out to our Rohingya neighbours in Australia and offer your support. It’s these acts of welcome that help new community members to find their sense of belonging and build a new life in Australia.
Violet Roumeliotis
SSI CEO
Mr Ikwu was CEO of a large public company in his homeland at the time of his admission to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and within a short period of time, became extremely ill. The severe virus attacked his bones and as a result, he had both his legs and hands amputated, followed by losing bone mass in his nose.
Mr Ikwu’s wife was only able to join him from Nigeria 12 months after he fell detrimentally ill. He currently lives in Beecroft in a unit that specifically caters to people living with disability, which is supported by Uniting.
“When I first met him, Mr Ikwu and his wife were very distressed and faced a lot of problems, including isolation, financial difficulties and a lack of self-confidence,” SSI Ability Linker Nasrin Azizi said.
Meeting Nasrin proved to be a turning point in Mr Ikwu’s life, as she has referred him to many services and as a result, he now holds a position working with the Beecroft Rotary Club sharing his life experiences and making formal presentations.
Mr Ikwu has since been a guest speaker (live on air), with Linker Nasrin on HHH Hornsby local radio and was also a guest speaker during Refugee Week around the Hornsby, Ku Ring Gai and Hill Shire councils.
“Mr Ikwu and his wife now enjoy life; they feel very happy and confident. They have obtained their permanent residencies and are looking forward to becoming Australian and receiving their Australian citizenships.” Linker Nasrin said.
Despite the initial setbacks due to visa constraints and from organisations refusing to provide support to Mr Ikwu, Linker Nasrin’s strong determination was successful in finding an organisation providing care and both, social and financial support for Mr Ikwu and his family.
As a result of actions taken by Ability Links Linker, Nasrin Azizi, Mr Ikwu is now able to receive free domestic assistance and support. Social support activities include leisure outings with family, such as shopping and community gatherings. Much of this generosity is provided by the Baptist Church of Gordon community.
Mr Ikwu and his wife have entered a phase of relief and positivity and have expressed their sincere and eternal gratitude to their Ability Linker, Nasrin, who has provided them with not only a professional service, but service with the utmost care.
“Mr Ikwu is very pleased and grateful, for the support that he has received from Ability Links and the wider community,” Linker Nasrin said.
One of the initial groups of people to approach Ignite when it was established in 2013, the Rajabali sisters have experienced ups and down throughout their entrepreneurial journey, but their perseverance has paid off.
“Ignite has encouraged us all along and motivated us to pursue our dream,” said Ava Rajabali.
The sisters came to Australia seeking refuge from Iran in 2013 and were very keen to support themselves from the moment they arrived.
“Our mother was a hairdresser and we had a lot of ladies coming to the house to get ready for weddings and parties. From a young age I pretended to also be a hairdresser and helped do people’s hair,” said Marjan Rajabali.
Although she studied architecture at university, Marjan realised she didn’t want to work in a male-dominated field.
“The situation for women in Iran is very different to Australia, and women are not treated with respect.”
“I decided it would be too difficult to fight the situation so I helped my mum open a salon and we worked there together,” she said.
Mojgan Rajabali said they were looking forward to continuing this family tradition in their new home country.
“We would like to expand our customer base and of course our goal is to have a busy and successful salon,” said Mojgan.
Ignite Program Coordinator Dina Petrakis said she felt particularly proud of the Rajabali sisters.
“The Ignite initiative has shared a similar journey with the Rajabali sisters of growth and development over the last three years, so it is wonderful to see our first recruits so happy and flourishing in the end.”
The Ignite Small Business Start-ups initiative facilitates business creation for people from refugee backgrounds who are keen to establish a small business or expand an existing one. For more information about Ignite and on how to join the Resource Team, please contact ignite@ssi.org.au
Connecting our community: Stories of courage, strength and determination compiles the personal stories of people who have been supported by the ALNSW program, which works with people with disability, their family and carers to live the life they want as valued and equal members of their community.
The stories capture the voice and journey of each storyteller with the aim of motivating and encouraging social change, said Stephen O’Neill, the COO of SSI, which delivers ALNSW in partnership with Uniting and St Vincent de Paul.
“This storybook aims to highlight the valuable contribution people with disability make, and illustrate the reciprocal benefit that inclusion has for individuals and communities,” Mr O’Neill said.
“SSI has been delivering the ALNSW program since 2014, contributing to a significant shift in attitudes towards inclusion of people with disabilities, particularly in culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities.”
Many Ability Linkers with SSI are bilingual and bicultural, making it easier for people of all backgrounds to feel supported to achieve their goals.
“The NSW government is focused on creating inclusive communities for people with disability,” Minister for Disability Services and Multiculturalism, Ray Williams said.
“This is an inspiring book that documents the experiences of people with disability, their carers and family as they overcome challenges and barriers to inclusion. It demonstrates what is possible when we provide everyone with opportunities and are prepared to focus on an individual’s abilities.”
“Congratulations to the ‘Linkers’ and the team at SSI for assisting people to tell their stories of inclusion.”
ALNSW Ambassador Jubran Eesee is one of the participants who shared their story of personal achievement and success in this storybook.
Mr Eesee, who lives with a disability, arrived in Australia in 2015 as refugee. Despite feeling overwhelmed with his new situation at the beginning, he began to work with his SSI Ability Linker to achieve small steps, which lead to a significant improvement that gradually filled his new life in Australia with hope.
“With the support of ALNSW, I gained a solid knowledge of how disability services work here. My Linker helped me apply for the NDIS and I’ve already been granted my package, which has allowed me to receive the benefits and support services that I need,” Mr Eesee said.
“In the recent months I have also worked with my Linker to obtain a driver’s licence, which had always been my dream. Besides this, I have also enrolled into TAFE to improve my English as a first step to pursue further studies and find employment.”
Mr Eesee also said he is currently working with his SSI Linker towards becoming an Australian Citizen — the ultimate goal he established when he started working with ALNSW.
You can read the storybook Connecting our community: Stories of courage, strength and determination on the ALNSW webpage (accessible version available).
To know more about the project, watch the Behind the Scenes video below:
Food for Thought is a food truck that has been custom built to provide refugee job seekers with hands on practical training ground for career pathways into food, commercial cookery, hospitality and retail.
“The biggest challenge for refugees to gain work is the lack of local work experience and referees” said CEO Violet Roumeliotis
“We want to harness people’s passion for food and culture and provide a safe and supportive training ground for refugees to build their skills, confidence and gain valuable work experience so they are job ready and familiar with the expectations of working in an Australian environment.”
Food for Thought is the newest addition to SSI’s social enterprise portfolio which includes;
• The Staples Bag, which provides affordable groceries in a supermarket environment to build skills in retail, warehousing, distribution and packaging, marketing and sales;
• The Experience Centre, which simulates an office environment for the development of professional skills in a fast-paced business-like environment. Through Industry mentors and customised training offers pathways in HR, marketing, finance, events, administration, engineering, architecture, and planning;
• Humble Creatives is a handmade scented candles enterprise, using 100% Australian soy wax. Participants acquire skills to work in a commercial production and retail environment. It also has an online sales platform increasing digital literacy and tech sales skills; and
• Cater Connect, an initiative that provides work experience in a new, large commercial kitchen premises at Granville preparing fresh and frozen meals, daily lunch preparation and catering to SSI and affiliates.
Already SSI has supported over 1500 people who have gained invaluable work experience and on the job training through SSI’s innovative range of simulated learning environments over the last 12 months.
Food for Thought: Eat, Share, Change offers more than just career pathways to build skills, confidence and local industry knowledge but it presents a unique sensory experience that highlights the cuisine, culture and people of diverse countries.
“The food truck provides a portable platform to showcase and demonstrate the skills, capabilities and employability of refugees and migrants, across the state directly to potential employers and businesses and will help build social cohesion by celebrating our diversity,” Ms Roumeliotis said.
The food truck will start by featuring cuisines from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, India, Armenia, Palestine, Pakistan, Burma, Tibet, and Sri Lanka.
“SSI’s innovative approach to increasing the employability of refugees in Sydney will help them use their professional or trade skills and qualifications and meet skill shortages in areas such as commercial cookery.”
“The Federal government’s recent investment in the Career Pathways Pilot in Sydney and 5 other sites across Australia, recognises that new arrivals represent an untapped economic potential to in the Australian labour market,” Minister Seselja said.
For more of the action from the Food for thought launch event, check out our Facebook gallery.
The Cultural Shift conference was a two-day symposium organised by SSI that brought together experts, prominent Australians, practitioners and community members to explore and discuss new ways of working together and effective approaches to supporting migrant and refugee families through settlement.
This year’s focus, “From Settlement to Belonging”, provided a platform to hear about housing initiatives aimed at facilitating settlement. They included those delivered by SSI Housing and by community organisations such as the Northern Beaches Refugee Initiative (NBRI), Habitat for Humanity and the FACS service Link2home.
“Today less than 5 per cent of the available accommodation in NSW would be considered affordable by accepted standards, which makes leading a stable and secure life very hard for some people in our communities, including refugees and people seeking asylum, but also many others,” SSI Program Manager, Housing Services Division, Ravi Emmanuel said.
SSI Housing’s EHA began as a project to meet the high demand for accommodation linked to the arrival of maritime entrants who would find themselves at risk of homelessness once in Australia, Mr Emmanuel said.
However, the program has evolved to offer a broader response to the lack of affordable housing in NSW and it currently provides accessible and fully furnished crisis accommodation for anyone in the community who might need it.
SSI Housing also presented the Modular Housing Development, an exclusive and innovative project that offers the benefits of having a solid house without the large investment associated in terms of time and funds.
“The Modular Housing Development is a great investment opportunity for anyone looking at participating in an ethical project, which also has a quick return and guaranteed tenants once it’s completed,” SSI Program Manager, Housing Services, Charles Rich said.
“It is just constructed within a matter of weeks from prefabricated materials and delivered flat packed, while maintaining all industry quality standards. But, most importantly, it can provide an affordable home for many families in need.”
SSI Housing also provides property and tenancy management services for landlords looking for a social return as well as financial benefits for their investment.
NBRI Chair the Rev. Michael Aitken spoke about a notable housing initiative being implemented since 2015 in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. It had seen nine families of refugee background successfully settled in properties belonging to local families in the first 12 months after arriving in Australia.
“After the Government’s announcement to increase Australia’s humanitarian intake by an additional 12,000 permanent places for Syrian and Iraqi refugees, we thought we had to do something to help and we put a call out in our community,” Mr Aitken said.
“We’re Australian and we believe in giving everyone a fair go, which means providing help when they start afresh in a new country.
“That set the wheels in motion and soon we had a response from some community members who were interested in helping. We made contact with SSI, which was supporting some families who could benefit from this project.”
The NBRI took off and slowly more families joined the initiative, providing not only properties and granny flats to rent below market prices, but also assisting the new arrivals in areas such as improving their English skills, making meaningful connections in the community, driving lessons or finding employment contacts.
“Besides the great results of having nine refugee families settled in the area, the NBRI has been proven to work as it has integrated the local community in the project and it is sustainable,” Mr Aitken said.
The housing initiatives session concluded with a presentation by Habitat for Humanity NSW about providing opportunities for refugees in rural communities, and one by Link2home Service Delivery Manager Graham Moore, who gave an overview about a loan pre-approval initiative offered by FACS for people of refugee background.