Diversity Training
SSI Diversity Training is committed to a diverse and inclusive society where everyone is valued and can meaningfully participate and meet their potential.
We provide learning experiences that transform how people respond to diversity in ways that are thought-provoking, inspire curiosity, and build confidence to engage more effectively with cultural diversity.
We support non-government, government and corporate sectors to meet their inclusion goals. We are grounded in SSI’s 20 years+ experience as a leading provider of services to multicultural communities.
The power of diversity
We live in a vibrant multicultural community, with one in four Australians born overseas. Harnessing the benefits of diversity can only occur through developing a culturally responsive and inclusive workplace and workforce.
Through inclusion you will:
- Contribute to a just society
- Recruit and retain high performing staff from diverse backgrounds
- Nurture innovative solutions as a result of diverse perspectives
- Access a diverse client base
- Enhance service delivery
- Make diversity a competitive advantage
- Achieve diversity goals and benchmarks
What we offer
SSI Diversity Training is grounded in our experience as a leading provider of services to culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
Training options:
- Face to face and online interactive workshops
- Customised training
- Speakers promoting lived experience voices
- Funded training
- Provide free 2 day Multicultural DV-alert workshops in partnership with Lifeline
Why choose us?
- We live and breathe diversity with a workforce that speaks over 100 languages
- We know how to harness diversity because in any given year, SSI delivers culturally responsive services to more than 30,000 people from a variety of cultural and social backgrounds
- All of our trainers are experienced and have lived experience working in culturally diverse workplaces.
- We can tailor training to fit your needs and assist you to meet your social procurement goals
- We are a social purpose training provider and all profits support SSI’s self-funded initiatives which benefit newcomers and other Australians to achieve their full potential.
Meet our facilitators
Our facilitators are an experienced, passionate team that led 476 workshops and engaged 7,325 participants across Australia and Asia Pacific in the last two years. All of our trainers have lived experience working in culturally diverse workplaces and are skilled in the design and delivery of transformative learning experiences that are culturally responsive and trauma-informed.
Janet Irvine (she/her/hers)
Manager, SSI Diversity Training
Janet has over 30 years of experience working within settlement and child safety sectors as a psychologist, caseworker, advocate and facilitator of adult education. Janet is passionate about creating learning spaces where people can engage with respectful curiosity and find ways to create a world where everyone feels valued and can find a place to belong.
Janet enjoys working with a diverse range of organisations to understand their needs and deliver learning solutions that support more culturally responsive and trauma informed workplaces and services.
Janet grew up on Wiradjuri land, lives on Gadigal land and acknowledges First Nations sovereignty and the custodianship of elders past and present.
Lilyana Theodossiou (she/her/hers)
Training Consultant, SSI Diversity Training
Lilyana has extensive experience in the community sector working with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds across a variety of roles such as case management, education and managing community-led projects. Her experience in education includes coordinating SSI Diversity Training’s national project, CultureReady, which supported disability providers develop more culturally responsive services.
Lilyana currently works with corporates, government and NGOs to tailor learning solutions that build and empower culturally responsive workforces. Lilyana is passionate about supporting organisations to harvest the potential of diversity through inclusion and fully understand the value and strength that lies in diversity.
Mohsen Joyan (he/him/his)
Training Consultant, SSI Diversity Training
Mohsen holds Executive MBA from UTS and nearly 20 years of experience in IT & Telecommunications as well as managing his own business delivering technical projects to national companies. Mohsen began his training career as a teacher at TAFE alongside coaching refugees on employability skills through his business. At SSI, Mohsen designs and facilitates learning programs to senior leadership about diversity, equity and inclusion.
Mohsen has lived experience of what diversity, equity and inclusion mean in today’s workplace, both at personal and professional level, and the tangible benefits of progress on these fronts. Mohsen is a strong believer in changing the world for the better through awareness and education.
Charlene Zimmatore (she/her)
Training Consultant, SSI Diversity Training
Charlene has over 20 years of experience in community education in local government, inclusive education in schools, and QA/R&D for private multinational organisations. Using her stakeholder relationship and workshop facilitation skills, she has worked with corporate organisations, government bodies and private businesses to break down barriers for marginalised groups and promote diversity and inclusion.
Charlene is passionate about life-long learning, social justice, community connectedness and inclusion. She values her role as one of SSI’s Diversity Training Consultants as it allows her to make a positive difference within the community, one conversation at a time.
Anamaine Asinas (she/her)
Training Coordinator, SSI Diversity Training
As the Training Coordinator for SSI Diversity Training, Anamaine designs and produces creative content for workshops and e-learning modules on culturally responsive practice. Anamaine also co-facilitates training on gender and sexual diversity inclusive practice.
Prior to her role at SSI, she has worked in the community sector for a number of years in the Philippines, particularly on women’s rights advocacy, education and research. As a Filipina migrant-settler in Australia, she understands the inequalities and challenges faced by migrants and culturally diverse communities. Anamaine is passionate about the role of education and training in social justice, equity and inclusion.
Workshops available
SSI Diversity Training has a number of workshops that can be delivered face to face or online. The workshop descriptions are indicative of the topics and content we cover. All workshops can be customised to your organisational needs in terms of time and content.
People from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds experience multiple barriers when accessing services. Culturally responsive practice training is a reflective process that will help participants gain an insight into their own culture, behaviors and organisational practices to make their services more accessible and avoid creating service-related barriers.
This workshop will build participant's capability to be more responsive and confident when working with culturally diverse individuals and families. It will assist participants to communicate effectively, build trust and provide quality services to CALD service users.
Content includes:
- Defining diversity and inclusion
- A framework for culturally responsive practice
- Unpacking ‘culture’ and finding the common ground to work collaboratively
- Managing unconscious bias
- Intersectionality and addressing disadvantage
- Impact of migration and exile on individuals
- Trauma-informed service delivery
- Communication skills for effective cultural understanding
Target audience: Corporate, Government and non-government service providers
People from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds experience multiple barriers when accessing services. Culturally responsive practice training is a reflective process that will help participants gain an insight into their own culture, behaviors and organisational practices to make their services more accessible and avoid creating service-related barriers.
This workshop will build participant's capability to be more responsive and confident when working with culturally diverse individuals and families. It will assist participants to communicate effectively, build trust and provide quality services to CALD service users.
Content includes:
- Defining diversity and inclusion
- A framework for culturally responsive practice
- Unpacking ‘culture’ and finding the common ground to work collaboratively
- Managing unconscious bias
- Intersectionality and addressing disadvantage
- Impact of migration and exile on individuals
- Trauma-informed service delivery
- Communication skills for effective cultural understanding
Target audience: Corporate, Government and non-government service providers
A key reason why Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities do not access services at the same rate as the broader population is that they are often not aware of the services that exist or what their entitlements are. Service providers therefore cannot rely on people from culturally diverse backgrounds walking through the door, but instead need to have targeted strategies in order to engage and build relationships with CALD communities.
This workshop will look at strategies for capacity building with a particular focus on enablers to enhance service accessibility and minimise barriers experienced by CALD individuals and families.
Content includes:
- Identifying the cultural diversity in your service catchment area
- Common barriers to engaging CALD communities
- Effective strategies to improve access and use of services for CALD communities
- Understanding the available assets, resources and access points to better connect with and support culturally diverse communities
Target audience: Frontline workers, team leaders and managers who are charged with engaging multicultural communities
This workshop will assist participants to utilise the skills of a professional interpreter in order to effectively engage and communicate with linguistically diverse communities and create more culturally responsive and inclusive workplaces.
Content includes:
- Benefits of using a professional interpreter
- Assessing when and in what situations to use a professional interpreter
- Tips for using an interpreter
- Practice implications when working with children and when using Auslan interpreters
- Impact that refugee experience and trauma may have on a person in an interpreting situation
Target audience: People delivering services to linguistically diverse communities
It is well-documented that a diverse workforce brings multiple benefits. Having a culturally diverse workforce attracts specific skills, knowledge and new perspectives, builds connection and trust with communities, and draws service users from culturally diverse backgrounds.
To attract and retain culturally diverse workers, organisations need to look beyond the traditional recruitment channels and consciously adopt targeted and flexible approaches as well as build supportive and inclusive workplaces.
Content includes:
- Strengths and benefits of cultural diversity in the workplace
- Barriers faced by culturally diverse people when applying for work
- Recruiting purposefully by considering your business needs, the skills and strengths you want to attract, and the needs of culturally diverse communities
- Recruitment strategies to attract culturally diverse workers
- Identify practices to support and retain culturally diverse workers
Target audience: Talent acquisition and recruitment professions, hiring managers and people participating in recruitment processes
While there is limited data on the prevalence of trauma in Australia, 2 studies suggest that 57–75% of Australians will experience a potentially traumatic event at some point in their lives (Mills et al. 2011; Rosenman 2002). As service providers working with people, particularly those who have experienced vulnerabilities, we need to consider how trauma may impact how people experience the world.
This workshop will assist non-clinical workers to respond to people in a trauma-informed way, minimising retraumatising people and providing services that support recovery.
Content includes:
- Defining trauma, its causes and impacts
- Recognise trauma reactions and the possible impact on interactions
- Incorporate strategies specific to your work context
Target audience: Service providers working with communities who have experienced vulnerabilities
People from CALD backgrounds experience multiple barriers when accessing disability services. Culturally responsive practice training is a reflective process which will help participants gain an insight into their own culture, behaviours and organisational practices to make their services more accessible and avoid creating service related barriers.
This workshop will build participants capability to be more responsive and confident when working with culturally diverse individuals and families. It will help participants gain a better understanding of how other people’s culture informs their world view and therefore their understanding of disability and the service system. It will assist participants to communicate effectively, build trust and provide quality services to CALD service users.
Content includes:
- Unpacking ‘culture’ and finding the common ground to work collaboratively
- Intersection of living with a disability and coming from a culturally and linguistically diverse background
- Recognising different explanatory models
- Incorporating person centred principles and culturally responsive practice
Target audience: Government and non-government organisations providing services to people living with disability, their families and carers
This workshop is an introduction to the migration and exile experience and introduces participants to the benefits and potential of recruiting people from a refugee background to their workforce.
Content includes:
- Key definitions of migrant, refugee and asylum seeker
- Context of the Australian Humanitarian Program
- Experience of exile and refugee flight
- Benefits of recruiting staff from a refugee background
- Engagement and inclusion of staff from refugee backgrounds
Target audience: Corporates, government and non-government who are recruiting people from a humanitarian background
This workshop assists those leading and working in culturally diverse teams and service provision who are wanting to build their capacity to work more effectively with refugees and asylum seekers.
Content includes:
- Defining diversity and inclusion
- A framework for culturally responsive practice
- Unpacking ‘culture’ and finding the common ground to work collaboratively
- Managing unconscious bias
- Intersectionality and disadvantage
- Experience of migration, seeking asylum and exile
- Trauma-informed service delivery
Target Audience: Corporates, government and non-government who are recruiting or providing services to people from a refugee background
This workshop is an introduction to the migration and exile experience and introduces participants to the benefits and potential of recruiting people from a refugee background to their workforce.
Content includes:
- Key definitions of migrant, refugee and asylum seeker
- Context of the Australian Humanitarian Program
- Experience of exile and refugee flight
- Benefits of recruiting staff from a refugee background
- Engagement and inclusion of staff from refugee backgrounds
Target audience: Corporates, government and non-government who are recruiting people from a humanitarian background
Supporting positive cultural identity for children and young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds in your care is easier said than done. This course aims to support carers to find more meaningful and practical ways to support a child’s development of a positive cultural identity.
Content includes:
- The influence of culture on the interaction between carers and children and young people in the care context
- Impact of prejudice and racism on cultural identity for children in care
- Responding to prejudice and racism
- Strategies to support ongoing and new cultural connections
Target audience: Foster carers and adoptive parents
Free, nationally accredited training to help frontline workers recognise the signs of domestic and family violence, and know what to do next. Organised in partnership with Lifeline.
Learn more here.
This e-module helps organisations support their workforce to grow the capabilities needed to respond to the unique needs of individuals and communities and provide equitable access to opportunities and services.
Learners will grow their awareness of the multicultural context in Australia, understand their obligations in preserving the rights of our diverse communities and explore key frameworks and concepts to build their understanding of what it means to work in culturally respectful and inclusive ways.
Content includes:
- Multicultural context in Australia
- Worker obligations to ensure access
- Key frameworks and definitions
- Tips for inclusion
Combine the e-module with one of SSI’s interactive face-to-face or virtual workshops to maximise impact. Speak to us about customisation to your needs.
Target audience: Corporate, Government and non-government service providers
SSI’s CultureReady Student workshops provide learning experiences that transform how students respond to diversity in ways that are fun, thought-provoking, inspire curiosity, and build confidence to engage with cultural diversity.
Linked to the Australian Curriculum students will develop personal and social capability as they learn to understand themselves and others, and manage their relationships, lives, work and learning more effectively.
Content includes:
- Key frameworks and definitions
- Practical real-life scenarios
- Guest speakers with refugee lived experience
- Sharing a cultural meal
- Hands-on cultural activities
Target audience: Secondary school students
CultureReady Student can be delivered as an excursion or incursion.
What others think about our workshops
Contact us
To arrange a discussion with one of our team members about your requirements, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call us on 02 8799 6700.
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