Ability Links NSW (ALNSW) has heralded a new approach to supporting people with disability, their families and carers, and is making a significant economic and social impact across the state, according to a newly released independent report.

Having just come out of an abusive relationship and suffering from severe anxiety attacks, Virginia Willie found herself in a very low period of her life and didn’t believe anyone could help her to get out of it - until her first meeting with SSI's ParentsNext program.

The NSW Community Hubs team reviewed and celebrated its past year’s Hub activities during the team's annual meeting in November.  The meeting was an opportunity for participants to share their challenges and learnings, and to discuss priorities and the expansion of the program in 2017.

SSI’s Ignite Small Business Start-ups is to benefit from donations of around $60,000 thanks to the amazing generosity of Google and its Sydney-based staff.

By Elise Marley-Wallace, Allianz Public Relations and Social Media Manager In December 2016, more than 20 Allianz Australia employees volunteered over 200 hours to support not-for-profit humanitarian organisation, Settlement Services International (SSI), as part of Allianz’s community outreach program.  

Yarie Bangura spoke to a crowd of 150 Google employees about her small business Aunty’s Ginger Tonic, on Friday evening, November 25. The event was the launch of Google Give Week; a week during which Google employees are given the opportunity to donate to local charities whose initiatives are making a significant impact in the community.

Multicultural women contribute unique skills and talents to Australian society, but more collaboration between sectors is vital to help women from CALD backgrounds thrive in Australia.

Recent media reports have highlighted migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum as highly vulnerable at work. Accounts of low-paid work, unpaid wages, unsafe work conditions, exploitation and abuse are not uncommon. 

Politicians, practitioners and women from diverse backgrounds will this week take part in a dialogue designed to drive social and economic change for multicultural women. The inaugural National Multicultural Women’s Conference 2016 – Influencing Change: Vision and Impact (NMWC) will showcase the resilience and strength of women from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) backgrounds, and discuss effective strategies, services, programs and approaches for supporting them in Australia.

Despite his mobility restrictions caused by cerebral palsy, North Ryde long term resident Brett Dyer isn’t the type who gets intimidated by day to day challenges. “I live by myself and when I’m at home I use a walking stick,” said Mr Dyer. “Outside, I use a scooter to get around and I’m pretty good with it. I use it even if I have to go far, like Macquarie Park.” Therefore, when he was told he couldn’t play lawn bowls at his local bowling club, he teamed up with his local Linker Ms Hiroko Kawashima from Settlement Services International (SSI) and his Occupational Therapist (OT) from the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, Michelle Cohen, to find a solution.

What does it take to forge a new life far from home? That’s a key question raised by Constance on the Edge, a film SSI was thrilled to preview recently.

With more than one in four Australians now born overseas, there is an urgent need for greater cultural diversity among the ranks of our country’s business leaders. A new report from the Australian Human Rights Commission, however, has shown that fewer than five per cent of ASX 200 company CEOs come from non-European or Anglo-Celtic backgrounds.

Leading academics and politicians will come together at an innovative new conference in November, designed to drive change for multicultural women. The National Multicultural Women’s Conference 2016 – Influencing Change: Vision and Impact (NMWC) will create a platform for sharing knowledge and celebrating the outstanding contributions women from diverse backgrounds make to our society.

Participants will seek to drive social and economic change for women in Australia who are from diverse backgrounds at an innovative new conference co-hosted by SSI in November.

Women from multicultural backgrounds need a dedicated platform to amplify voices too often overlooked by mainstream society, said NSW Greens MP Dr Mehreen Faruqi ahead of an upcoming conference that aims to provide just that.

Nader Sameer and Nawar Hanna are unlikely friends, but bricks and mortar have brought the two former refugees from Iraq together as they start their bricklaying careers in Australia.

SSI and the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) are seeking expressions of interest for the Young Refugee Women Scholarship Program to attend, and actively participate in, the National Multicultural Women’s Conference 2016—Influencing Change: Vision and Impact.

Despite his mobility restrictions caused by cerebral palsy, long-time North Ryde resident Brett Dyer isn’t the type who gets intimidated by day-to-day challenges.

Settlement, citizenship and policy topped the agenda at the annual Settlement Council of Australia (SCoA) conference in Melbourne today, as dozens of settlement professionals, academics and community leaders shared their views on the major issues facing settlement globally.

Young workers from migrant and refugee backgrounds will receive mentoring support to help them stay in a job long term, thanks to an innovative new service being delivered by SSI.