A waste-wise
initiative offered by Advance Diversity Services (ADS) in 2020 will help new
arrivals in the Barton electorate match their good intentions and commitment
with responsible recycling practices.
The Waste Wise
Project, which received funding from the AusIndustry Business Grants Hub on
behalf of the Department of the Environment and Energy in December, will extend
ADS’s existing involvement with Clean Up Australia Day and have a strong a
strong focus on reducing waste and litter in the local environment through
practical activities.
‘ADS clients are
new migrants and refugees who’ve often had no past recycling experience or
knowledge of different recycling systems outside their country of origin,’ said
Anthony Scerri, Manager of Settlement and Community Services for ADS.
‘They want to do
the right thing but, for people who are learning English, knowing what to put
in which bin and what’s recyclable can be a struggle. We want to help them with
this.’
Mr Scerri said
the Waste Wise Project will involve Nepalese, Bangladeshi, Arabic, Thai and
Chinese local community members in a Clean Up Australia Day activity in Hogben Park
in Kogarah, and provide information about recycling and waste collection in people’s
language of origin. Support from ADS’s bilingual staff will also be crucial to
fostering their understanding of responsible waste management.
Participants will be given a two-compartment bin (general waste and
recyclable items) to help
them apply what they’ve learnt from the Clean Up Australia Day
event. A follow-up phone survey will determine how effective the learning has
been, and ADS will offer people further education if needed.
Bus trips to the
Rockdale Resource Recovery Centre or similar centres will give participants
further insight into recycling and the opportunity to ask questions or clarify
their new understanding of responsible waste
disposal.
‘We’re happy to be sharing practical knowledge with new arrivals about managing household waste, recycling, and “living with less”, said Mr Scerri. ‘Our ultimate goal is to reduce litter and waste in our local community.’
Caption: Members of the Nepalese community who took part in a in a Clean Up Australia Day activity in Hogben Park in Kogarah in 2018. Advance Diversity Services is planning a similar event in 2020 as part of its Waste Wise Project.
Advance Diversity
Services (ADS) has joined forces with Auburn Diversity Services Inc. (ADSi) to
explore innovative ways to provide migrant and refugee settlement services to
the Nepalese communities in the Auburn (Cumberland Council) catchment area. ADS
and ADSi whose core business has been the provision of settlement services, are
keen to learn from this partnership.
A $50,000 grant
announced in November activated the working partnership, which will test a new,
collaborative, service-delivery model that builds on the local connections of
each partner to maximise reach and impact.
ADS was awarded
this funding as an initiative of the NSW Settlement Partnership – a consortium
of community organisations, led by Settlement Services International,
delivering settlement services in NSW.
Community
Services Officer, Rishi Acharya from ADS – who has a strong history of working
with the Nepalese community – has been appointed to drive the project, which
aims to extend into the Auburn area core settlement support now offered to the
newly arrived Nepalese community residing in the St George area.
‘Auburn now has
the largest population of Nepali-speakers in Australia followed by Rockdale,’
said Mr Acharya. Hurstville is currently in third place. Both are in the St George
area where I’ve spent the last 8 years building strong and supportive pathways
for new Nepali-speaking arrivals.
‘I’m excited to
be using my knowledge and collaborative skills to ensure Nepalese communities
in the Auburn area will be well supported by the Australian Government’s
Settlement Engagement and Transition Support Grants (SETS) program.’
SETS supports
humanitarian entrants and other eligible permanent migrants in their first five
years of life in Australia. The program focuses on social participation,
economic wellbeing, independence, personal wellbeing and community
connectedness.
Mr Acharya will
collaborate with ADSi and the Nepalese Australian Association to tap into the
needs of recently arrived Nepalese migrants and refugees, identify gaps in
service provision, and offer practical face-to-face support to community
members.
Mr Acharya said
the Nepali speaking population in Australia had increased significantly with
62,002 members counted in the 2016 Census compared to 27,155 in the 2011
census. There had also been a huge upsurge in Nepali students in recent years.
‘We were awarded the grant from the NSW Settlement Partnership’s Settlement Innovation Fund because our project clearly promotes service experimentation and improvement across its network of partners,’ he said.
‘Our goal now is
to be innovative with purpose!’
Advance
Diversity Services is a leading non-profit services provider that
assists migrants and refugees in the St George and Sutherland Shire to thrive
in Australian society.
Caption: Cultural perspectives on gambling offered by Nepalese community members in a November focus group will inform an Advance Diversity Services project that aims to reduce gambling harm in the community.
Advance Diversity
Services (ADS) has been awarded $20,0000 funding for a Gender and Sexual
Diversity project, which aims to ensure newly arrived migrants and refugees who
identify as LGBTIQA+ receive inclusive settlement support.
‘LGBTIQA+
individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities need
non- discriminatory settlement support – and we all have a role to play in
supporting inclusive service delivery,’ said Anthony Scerri, Manager of
Settlement and Community Services for ADS.
‘This project
will ensure staff from CALD suppliers are trained to recognise what’s needed
and to offer this without prejudice to LGBTIQA+ people as they settle in
Australian society.’
ADS was awarded
funding for the project in November as an initiative of the NSW Settlement
Partnership – a consortium of community organisations, led by Settlement
Services International, delivering settlement services in NSW.
ADS will use the
funds to build on a successful pilot LGBTIQA+ forum it ran in partnership with
ACON, Settlement Services International and Georges River Council at Georges
River Civic Centre, Hurstville on October 21, 2019.
More than 50
people attended the 2019 forum, which included a panel of five LGBTIQA+ CALD
community members sharing lived experience and a comprehensive introduction to
issues faced by LGBTIQA+ communities.
Project funding
will enable ADS to run a second forum in 2020 and to offer further inclusive-
practice training for LGBTIQA+ client service delivery – with the overall aim
of providing education to and raising awareness among staff.
This training
will also offer ADS and the settlement sector opportunities to: build knowledge
about and increase the visibility of the CALD-specific LGBTIQA+ community and
their needs; build referral pathways; foster relationships with LGBTIQA+
organisations; and develop inclusive practices.
‘It is critical
for LGBTIQA+ people to find the right support they need, when they need it,’
said Mr Scerri, ‘as we know this can make the difference between them thriving
and surviving.
‘This project will help the sector get it right, and extend ADS’ work in this important area.’ ADS has also:
Ensured staff representation on the GLISTEN Steering Committee; the Settlement Services International Gender and Sexual Diversity Working Group; and the LGBTI Ageing Network Meeting.
Caption: ADS has placed a
Welcome Here Project Sticker and Welcome Here Project Charter in prominent
locations across its four office sites to assure people ‘at a glance’ that they
are welcome regardless of their gender or sexual orientation.
Advance Diversity
Services (ADS) will use $30,000 funding awarded by Transport NSW to roll out a
driver education program for recently arrived refugees and migrants in the St
George area.
The Learn to
Drive Program recognises that learning to drive in a new country can be an
important pathway for new arrivals in terms of mobility and economic and social
participation.
It also supports
learners to overcome barriers they face learning to drive in Australia,
including language skills to comprehend licensing authority information, costs
of training, access to cars and supervising drivers to prepare for tests, and
learning different road rules from their country of origin.
Developed by
Gymea Community Aid & Information Service, the program helps learners to pass
their driver knowledge test, improve their English skills and gain driving
practice with volunteer mentors.
‘While driving
lessons aren’t part of the humanitarian settlement support package provided to
refugees once they arrive in Australia, for a new migrant or refugee, being
able to drive can mean the difference between successfully settling into a new
community or being isolated,’ said Anthony Scerri, Manager of Settlement and
Community Services for ADS.
‘Having a
licence gives people independence. It also opens up opportunities for
employment.’
The Learn to
Drive Program is linked to a mandatory four-day TAFE course and assessment.
Participants that require further driving experience are provided with lessons
by a professional driving school.
These lessons (up to six lessons per person) will be subsidised by the grant
funding.
After the
professional driving lessons, participants will be linked with volunteer
mentors who are experienced drivers. Learner drivers can see their mentor for
unlimited sessions until they get their licence.
Participants that
require further support with tests are linked with volunteers who can sit down
with them and go through mock tests and help them to gain experience and
develop confidence.
‘We’re excited about the grant and to partner in this program,’ said Mr Scerri, ‘which will enhance the social and economic wellbeing of our clients.’
Advance Diversity Services is a leading non-profit services provider that assists migrants and refugees in the St George and Sutherland Shire to thrive in Australian society.
Caption: Recent funding to Advance Diversity Services for a driver education program will help new migrants and refugees learn to drive, which can make a huge difference to how well they settle into Australian society.