This three year statewide initiative is funded by the Victorian Department of Health to provide culturally diverse seniors aged 60 plus with information on elder abuse and access to social participation grants. We are looking for an innovative and appropriately skilled project officer to fill this position. Contact the Director on (03) 9349 4122 for further information. Go to Careers on our home page to download a Position Description.

Applications addressing the key selection criteria should be forwarded to The Director, Ethnic Communities’ Council of Vic. Inc, 150 Palmerston St, Carlton Vic 30535.00pm on Friday 17 February.

The IBIS Forum brought together representatives from government, business, education, the not for profit sector, and the community, to discuss social inclusion, diversity and citizenship. Specifically, the forum sought to explore current issues relating to multiculturalism, cultural diversity and intercultural relations, with a view to inform policy development.

Mr Sam Afra delivered an address on global diversity. The key challenge facing intercultural understanding, according to Mr Afra, is for individuals to learn to agree to disagree. He said, "We, as global citizens, must learn to respect and understand diverse opinions if [we] are to live successfully in the modern world". Mr Afra then highlighted challenges faced by "new and emerging communities" in the areas of "employment and housing, and the media misrepresentations of these new immigrant communities which contributes to "already strained relations". He argued for a need to improve media strategies and reporting guidelines so as to promote a commitment "to social cohesion, even in uncertain times". He noted that, "Multiculturalism should not be a scapegoat when addressing the civic problems we face".

Mr Afra concluded that the good governance of cultural diversity requires foresight and leadership as we "can’t afford to react to community needs once it has already reached crisis." Policy must be formulated

Mr Afra linked local diversity in Australia to a growing global trend in which cultural diversity has become increasingly visible and thus the global nature of diversity has become a local reality. For Afra, a strong multicultural Australia draws its strength from diversity and that within Australia"Victoria is the capital of multiculturalism".

To see the conference report summary click HERE.

They have Cuban dance music, good food and drinks in the best secret garden in the central city. In true Carnevale style please bring a mask.

Date: Saturday 18 February, 2012

Time: 6.30 pm for 7 pm until 11.30pm

Place: ‘The Secret Garden’ Hellenic Museum, at the former Royal Mint 280 William Street, Melbourne

Cost: $100 per person all inclusive

A three course dinner will be provided by Black Tie Catering, drinks included.

The evening entertainment will be provided by Cuban band Carlitos Way

Parking is free and is available inside the gates of the Hellenic Museum. Guests are welcome to visit the exhibitions at Hellenic Museum during the evening. The highlight is the ancient Greek pottery from Southern Italy.

Please book by Monday 13th February 2012 to rosariaz@coasit.com.au or 9349 9019

Mr Caputo has been awarded the medal as a part of Australia Day Awards for service to the Italian community in Australia, to the Victorian Multicultural Commission, and to local government.

Mr Caputo has held numerous high profile leadership positions in the community including as mayor of the City of Darebin, a commissioner of the Victorian Multicultural Commission and is currently president of the Federazione Pugliese D'Australia as well as ECCV Chairperson.

Mr Caputo said he was looking forward to building on his 30 years of experience in multicultural advocacy.

 “I am honoured to receive this prestigious recognition,” Mr Caputo said.

“I will use this award to continue improving the lives and outcomes for multicultural Australians.”

ECCV Director Ross Barnett is available for comment. Contact Sarah Hunt on 0410 534 457.

Interpreting and translation are a critical part of providing services for culturally and linguistically diverse communities. Northern Health’s Transcultural and Language Services Department (TALS) recently won an Australian Institute of Interpreters award for their excellent service provision in health.

ECCV spoke with TALS coordinator Emiliano Zucchi about the innovations and initiatives that have made transformed health service provision in northern Melbourne.

What major changes have you initiated in your four years at TALS to bring about the Australian Institute of Interpreters award?

The four major strategies we have used are:

1. We moved from four to seventeen in-house interpreters.
2. We initiate trans-cultural training sessions in a very strategic way. We now run one hour presentations for health clinicians on topics such as; ‘how to work with a professional interpreter’, ‘what does diversity mean in the health context’, ‘how to work with patients of different religious backgrounds’, and ‘why children should not be used to interpret’. We do approximately 100 one hour sessions per annum.
3. We have introduced a translations database. This means we have hundreds of documents translated in the top eight languages. All the staff we employ are professional interpreters and translators, so we do all of our translating in-house.
4. We changed the parameters to include 25 per cent of all NESB** patients in all Northern Health research projects. We are now more prominent in culturally appropriate research for clinicians both within and outside Northern Health.

You have emphasized the business case for reducing length of stay in hospitals for CALD* patients. How important is it to quantify the benefits of translation services?

We noticed the literature was telling us was better patient outcomes increase with cultural competence. The length of stay of NESB** patients has dropped by about 30 per cent since TALS was restructured.

Increasing transcultural training and interpreting services has had a big impact. We know because we our interpretation 17, 000 in 2008 and over 40,000 in 2011. Using translators helps with cost containment because it aids communication with the patient and reduces consultation times.

How are you integrating technology into your work?

We introduced video interpreting a couple of years ago as a complement to face-to-face interpreting. We are using it, but not as much as we should because there are infrastructure problems. There needs to be a commitment to cameras in every consultation room. The technology is available, but has to be a better commitment.

I will be trialling the use of Ipads in wards this year to better deliver languages services.

Are there particular communities where you are seeing growth the need for interpreters?

It’s one of the issues that we face. New and emerging communities, particularly Horn of Africa and Iraqi, are not big enough yet to produce students who learn languages in a professional way. At the moment we are using effectively bilingual people instead of interpreters. Their language skills in English can be very poor. It is a high risk, but it’s better than using family members or no interpreter at all.  The challenge is to liaise with government and university institutions and schools so they continue to offer and improve current courses for emerging communities. 

What’s also happening is that established communities, such as Italian and Greek, are still using language services as the communities age so those service needs are growing.

What are the advantages or disadvantages of privatising the government translation services?

We support public private partnerships to improve public health outcomes. Agencies will always be needed, especially for the smaller languages and it’s important that is done in the patient interest. It’s important there is more cooperation and greater sharing of resources. 

How well do medical staff understand cultural competency?

At Northern Health is the understanding is good. Doctors are improving but they aren’t as good as they should be. The too often assume they don’t need an interpreter and they can use a family member. I argue that any medical degree should include a cultural competence unit.

Many of your staff interpret difficult news for patients in hospitals. How do you support your staff?

Interpreters can deal with very sensitive situations which can affect them psychology and physically. We have a monthly supervision session for our staff members to share experiences and get things off their chest. I find that the benefit comes from having someone there who listens to what they say.

If you know a CALD community member who should be recognised for their work or achievements in our next e-bulletin, please contact Sarah Hunt shunt@eccv.org.au. 

*CALD – Culturally and Linguistically Diverse

** NESB – Non-English Speaking Background

Mr Barnett’s comments respond to respected neurosurgeon Dr Charles Teo’s Australia Day Council celebration remarks that racism is “very much alive in Australia.”

“Mr Teo is describing personal racism which still occurs against Australians as they go about their everyday lives,” Mr Barnett says.

“There’s no point making excuses for racist remarks as ignorance, we should name them for what they are.”

Mr Barnett says Mr Teo’s comments show racism can affect Australians at all levels of society.

“Governments cannot pretend that personal racist attacks don’t occur or down play them,” Mr Barnett says.

“We need to transform this harmful cultural attitude that racist comments are made in a light-hearted way or with no real consequences.”  

Mr Barnett says, however, that institutionalized racism is being tackled well by the Australian Government.

 “The recent launch of the Australian Human Rights Commission Anti-Racism Partnership Strategy is a real sign the Federal Government is serious about institutionalised racism,” Mr Barnett says.

“The People of Australia Ambassadors, launched this week, also show our society has many leaders working to eliminate cases of personal racism.

“We look to the Federal Government to engage the community in a public awareness campaign about the harmful effects of racism.

 “It will take time for all the community to learn that it has no place in multicultural Australia.”

Mr Barnett adds the overwhelming majority of Australians live and work together in harmony.

Mr Barnett is available for comment and interview. Please call Sarah Hunt on 0410 534 457 / (03) 9349 4122.

What fostered your initial passion for robotics?

I went to an outreach program when I was ten in Cairns and we had to do some soldering of a cricket. That was my first experience where I got to make something with electronics and I really liked it.

What kind of challenges do you think women from diverse backgrounds face in accessing engineering?

I don’t think [ethnicity] makes much of a difference in Australia. I haven’t experienced discrimination based on my ethnicity and ethnic communities study hard so we can get into any course we want.

For women, I think there are perceptions of engineering that it involves maths, hard hats and that it’s boring. They don’t see the bigger pictures that engineers work together in teams and they solve problems that benefit everyone in society. That isn’t conveyed to girls when they’re younger.

How does your cultural background give you an advantage in your career pathway?

My family’s background has played a role in where I am. When my mother came here she carried with her a lot of qualities of Chinese parents overseas. She believed in diversity of skills, such as extra-curricular activities at young age, hard work and academia. My mum encouraged me to follow my dreams.

You speak Cantonese, Japanese and you are studying Mandarin. How does multilingualism provide you with a professional competitive advantage?

I think it's made me able to interact with people of different cultures a lot more easily and to be a lot more accepting of differences. I see the study of language as a portal to broadening my mind about other cultures, gaining understanding and new ways of thinking.

You’ve now expanded Robogals across Australian and overseas to 17 different chapters. How important is it for you to have an international perspective for your foundation?

I think the lack of females in engineering is a very western problem; in India and China they have enough female engineers. All these perceptions about [women’s] capabilities are just a myth.

The international perspective is important from a community point of view. So rather than being one chapter, it means we have fixed chapters all over Australia working on the same problem. It makes it exciting to know that people in the UK and the USA are experiencing the same thing - it makes the world a smaller place and that people overseas are exactly the same.

You’ve spoken about how robotics can offer the answers to mundane tasks. Does technology solve problems, or do you think creates new levels of complexity in life?

I think technology creates more simplicity. In the past 50 years our life expectancy has increased and most of that is because of engineering. That includes changes to the way we process sewage, transport innovations and our standards of food. In that sense, technology is incredible because there’s a lot more shared knowledge, resources and understanding between people.

What is your vision and strategy for Robogals?

We are currently entirely student run and voluntary. We want to employ a full-time staff member. In the next 3-5 years, we want to teach 100,000 girls around the world and have 100 chapters which would be able to achieve with staff.

You can find out more about Robogals at www.robogals.org.

We were pleased to provide input from the multicultural sector to this initiative of the Migrant Mental Health Taskforce of the Victorian Mental Health Reform Council. Key stakeholders met to workshop issues related to migrants and refugees. The Council will use these issues to produce a report for the Minister for Mental Health and staff from the Department of Health.

This was a timely opportunity for ECCV to influence the development of the mental health sector as national and state mental health reforms are currently underway.

Ross spoke about the expectations that Victoria's ethnic communities have of the sector. For a copy of the speech click here.

ECCV has prioritised mental health issues across aged care, health and youth policy areas in 2011. Click here for a copy of the ECCV discussion paper A Better Way - mental health & aged care, a multicultural perspective.

This week ECCV was quoted in Herald Sun article New Clamp on Muslim Haters, detailing Victoria Police's Prejudice Motivated Crime Strategy. Director Ross Barnett said of the strategy: "The elements of the strategy include training for officers, capacity to start collecting data so they've got a sense of what is happening, how it happens and what is the extent ot it." ECCV has been instrumental in initiating the strategy in 2010 and continues to work with Victorian communities to improve their safety.

Newly elected Chairperson Joe Caputo said the decision allowed due process to be extended to all asylum seekers.

“It is a significant improvement that all asylum seekers, regardless of arrival method, will be released into the community and have access to the Refugee Review Tribunal,” Mr Caputo said.

“These changes are long overdue and I am pleased the Government has been listening to the community’s demands.”

Mr Caputo said the Government’s two stream processing system had been ineffective and inequitable.

“Long periods of mandatory detention do not deter arrivals or assist in determining who is a ‘genuine’ applicant,” he said. 

“Australia has a responsibility to uphold its commitment to the UN Refugee Convention by applying the rule of law to these applicants.”

Mr Caputo said the impacts of mandatory detention had been high on migrant communities.

“Many asylum seekers need additional mental health support from their community after they are released from detention,” he said.

“ECCV believes asylum seekers can contribute to the community if they are released as soon as initial checks are made by immigration staff.”

He added many former asylum seekers have become leaders in the Australian community.

“ We must encourage a compassionate response to those escaping difficult situations in their homelands,” Mr Caputo said.

“This policy change is in line with our vision of an accepting and empathetic Australian society.”

Chairperson Joe Caputo is available for comment and interview. Contact Sarah Hunt on (03) 9349 4122.

Peter Mandelj served on the ECCV executive committee from 1988 to 2005 in various roles as both an executive committee member and treasurer.  He has been president of the Council of Slovenian Organisations for the past 20 years and has served the Slovenian community for more than 40 years.

Peter has also been elected as a representative for the Slovenian community in Australia to the Slovenian government.  Peter will travel to Slovenia to consult with Slovenian Prime Minister, Janez Janša and other ministers to put forward the concerns and issues of the Slovenian community in Australia.

ECCV wishes Peter well in his new role and looks forward to his continuing involvement with our organisation.

Have your say!

The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission is conducting research into the experiences of students with disability in Victorian schools.

This follows an increase in complaints to the Commission relating to disability discrimination in education, and concerns raised by parents of children with disability, disability advocacy groups and members of the Commission’s Disability Reference Group about the provision of education services to students with disability.

The purpose of the Commission’s research is to gather information about the issues and challenges experienced by students with disability in the Victorian school system and to identify potential solutions, consistent with Victoria’s equal opportunity and human rights framework, to improve access to education for students with disability.

How you can participate

The Commission is keen to hear from students, parents and educators about what works and what could be improved when it comes to the education of students with disability in Victoria. There are several ways you can have your say.

Complete their confidential survey

If you are a:

• student with disability
• parent of a student with disability, or
• principal, teacher or you work in a Victorian school

you can complete their confidential online survey at humanrightscommission.vic.gov.au/disabilityinschools

The survey is anonymous – they do not ask for any personal or identifying information.

If you work in a community organisation or otherwise provide support to families, children and young people with disability, you can tell us your views by sending an email to research@veohrc.vic.gov.au. We will treat this as a written submission to our research.

Ring their statewide telephone call-in on Saturday 3 December 2011

Call 1300 292 153 or (03) 9032 3583.
Lines are open on Saturday 3 December from 10am to 4pm. If you need an interpreter, you can call the Commission using the interpreter service on 1300 152 494 or TTY at 1300 289 621.

Come to one of their ‘have a say’ days in regional Victoria

These will be held in February 2012. More details will be available soon.

If these options are not convenient, please feel free to tell them your story by sending them an email to research@veohrc.vic.gov.au.

In participating in the research, you will be providing your consent on the basis that your information will be kept private. No individual, family or student will be identified in the research. 

Senior Policy Officer Irene Bouzo presented Understanding Ethnic Aged Care: The Dilemma of Bonding and Bridging. The presentation

Media Advisor Sarah Hunt presented Emergent Media: Strategies for CALD Communities.

 For part two of these presentations please visit ECCV's youtube channel.