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In this, our last issue for 2009, Helen Dubberley tells us about the wonderful time she had at the Victorian Seniors Festival Multicultural Concert. Helen is the Health and Community Care (HACC) Project Officer at ECCV. She has been coordinating the Supported Access Pilot program to develop services to help seniors from culturally diverse backgrounds navigate their way through the complex aged care services. That pilot is an important step in improving HACC aged care programs and policies for non-English speaking older people. Helen is leaving ECCV at the end of this year. We wish her all the best for the future.

ECCV commends the Migrant Resource Centre North West for assisting new and emerging communities with their aged and disability needs as well as the longer established multicultural seniors.

The article on Paintings of Friendship is an inspiring example of overcoming social isolation at the Polish Planned Activity Group.

On behalf of ECCV I wish you all the best for the New Year.

Sincerely

Dr Irene Bouzo
Editor

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The 2009 Victorian Seniors Festival runs Sunday 4 October to Sunday 11 October. The festival opening day will be at Federation Square in Melbourne on Sunday 4 October. Watch out for marquees, chairs and tables with lots of events and information.

On 9 October the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria will present the Multicultural Concert as part of the Seniors Festival. Program highlights include beautiful costumes, wonderful songs and dances from all over the world. We invite you to come along and enjoy the program.

Inside this issue

• Mulicultural concert for Victorian Seniors Festival
• Social Groups in the North West Suburbs
• Croaian Fitness Group
• Flowers of Friendship
• Golden Gals n Pals
• Cultural Diversity Week

Sincerely

Dr Irene Bouzo,
Editor

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Some of the commentary has been valid; some of it verging on hysterical. In any case, ECCV has been one of a number of government and community representative bodies working together to develop a co-ordinated approach to race-based issues in the justice system. We want to ensure that the disappointment we have all felt in the face of these incidents is not allowed to erode the tremendous good that cultural diversity represents to Victoria or diminish our outstanding success in nurturing it over decades.

On that note, issues of ageing and aged care continue to become a growing concern for more and more Victorians of diverse cultural backgrounds and it is pleasing to see agencies and service providers working harder to ensure that their message of health and wellbeing reaches communities from non-English speaking backgrounds. The decision to extend ECCV’s own Multicultural Multi-active Seniors (MMS) Project for another 12 months only underlines the level of need among CALD communities and the enthusiasm to be involved in the process.

A similar energy and resolve has been a hallmark of Victoria’s community language sector with 2009 marking the 20th Anniversary of the Ethnic Schools Association of Victoria (ESAV). The vital infl uence of this organisation was given deserved recognition during the recent Community Languages Conference, and I add my own note of appreciation to everyone involved in maintaining this vital element of our state’s social and cultural fabric.

On a different note, ECCV’s efforts to broaden our membership base continue with particular attention being paid to the emerging Karen and Chin communities. I was privileged to meet some of the members of these communities at ECCV’s Refugee Week forum, which gave refugees from Burma the chance to speak about their own experiences in their own words. The confi dence, camaraderie and common sense of purpose spurred by the evening only underlined how important community groups are to the ability for a society to accommodate expansion and evolution over time.

As we head into the second half of the year, I encourage all members to keep up their good work on behalf of their own constituents and remain actively engaged with ECCV as we prepare for a number of national events, including the Conference of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) in Shepparton at the end of October and the Parliament of the World’s Religions in December. Both gatherings put multicultural Victoria squarely in the national and international spotlight and promise to be ideal environments to explore prevailing issues of diversity and the means with which they are best addressed.

Download ECCV Newsletter - Winter Edition 2009 (501 KB)

This is why the Federal Government's decision to award a significant portion of its new rental accommodation construction fund to charities and not-for-profit operators is so signifi cant. It confirms what those in the community sector have argued all along – that when it comes to grass-roots knowledge, no sector does it better. Something similar can be gleaned from the announcement that of the organisations contracted to the Federal Government’s new network of employment providers, Job Services Australia, three out of fi ve were not-for-profits. Of course ECCV has always been vocal in calling for greater recognition of community organisations. With this sudden spike in support for the capabilities of the community sector, however, ECCV is determined that migrant and multicultural community organisations are suitably equipped to deliver on these opportunities as they arise. Too often ethnic-based organisations find themselves at a disadvantage when it comes to the filter down of relevant information and advice, and equal access to resources and project opportunities. It is a trend that ECCV will do its utmost to redress as the year moves forward. More broadly, the priorities for the ethnic sector have been laid out by the Victorian Government in their revised Multicultural Policy: “All Of Us.” The policy reiterates the need for government staff and agencies to become culturally competent, and foreshadows a number of upcoming strategies including support for at-risk young refugees and strengthening of women’s leadership in culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

Further to the topic of women’s leadership, I was thrilled to hear of the induction of one of the mainstays of the multicultural sector in regional Victoria, Ms Rosi Parisotto, into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women for 2009. Rosi joined 19 other new inductees to the Honour Roll who have all made a lasting contribution to women in Victoria and anyone who has had the privilege to work with Rosi will know there is no one more deserving. I congratulate all 20 inductees, add my thanks for their service and encourage all women, young and old, to draw inspiration from their example.

Finally, it wouldn't be the Autumn newsletter without some mention of the upcoming Federal and State Budgets. By now it is clear that both Wayne Swan and John Lenders will be delivering their respective budgets under an almost unprecedented financial cloud. Difficult choices will have to be made and it appears that cuts will be inevitable. Let us hope that no programs under the multicultural banner are targeted for cutbacks on that basis alone, as has happened in the past. By now it should be well established that ethnic issues are mainstream issues... are Australian issues.

Update from the Chair, Sam Afra

Download ECCV Newsletter - Autumn Edition 2009 (223KB)

With this issue we are sending you the application form from the Offi ce of Senior Victorians for the Victorian Senior of the Year Awards. You may wish to nominate a person in the multicultural community. 

What kind of people won the Victorian Senior of the Year Awards in the past?

George Yianni, aged 74 in Chelsea was a winner in 2008. He has been caring for the elderly as a volunteer for more than 20 years, particularly those with dementia. Another winner was Guangtao Tang, aged 82 in Dandenong. He arrived from China in 1995 and has worked in his community promoting a healthy lifestyle, multiculturalism and assisting Chinese elderly people.

What do you need to fi nd out about the person you wish to nominate?

If you know of an ordinary person over 60 in your community who has been doing volunteer work to help others stay healthy, happy and socially connected you can nominate them. 

How difficult is the nomination form?

It is easy to fi ll in. All you need to do is tell the story of a person over 60 in your community who has done outstanding volunteer work and made a difference to a lot of other people. You can choose one of four different awards.

When are the Awards given out?

The Awards are presented in October 2009 to mark the United Nations International Day of Older Persons on 1 October and the annual Victorian Seniors Festival. 

For more information?

Contact Violeta Krstic – Program Manager on (03) 9208 3170 There are many multicultural seniors who work very hard for their communities. Keep up the good work.

Sincerely
Dr Irene Bouzo, Editor

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Sincerely
Dr Irene Bouzo, Editor

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