Wednesday 7 July 2021
Community Conversations
NAIDOC Week
4 - 11 July 2021

NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life. The week is a great opportunity to participate in a range of activities and to support your local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. Click here to learn more about the history of NAIDOC Week.

The NAIDOC 2021 theme – Heal Country! – calls for all of us to continue to seek greater protections for our lands, our waters, our sacred sites and our cultural heritage from exploitation, desecration, and destruction. NAIDOC 2021 invites the nation to embrace First Nations’ cultural knowledge and understanding of Country as part of Australia's national heritage and equally respect the culture and values of Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islanders as they do the cultures and values of all Australians.

NAIDOC Week is celebrated by local community events taking place across Australia. Click here to search for an event where you can share in the celebrations.

Click here for top 20 ideas to help you celebrate NAIDOC Week 2021 in a COVIDSafe way
2021 NAIDOC Poster

The 2021 National NAIDOC Poster, ‘Care for Country’ was designed by Gubbi Gubbi artist Maggie-Jean Douglas.

Using the 2021 NAIDOC Week theme, Heal Country!, as inspiration; ‘Care for Country’ is a bright and vibrant artwork which explores how Country has cared for and healed First Nations people spiritually, physically, emotionally, socially and culturally.

The artwork includes communities, people, animals and bush medicines spread over different landscapes of red dirt, green grass, bush land and coastal areas to tell the story of the many ways Country can and has healed us throughout our lives and journeys.

Learn more and get your poster here
Protect our people who give us knowledge to Heal Country, heal our nation

NACCHO Chair Donnella Mills (pictured) says NAIDOC Week 2021 calls upon all of us to continue to seek greater protection for our lands, our Elders, our people, and safeguard our culture.

“The health of Country, and the health of First Nations' people, is firmly bound together. Country is family, kin, law, lore, ceremony, traditions, and language. After 250 years of dispossession and dislocation, traditional connection to Country and knowledge of Country is precarious. So much rests in the hands and minds of our Elders, our living national treasures. Right now, we have to protect the people who give us the knowledge to heal Country.”

“We have shown the world what can be done to keep First Nations peoples safe during a global pandemic. In the USA, the Navajo had the highest death rate of any ethnic population. In Australia, not one Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person has died from COVID-19. That is because the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health sector and Governments are working together to protect our most vulnerable families and communities. Our sector should be proud. Indeed, the pandemic is not yet defeated, but at least recent gains have positioned us well and we can afford a little time to reflect on what we have achieved.”

You can also watch Donnella talk about the COVID-19 vaccination in the short video linked here.

Click here to read the full statement
 
Community Contributions

The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) tracker has again revealed Australia’s poor results when it comes to Indigenous human rights and treatment. Surveying experts and collating data analysis on civil, political, economic and social rights, the HRMI measures a nation’s performance on all human rights covered by international law. It found the majority of experts agreed Indigenous Australians had most of their human rights at risk. Click here to learn more.

It was a year for the history books. Catastrophic climate disasters, a worldwide pandemic and political and social division – but 2020 also saw, globally, what can be achieved when time, energy and resources are dedicated to truly important issues. The 2020 UTS Social Justice Report highlights how one university seeks to create impact, helping people, communities and the environment. Click here to read and learn more.

Did your remuneration or employment change during the past year? Or, do you need help understanding the current benchmarks for the not-for-profit sector? The Pro Bono Australia Salary Survey can help. With 8 years of in-depth research on not-for-profit salaries behind us, the Salary Survey has become the most comprehensive and most trusted NFP remuneration report in Australia. Whether you’re looking to benchmark salaries for your team or you want to be armed with data for successful pay negotiation, the 2021 Salary Survey will allow you to make better informed remuneration decisions. Find out more.

Anglicare Sydney’s Life After Lockdown report shows evidence of a social recession and an increase in financial hardship in the aftermath of COVID-19. Most notably, Anglicare saw an increase in clients with large rental debts, an increase in young people accessing its food and financial assistance services, and an increase in people self-reporting stress and anxiety. Learn more and read the report here.

 
Community Sector Events
  • To celebrate National NAIDOC Week, the Indigenous Peoples’ Organisation Australia and Better Futures Australia are hosting a range of free webinars — Heal Country, Heal Climate. Join this critical dialogue among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to explore climate change impacts and solutions - Monday 5 to Friday 9 July - Click here to learn more and register
  • This impact2021 webinar marks the release of the Centre for Social Impact’s new research report, Systems change for financial wellbeing: micro, meso and macro-level drivers. This webinar hopes to help catalyse discussion and action to collectively work towards reducing financial inequalities across Australia - 15 July 2021 - Click here for more information and to register
  • Jesuit Social Services and the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) are pleased to host the 5th National Justice Symposium. The date of the Symposium marks the 5th anniversary of the announcement of the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. Centring the voices and stories of First Nations young people and their communities, the Symposium will explore the ingredients for change from the grassroots to the system level - 28-29 July 2021 - Click here for more information and click here to register
  • The Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) and the Ethnic Communities’ Council of Victoria (ECCV) are pleased to announce that the biennial FECCA conference, Advancing Multicultural Australia, will take place in 2022 in Melbourne. This face-to-face conference will allow people from across the country to share their knowledge and lived experiences, particularly in the aftermath of COVID-19 - 10-11 March 2022 - Click here for more information and to register
Community Sector Resources
  • Australian Human Rights Commission launched a new online resource hub to help workplaces build and maintain successful multigenerational workforces. The resource hub provides practical strategies for employers and employees, and is being launched alongside a new campaign to raise awareness about workplace age discrimination. The new resource hub includes free training modules and resources to help employers and employees understand their rights and responsibilities relating to age discrimination, alongside strategies for recruiting and retaining older workers. Click here to access and learn more.

  • Recent research identifies key opportunities to increase philanthropic giving with implications for not-for-profit organisations. Philanthropy plays an important role in our society; supporting diverse charities, not-for-profit organisations and community groups to form the social capital, which strengthens communities across the country. This article by Social Ventures Australia provides insights to grow philanthropic giving for not-for-profits. Click here to learn more.
  • The Community Colleges Australia National Adult and Community Education Summit on 29 June (https://cca.edu.au/what-we-do/2021-national-ace-summit/) examined issues of aged care workforce training and foundation skills – language, literacy, numeracy and digital skills. You can watch the videos of the whole Summit through the conference platform https://ace.delegateconnect.co/x/agenda. Of particular interest to ACOSS members are the panel discussions on aged care workforce training and foundation skills.
COSS Corner
The latest news from State and Territory Councils of Social Service

SACOSS has released its analysis of the SA State Budget, which was handed down on 22 June. We take a look at the economic context for SA and examine budget measures across human services, health and wellbeing, and child protection –  those welcomed by SACOSS, those not supported, and those somewhere in between! Click here for more information.

Do you work with clients who are struggling to pay their electricity bills or need some extra help understanding the energy and water market? QCOSS has developed a suite of downloadable energy and water resources, including factsheets, posters and animated videos, which explore topics such as how to call your energy provider, understanding your water bill and how to identify a concealed leak. Check out the resources here: https://communitydoor.org.au/services/energy-and-water/resources-for-industry

Don't miss this FREE unique learning opportunity from NCOSS, in partnership with NSW TAFE and the Australian Lawyers Alliance. Arundhati Roy (novelist/human rights activist) said - “Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew… It is a portal…between one world and the next.” This live Zoom lecture series will offer insights and tools to nurture and grow human rights approaches. Secure your space now: click here (Wednesday mornings- 21 July, 28 July and 4 August).

WACOSS is currently recruiting for a Deputy Chief Executive Officer for a 12 month secondment or 3 year fixed term contract. This role oversees the organisation’s social policy, special projects, and business development work, as well as providing inspiring leadership for the team. Applications close 9am, Friday 30 July 2021.

Want to know more about good governance? TasCOSS provides bespoke introductory governance workshops, to help build understanding of good governance practice. These workshops are interesting, interactive and tailored. Moreover, the Take Me To Your Board podcast is a great resource, applying the ten NFP Governance Principles outlined by the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) to real world examples and explores best practice with high profile guests. Click here to get in touch about training with TasCOSS. 

As part of the Bushfire Recovery Project, VCOSS is developing a Bushfire Recovery Outcomes Framework to help identify and measure the important contribution of community organisations to bushfire recovery. Recent workshops provided the opportunity to gather communities’ shared experiences, needs and insights along the bushfire recovery journey. Learn more here.

In the lead up to the 2021-22 ACT Budget, ACTCOSS has made a submission to the ACT Government’s Budget Consultation. The 2021-22 ACT Budget will be released on 31 August 2021. In its submission, ACTCOSS has listed its priority policies for the achievement of a just and fair Canberra. Included are calls for the ACT Government to urgently address the ACT’s ongoing housing crisis; to provide adequate funding for community sector organisations; and to improve outcomes for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples. Learn more.

NTCOSS is part of the call to the Federal Government to restore the true meaning of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA).The DDA was intended by Parliament to recognise that positive action may be required to avoid disability discrimination. The reasonable adjustment provisions were designed to achieve this by ensuring that changes to structures, systems and practices are made to enable the full and effective participation and inclusion of people with disability in society. Learn more.

Members in the Media
Domestic violence surging amid COVID-19 lockdowns, research shows

Service providers, such as Berry Street Family Violence Support in Victoria's Central Highlands, started hearing immediately from women trapped at home with abusive partners.

"[COVID] was another form of control that they could use to further isolate the women and children as well. So we absolutely saw that," Denise O'Dowd from Berry Street said.

Read here
Domestic violence groups welcome recommendation to criminalise coercive control in NSW

Rape and Domestic Violence Services Australia chief executive Hayley Foster said the committee's report represents a "landmark moment in our collective struggle for safety and justice for people impacted by sexual and domestic violence". 

“It is a win for those with lived experience of violence and abuse, many of whom have stood up and spoken about the psychological impacts of this most dangerous and damaging aspect of their experiences," she said. 

Read here
Disability advocates fear they'll be the next vulnerable group struck with COVID

Disability advocates fear their sector could be at the centre of the next outbreak with many thousands still unable to access a shot. Across the nation, the demand for vaccines is so firece the New South Wales Health Minister has likened it to the Hunger Games. Giancarlo De Vera, People With Disability Australia, discusses.

Listen here
 
Feature Tweet

We'd love you to get involved in our promotions as we build momentum for #NATSIChildrensDay2021 on 4 August! You can download activities for children and resources including our poster and social media tiles:https://t.co/lhSgKYXy0M#ProudInCulture #StrongInSpirit pic.twitter.com/Zc7lQxHK5q

— SNAICC (@SNAICC) June 30, 2021
Click here to see full tweet
 
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