Today is Indigenous Literacy Day. Launched by The Indigenous Literacy Foundation, today is a chance to acknowledge and celebrate the first languages of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Click here to for ways to celebrate and support.

FECCA appeared at the Senate Finance and Public Administration Reference Committee inquiry into the current capability of the Australian Public Service. FECCA Senior Policy and Project officer, Lauren Stark, presented at the hearing - highlighting challenges people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds encounter when accessing Australian Government services, presenting findings from FECCA’s most recent Multicultural Access and Equity report.

The Climate Council is calling on the Federal Government to listen to the science and develop a whole-of-economy plan to triple Australia’s climate efforts. It says we must get our greenhouse gas emissions down by 75% in the next ten years. Click here to sign the petition.

The Women’s Safety Summit is next week. As governments prepare to finalise the National Plan that will set our country’s direction and framework for the next 12 years, key organisations across the country have come together to jointly call for 12 actions as the starting point for government commitments to women. Thousands of signatures from individuals, organisations and community groups in support of the 12 asks can strengthen the push for these desperately needed changes, and help get what we need from the Safety Summit in September. Can you back the joint call for action now?

More than 300 organisations, businesses and community groups have thrown their support behind a letter the Refugee Council of Australia has written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and all Federal MPs and Senators – calling for urgent action regarding Afghanistan. The letter, signed by 312 groups and sent August 18, includes a plea that the Australian Government do “everything possible to evacuate people at grave risk”. Click here to read the letter in full.

Teaching young people how to identify healthy and respectful relationships helps mitigate experiences of family violence for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, according to a report. The Indigenous-led study found support services must be orientated around families and broader kinship systems. Click here to learn more.

*TRIGGER WARNING* The three busiest days in Lifeline’s 57-year history have been during August, with the service receiving 3,436 calls on Monday, according to new data released by Lifeline Australia today. The record demand for Australia’s largest suicide prevention line is a reminder that this is a physical and mental health pandemic. Click here to read more.

Lieutenant General John Frewen, Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly and CEO of NACCHO Pat Turner have co-signed a letter addressing COVID-19 vaccinations for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The letter that will be sent to Australian COVID-19 vaccine delivery partners states that we all have an important role to play in providing culturally safe vaccination services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

“For all Indigenous Australians to be vaccinated and bridge the current gap, we are asking the whole primary care sector to work together and ensure there is equitable COVID-19 vaccine uptake across Australia.”

The 2021 theme for National Child Protection Week is all about the importance of the ‘bigger picture’ in addressing child abuse and neglect - Every child, in every community, needs a fair go.

Children can thrive and be healthy when they have what they need to develop well. But not every family has these resources. This is why we need to support every child, family and community according to their needs. This will create a healthier, fairer Australia for all children.

This year’s theme is based on the framing research for the Core Story for Early Childhood Development and Learning.

Women's Health Week is a nation-wide campaign of events and online activities – all centred on improving women's health and helping you to make healthier choices.

Women, communities and workplaces are encouraged to get involved by hosting an event, sharing the health information and encouraging women from all corners of Australia to put good health first.

Seventy-five organisations from across Australia have written to state and territory Cabinet Ministers calling for minimum standards for rental properties to safeguard the health of renters and protect them from the impacts of climate change.

The open letter was signed by community, faith, environment, housing, industry, and social sector organisations, including CHOICE, Healthy Futures, People with Disability Australia, and the United Workers Union. It comes after the IPCC issued its most dire warning about the impacts of climate change on public health.

• AI could be a powerful tool in disrupting disadvantage, and is currently doing so in areas such as education, healthcare and service delivery, but can equally be used to further systemic discrimination or harm communities. Is Australia equipped to embrace the opportunities of technological innovations in a way that keeps humans, and their rights and dignities, at the core? Join this UTS Centre for Social Justice & Inclusion Webinar to discuss - 8 September 2021 - Click here for more info and to register

• FWD+ORGANISE 2021 is the place where community organisers and digital campaigners come together to share practical skills, learn innovative approaches to advocacy and build lasting collaborations to win systemic change. Given the COVID-19 situation in cities across the country, the conference will run online over two days, offering all changemakers from across Australia the opportunity to learn from the very best in offline and digital - 2 December 2021 - Click here for more information and to register

• The National COVID Vaccine Taskforce has produced an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communication campaign slide deck. This campaign provides an overview of the communications approach for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander audiences, including creation of custom designs and relevant assets with Indigenous artwork. Click here to access the slides and learn more.

• The closed captioned recording from the launch briefing of Passing the Message Stick is now available, featuring Dr Jackie Huggins AM, Larissa Baldwin (GetUp) and Eleanor Glenn (Common Cause), with case studies from June Riemer (First Peoples’ Disability Network) and Amelia Telford (Seed), as well as appearances from the First Nations Messaging Fellows. The presentation slides are also available with alt-text. Click here to access these resources, as well as a hard copy of the report and a summary.

• The current COVID-19 restrictions are affecting many among us in Australia, particularly family carers caring for a person at the end of life. To support them in their caring role, a range of information resources have been developed by CarerHelp, including factsheets. Click here to access these resources.

Parents of children with disabilities say they're frustrated at having to fight to get their kids vaccinated against COVID-19.

While people with disability are classified as high priority in the rollout, advocates say children with disability are missing from pandemic planning and once again the most vulnerable in society are being forgotten.

Mary Sayers, CEO of Children and Young People With Disability Australia, discusses.

Homeless and vulnerable people living in central Sydney are rushing to get vaccinated, with almost 4,000 doses administered since a joint clinic was set up in May.

Julie Smith, the health services manager at St Vincent de Paul’s Matthew Talbot hostel, said she had seen a dramatic drop in vaccine hesitancy over the past 12 weeks among Sydney’s homeless community as the city was forced into lockdown.

Save the Children's Child Wise managing director Natalie Siegel-Brown said 20,000 children younger than 14 are homeless across Australia.

Scared Aussie street kids younger than 14 have nowhere to live because foster carers don’t want to take in children during Covid-19 lockdowns.

CCA CEO Don Perlgut says post-secondary Aust institutions need to encourage vaccinations ASAP with leadership, education, messaging & and financial incentives https://t.co/uTTdHBvEAQ pic.twitter.com/zCkuFtQkPY

— CommunityCollegesAu (@CCollegesAust) August 9, 2021