New data from Australian Red Cross reveals one in three people feel lonely during the festive season, a significant increase from last year. The annual survey of 1000 people commissioned by Red Cross found it was people in the younger age bracket, 18 - 29, who felt more alone, and more women (40%) said they felt lonely compared to men (26%). Click here to learn more.

The Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) welcomes The Scanlon Foundation’s 2021 Mapping Social Cohesion Report, noting its valuable contribution in understanding the strengths and weaknesses of modern, multicultural Australia. Click here to read more.

16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign that kicks off on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs until 10 December, Human Rights Day. The global theme for this year is “Orange the world: End violence against women now!” Click here to learn more and get involved.

Community Colleges Australia (CCA) has proposed two important initiatives to support training and development in Australia’s hard-pressed aged care workforce sector. Click here to learn more.

Asthma Australia is leading a new research project to develop a National Asthma Research Agenda in Australia. To do this, they are asking people to participate in a quick survey. Click here to learn more and participate.

Volunteering Australia proudly supported International Volunteer Day (5 December), which raises awareness of the important role volunteers play in responding to challenges facing the world. The IVD campaign this year, 'Volunteer now for our common future', aims to inspire people to take action now for people and the planet. Click here to learn more.

NATSILS is saddened and angered to ascertain that since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody in 1991, 500 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have lost their lives in custody.

As reported through the AIC’s Deaths in Custody in Australia 2020-21 last week, there have been 489 Indigenous deaths in custody since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. The AIC encompasses deaths in custody up until June 30, 2021, and since then there have been a further 11 Aboriginal deaths in custody.

“To have lost 500 of our people in custody since the Royal Commission handed down their recommendations over 30 years ago is beyond heartbreaking. Our thoughts are with every family member and loved one left behind mourning their loss. Our people continue, and will continue, to die from failures to implement these crucial recommendations. All the while, the burden shifts to grieving family members to push for the change needed to prevent more deaths in custody. The onus and burden of pushing for implementation should be on governments, not families.” - Jamie McConnachie, NATSILS
Executive Officer

Mary Sayers, Children Young People with Disability (CYDA) CEO has warmly welcomed the release of Australia's Disability Strategy saying that it is the most promising blueprint in Australia's history for ensuring children and young people with disability get a fair go. 

The strategy, which builds on the former 10-year National Disability Strategy, was officially unveiled on International Day for People with Disability (3 December) following two years of consultation with local, state and federal governments, the disability sector and people with disability, their families and caregivers.

In particular, CYDA has applauded targeted action to tackle systemic issues which have been identified by young people themselves around education and employment barriers which continue to prevent them from being able to actively participate and pursue the futures they want.

Leading health and medical organisations in Australia say they will not stop pushing for the law to reflect medical science, and for governments to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14.

In an open letter sent yesterday, a coalition of 30 health and medical organisations has called on all state and territory Premiers, Health Ministers and Attorneys-General to urgently raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least 14 years of age.

The letter outlines evidence which shows children under 14 do not possess the capacity to have criminal intent:

• Medical evidence is clear that children under 14 years of age are undergoing rapid brain development which makes them vulnerable to increased impulsivity, sensation-seeking behaviour and peer influence.
  
• Child development and neuroscience demonstrates that maturity and the capacity for abstract reasoning are still evolving in children aged 10 to 13 years, due to the fact that their frontal cortex is still developing.

Young people in Australia aged 15 to 19 years have revealed their greatest issues in 2021 relate to COVID-19, the environment, equity and discrimination, mental health, education and job prospects in Mission Australia’s new Youth Survey Report 2021.

With 20,207 young people surveyed for the 20th annual Youth Survey between April and August this year, this landmark report provides rich and compelling evidence collected during the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic about young people’s challenges, concerns, experiences and barriers to achieving their goals.

• Join the Asylum Seekers Resource Centre (ASRC) last Breakthrough Conversations training workshop for the year. You'll be equipped with the tools and strategies to shift community attitudes through powerful values-based conversations about the rights of people seeking asylum - 11 December 2021 - Click here to learn more and register

• The Settlement Council of Australia invites you to participate in the Settlement Sector Monitoring & Evaluation Webinar. This webinar will kickstart the conversation about monitoring and evaluation practices in the settlement sector and will provide a platform for settlement organisations to share and discuss their monitoring and evaluation experiences - 13 December 2021 - Click here for more information and to register

• Last month, a huge win was secured in the registration dispute with the Australian charities regulator, the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). The decision is expected to embolden charities to pursue political change without fearing their benevolent status. This webinar will explore the landmark case - 15 December 2021 - Click here to learn more and register

• The DPS Aged Care Guide has published 3 new articles on what happens when an older relative or friend moves into your home or if you move into their home. These articles include: Things to consider before your older loved one moves in with you; Multigenerational living: Here's what to consider; and Living with the kids: What to consider before moving in.

• Wiyi Yani U Thangani (Women’s Voices) project builds on the legacy of the 1986 Women’s Business Report. The Australian Human Rights Commission (the ‘Commission’) and the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) have partnered on a national conversation to elevate the voices of Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander women and girls. Led by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar AO, Wiyi Yani U Thagani (Women's Voices) is a multi-year initiative set out to capture what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and girls consider to be their strengths, challenges and aspirations for change. This supporter toolkit provides a framework for how your organisation can engage with Wiyi Yani U Thangani and support First Nations gender justice and equality. 

Homelessness, which fell last year on the back of raised welfare payments, is now more prevalent than it was before the pandemic.

An analysis of federal data by Homelessness Australia... reveals that in May last year, the first full month after the JobSeeker payment doubled, the number of Australians requiring homelessness support dropped about 5 per cent, from 91,672 to 87,301.

The data, reported to federal parliament by the employment department, comes as a separate study by the charity Anglicare suggests most jobseekers believe mutual obligation is doing little to help them find work.

To keep their payments, jobseekers must attend appointments with privatised employment service providers and log their efforts to apply for as many as 20 jobs a month.

All major insurers have now committed to not bill tenants for accidental damage to property, consumer group Choice says.

Choice campaigns director Erin Turner described the old policy as "deeply unfair" and was pleased major insurers had agreed to meet minimum practices.

Erin Turner said the change was great, but legislative change was needed too.
"This is one of the most harmful practices I have seen from the insurance sector, and it's great that we have these commitments," Ms Turner said.

How can this be so? Find out in EJA's report, DEBT, DURESS AND DOB-INS: https://t.co/0CEcZEw2rN #DV #16DaysofActivism #DV @bec_glenn @ACOSS @ANROWS @CLCsAustralia pic.twitter.com/fShwJWfP86

— Economic Justice Australia (@ej_australia) December 5, 2021