Welcome to this special December edition of the MYAN Australia e-Newsletter - the final edition for 2013, presenting multicultural youth issues through a national lens.
MYAN National Update
Refugee Youth in Focus - National Forum Report
The MYAN was proud to auspice Australia's first ever national forum on young people from refugee backgrounds in partnership with the University of Sydney Law School in July this year.
Refugee Youth in Focus was a landmark event - bringing together those working in policy, research and practice across the education, health, settlement and law sectors. A Report on Forum proceedings, including summaries of plenaries and workshops, is now available on our website - or download a copy
here.
MYAN State and Territory Updates
MYAN NSW
Employment and Multicultural Young People Forum
In November, MYAN NSW held a half-day forum on Employment and Multicultural Young People. Held in partnership with Blacktown City Council, the forum was an opportunity to highlight the issues faced by young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds in finding work; promote examples of projects helping to address these issues; and explore ways to address some of the key issues and remove barriers. More than 50 people from a wide range of services and organisations attended. A Forum report will be available in early 2014.
NT – Multicultural Youth NT (MyNT)
Our Journey -an award wining film
MyNT's '
Our Journey' wins the Best Sound; Best Film and the People's Choice Awards at the NT's Fist Full of Films Festival. For 6 months in 2012 young people from Multicultural Youth NT (MyNT) came together with facilitators and film makers from Darwin Community Arts (DCA) and Captiv8 to make a film telling the stories of young people in Darwin. Developed by the group, the documentary explored the lives of 5 young people of different cultural backgrounds living in Darwin. Watch the amazing award winning video
here.
SA - Multicultural Youth South Australia (MYSA)
Multicultural Youth Music and Culture Festival
MYSA hosted its annual M
ulticultural Youth Music and Culture Festival for the seventh year in a row, which was again attended by thousands of spectators. The festival is held in Rundle Mall in Adelaide's CBD and brings together a diverse range of communities to celebrate South Australia’s cultural diversity and recognise multicultural young people as active contributors to cultural harmony and multiculturalism. The festival is a free event, jam-packed with talented multicultural performers, activities, stalls and fashion parades to form an artistic cultural fusion.
QLD – MYAN QLD
'Follow My Lead' Multicultural Youth Conference
The MYAN QLD held the first-ever state based Multicultural Youth Conference on the 5
th and 6
th November 2013 on the Gold Coast - attended by by 65 young people from 15 different cultures, all of whom gained sponsorship to attend. The conference served as a means for young people from diverse backgrounds to interact and build relationships with one another. Young people identified that this was their first opportunity to engage with youth from other cultures over a two day period. The combination of inspirational facilitators, hands-on workshops and team building sessions guaranteed a free exchange of ideas and experiences between young people. For more details, go to www.myan.org.au/qld or contact Marida Roux, MYAN QLD Project Officer at maridar@acsl.org.au.
VIC - Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY)
CMY's 2012-2013 Annual Report
2013 marks the first year of implementation of CMY's new Strategic Plan. A new organisational structure has been embedded and the four key themes of MY Community, MY Journey, MY Voice and MY CMY are in place. The new Strategic Plan gives CMY the opportunity to develop its accountability and reporting mechanisms over the lifespan of the plan. Read the Report
here.
Inter-generational Conflict Forum
A forum on inter-generational conflict among CaLD families was held in partnership with Relationships Australia, MacKillop and Spectrum MRC, with over 120 people attending. CMY presented its’ 'Migrant and Refugee Young People Negotiating Adolescence in Australia' Briefing Paper, which was based on consultations with young people and the sector.
WA – MYAN WA
Humanitarian Youth Settlement Factsheet
The MYAN WA recently released it's first
Youth Settlement Factsheet. The first of its kind in WA, the
Factsheet was developed by MYAN WA to provide the youth and settlement sectors with a snap shot of data on humanitarian youth arrivals in WA over the last five years. The information presented is derived from statistics collated by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) based on the data records of people arriving in Australia under the Humanitarian Program as at 3 December 2013. Download the
Factsheet here
MYAN WA is also planning it's first Youth Settlement Forum to be held on Monday 17th February 2014 at the South Ballajura Community Centre, Ballajura WA. The forum will bring together service providers, research, youth mentors to explore key issues and best practice models in the youth settlement sector. For more information contact Ashleigh Haw at ashleigh.haw@mmrcwa.org.au
TAS - MYAN TAS
Planning underway for MYAN TAS
MYAN Australia delivered training in Tasmania in November for those working with young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds across Tasmania. Supported by DSS TAS office, this was an exciting opportunity to bring together workers from across the state to explore good practice in the youth settlement context, as well as consider the future of MYAN TAS. These discussions will continue in 2014, with the next meeting planned for February - with a focus on exploring the scope and purpose of MYAN TAS, and how the network might best engage both with young people and the sector across the state. Contact Gillian Long for further information at glong@mrchobart.org.au.
New National Initiatives & Reports
New national pilot to support improved service coordination for youth employment pathways
A new national initiative will see nine agencies develop a suite of partnerships to improve employment pathways for newly arrived young people of migrant and refugee backgrounds (aged 16 to 25). Focusing on service coordination rather than service delivery, the nine Community Youth Hubs will pilot innovative approaches, networks and collaborations in the LGAs of Parramatta (2), Bankstown, Blacktown, Logan (2), Brimbank, Dandenong and Wyndham over 2014. CMY will support the implementation and evaluation of the pilot. For information contact Mark Lawrence, National Coordinator – Community Youth Hubs:
mlawrence@cmy.net
This report presents research findings from the Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Project “
Social Networks, Belonging and Active Citizenship Among Migrant Youth in Melbourne and Brisbane”, conducted over a four-year period from 2009 to 2012. Download a copy of the Report
here.
The MYAN wishes all a safe and restful festive season and we look forward to working with you in 2014
