Hello, and welcome to another edition of Just News. This week, we're singing along to the Artful Dodgers Studios' Megaphone music showcase in Melbourne, sneaking a peek at our brand-new website design, commemorating the sombre anniversary of Australia's offshore processing of asylum seekers, and reading about the trusting relationships that make our work in Western Sydney so effective. We hope you enjoy the edition.

Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan has been approved! Find the current version on Gemba (log in and hit this link). This document represents an important step in our journey to becoming an even more welcoming and inclusive organisation. We'll be regularly monitoring and reporting on progress against this plan – expect an update in a future Just News.

And our regular reminder to staff in Victoria that we're strongly recommended to work from home if we can, and wear masks in the office around other people, in line with Victorian Government health advice. Chat to your line manager or general manager with any questions or concerns.

STORY | Trust and relationships at the heart of the Willmot Community Hub

For more than a decade, our Willmot Community Hub in Western Sydney has met the needs of its local community – from groceries to playgroups, parenting classes to community breakfast catch-ups, the Hub provides a place to share and connect.

For our winter fundraising newsletter, Hub staff Delander and Monique (pictured above) and Leon shared how the Hub makes a difference.  

“It takes a lot of courage for someone to come up and say, ‘Can you help me?’ and it’s an honour for us to help meet that need," said Leon. "We may not be able to give everything that they ask for, but we do our best to give them what we can.”

NEWS | Megaphone stage for Melbourne's emerging music talents

Some of Melbourne’s most talented emerging artists spent the eve of International Youth Day onstage at the Arts Centre, sharing their original music with a captivated crowd at our Artful Dodgers Studios’ Megaphone showcase event.

Artful Dodgers Studios is a flexible and welcoming studio space where young people living with difficult circumstances create art and music with the support and mentorship of experienced artists and musicians.

Over 100 young musicians come to the Studios each year, and three artists – rapper El Kato, The Desolettes, and soul singer Mia Prestige – joined renowned singer-songwriter Ajak Kwai in the August edition of the free, regular industry showcase, which you can learn more about at our website.

UPDATE | CAPSA commemorates offshore processing anniversary

The Catholic Alliance for People Seeking Asylum (CAPSA), co-convened by Jesuit Social Services and Jesuit Refugee Services, has commemorated the sombre 10th anniversary of Australia resuming offshore processing of people seeking asylum by supporting community members to hold their own vigil events. CAPSA representatives also met recently with Immigration Minister Andrew Giles and shared concerns about offshore processing as well as other key issues.

More than 3000 people seeking asylum in Australia by boat have been detained offshore and prevented from resettling in Australia under the policy, and 216 people remain on Nauru and in Papua New Guinea, according to the Refugee Council of Australia.

In commemorating the 13 August anniversary, CAPSA acknowledged the experience of people who have been affected by the policy, and mourned its harshness and injustice.

PHOTO | New website sneak peek

Our new website is under construction. This work is happening with the support of our internal Steering Group and the input of staff and teams across the organisation. More work is still to come before the website goes live, and we'll update you again closer to launch. Stay tuned!

Preceda access

Here are a few password tips that might assist you when using Preceda:

• Minimum 8, maximum 10 characters;
• Must begin with an alpha character and contain a minimum of one numeric character;
• Special characters are allowed, such as #, &, etc.

• If the password doesn’t work two times, you can reset the password by clicking on the Forgotten Password? link on the login screen before it locks you out on the third attempt.

If you are locked out of the system, please email Payroll@jss.org.au with the subject: URGENT: Preceda Account Reset Required and your account will be unlocked.

Welcome

Please join us in welcoming David Chu to his role as Administration Officer in the Operations Team.  David started with us on11 August and works from the reception area along with the Operations Team and ICT in our central office in Richmond.

Welcome back to our regular Ecological Justice update, which appears in every second edition of Just News. Here, we respond to the recently released State of the Environment report, and reflect on First Nations sovereignty and voice – recognising that the lands we live on have thrived for millennia under First Nations custodianship, and the fundamental role First Nations leadership plays in achieving ecological justice.

Social and environmental justice are inseparable

In the two centuries since colonisation, increasing pressures from climate change, habitat loss, invasive species, pollution, and resource extraction have led us down a grim path. According to Australia’s recently released 2021 State of the Environment report, the health of our environment is poor and deteriorating.  At least 19 ecosystems are collapsing or near collapse, and climate change is impacting all aspects of the environment, affecting the soil, water and vegetation that we rely on to survive. 

The 2021 report is the first iteration to include Indigenous people as co-authors. The influence of Indigenous authors means this iteration is also the first to speak to the reality of our interconnectedness: that the wellbeing of Country is inextricably linked to the wellbeing of people.

Transformation is needed

While some of these devastating changes are already a reality, there is hope for our future. We are deeply privileged here in Australia to be living on lands that have thrived for millennia under the custodianship of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, the longest continuing culture in the world. Indigenous traditional knowledge, practice, ways of relating and being are essential if we are to shift our trajectory.

In his recent opinion piece for Guardian Australia, Yuin man Jack Pascoe wrote about his discussions with a senior Yuin man who wanted Australian society to deepen its understanding of the principles and values underpinning Indigenous cultures. Pascoe said, “Unk wanted Australians to feel as we do, that Mother Earth is our kin. It is our responsibility to care for her like she was flesh and blood. In return for this care of Country, she will care and provide for us as she always has.”

Rapid decarbonisation of our energy system, expanding Indigenous land management and effective protections for biodiversity and waterways are key steps, but Pascoe’s piece and the findings of the report make clear that the transformation required calls for something deeper from Australian society - changing the way we see ourselves in the world and the systems we live within. Read our latest blog to learn more.

"Invest in our solutions" at Garma Festival

We encourage everyone to watch the episode of Q&A recorded at last month's Garma Festival, with an entirely First Nations panel. You can stream it on ABC iview here.

Garma Festival is a celebration of the cultural, artistic and ceremonial traditions of the Yolngu people in north-east Arnhem Land. This year’s festival was based around the theme of “Nhanga Ngathilyurra”, meaning to look ahead towards the future. Part of the Q&A discussion focused on the Prime Minister's announcement that Australia will be asked, through a referendum, whether the constitution should be changed to create an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.

When reflecting on the Voice to Parliament, June Oscar AO, a Bunuba woman from Fitzroy Crossing and Indigenous rights activist, community health worker, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner shared a powerful statement: "May I remind people that the institutions, the systems, the policies and the bureaucracies that have been created by others, who think they know our lives better than we, have created this mess for us. And these systems are discriminatory… our people are saying, 'Invest in our solutions. We can help to do this.' So we desperately need to reform institutions and systems that are in place... But I know that we’re capable of also dealing with the bigger issue around the fact that we had not ceded sovereignty of this country."

Julie Edwards was in health media publication Croakey last week, sharing how we've managed the challenges of COVID-19 – head here to read a great overview of how our programs and work practices have adapted. 

Our CAPSA coordinator Maeve Elrington penned an opinion piece for Eureka Street on former refugee Mostafa ‘Moz’ Azimitabar's case against the Australian Government, where he's seeking compensation for what he alleges was unlawful detention.

If you missed it, the latest Closing the Gap annual progress report was released on 3 August – we responded with a media release arguing the report highlights the importance of Aboriginal self-determination to enable better outcomes.

Have you been to one of our all-staff Lunchtime Learning online sessions yet? If you missed our recent Homeless Week or relational youth justice security sessions, don't worry: we've just uploaded recordings to our YouTube. They're informative, interesting, and easily accessible – and you'll be invited by email to the next session.

“It is imperative that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and community-controlled organisations are supported and funded to identify and implement what is needed to give their communities the best opportunities to thrive... With tailored support and targeted investments, we hope to see improvement across all Closing the Gap targets to allow all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to flourish.”

— Julie Edwards

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