The Welcoming Cities Award – Sarah Janali

Sebastian GeersArticles, Blog, News1 Comment

Sarah Janali and Ken Dachi share the inaugural Welcoming Cities Award, given to outstanding individuals in the sector. This award recognises those who go above and beyond to cultivate a culture of welcome and inclusivity in their communities.  Sarah Janali Sarah Janali is a community development practitioner with more than … Read More

Rural Welcoming Communities Exchange Program 2023.

Sebastian GeersArticles, Blog, NewsLeave a Comment

From the 25 – 30 April eight Australian representatives from rural councils across the country will join colleagues from rural councils across America for the Rural Welcoming Communities Exchange Program (RWCE). The exchange experience will be based in California and the group will attend conference sessions discussing different perspectives on … Read More

Welcoming Cities Awards for Change 2022

Sebastian GeersArticles, Blog, News

The Welcoming Cities team are delighted to announce the winners of the inaugural Welcoming Cities Awards for Change. The awards celebrate leading practice and innovation in advancing welcoming and inclusive communities.  The Welcoming Cities Awards celebrate change made in communities by individuals, organisations and local councils. They acknowledge the progress that strengthens social cohesion with newly … Read More

Virtual Welcoming Cities Symposium 2020

Sebastian GeersArticles, Blog, NewsLeave a Comment

Due to COVID-19, Welcoming Cities hosted a virtual Symposium. The virtual symposium will consist of weekly webinars sharing all of the presentations from the original Symposium program. The “Virtual” Welcoming Cities Symposium features all of the presenters, from the cancelled Symposium in weekly sessions. The Welcoming Cities Symposium brings together … Read More

Diversity is More Than a Quota

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3 steps to help address bias and increase inclusion within your organisation As the benefits for diversity within organisations become better understood, companies are quickly scrambling to rebrand their organisations to create an inclusive and diverse workforce. However, many companies still fail to attract interest from diverse candidates, or they … Read More

The Art of Welcome

Aleem AliArticles, Blog1 Comment

The idea of welcome as more than a greeting, but as an underpinning of commerce and socioeconomic development, existed centuries before colonial rulers long over-stayed theirs. Richard Trudgen in his seminal work on the Yolŋu outlines the trade practices of the First Nations peoples from what is now known as … Read More

Building Tomorrow’s Communities

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“That the National General Assembly supports the Welcoming Cities initiative launched by the Scanlon Foundation and Welcome to Australia in March 2016; and the development of The Australian Standard for Welcoming Cities, to support local councils in their work to create more inclusive communities” – Resolution carried at the Australian … Read More

Welcome is Not a Dirty Word

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Current sound bites, headlines and social media diatribe would suggest the life support system has long been turned off on visionary and principled leadership in Australian politics. The daily mantra seems to be – Another day, another opportunity to drive a wedge between ‘us’ and ‘them’. Whether it’s denigrating people … Read More

It’s Time to Rescue Brand “Australia”

Aleem AliArticles, BlogLeave a Comment

A few career changes ago, I managed a branding and design agency. Our primary task was to help our clients communicate their organisation, product or service. We worked to create a strong brand so that people would choose our client’s company or service over and above their many competitors. Since … Read More

6 Steps to Countering a Narrative of Fear

Aleem AliArticles, Blog1 Comment

Welcome to Australia. A nation of contrasting landscapes, people and politics. Where we perform welcome to country at most major events, yet the traditional owners struggle for legitimacy and recognition on their land. Where almost everyone you meet has a migrant story, yet the current government is in a race … Read More

When Fear Trumps Fact

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As the dust begins to settle on Australia’s 2016 federal election, concerns are being raised about one of the clear outcomes – the return of Pauline Hanson and One Nation. The political party’s policies on multiculturalism, Islam, and immigration champion a return to assimilationist White Australia policy and zero net … Read More

Migration is a Solution, Not a Problem

Aleem AliArticles, Blog2 Comments

8 things a whirlwind trip across the United States revealed and reminded me about welcome In the last two weeks of April 2016, I had the opportunity to travel across the United States with a couple of my Welcome to Australia colleagues*. We began in Atlanta for Welcoming America’s national … Read More