Effective practices of international volunteering for health : perspectives from partner organizations

Abstract: The demand for international volunteer experiences to promote global health and nutrition is increasing and numerous studies have documented the experiences of the international volunteers who travel abroad; however, little is known about effective practices from the perspective of partner organizations. This study aims to understand how variables such as the skill-level of volunteers, the duration of service, cultural and language training, and other key variables affect partner organizations’ perceptions of volunteer effectiveness at promoting healthcare and nutrition..

Media, Art and Stories. Enabling communities’ creative expression in Sydney’s West

The number of projects that aim to engage culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities through media and communication-based activities, as well as other creative forms of expression, has grown exponentially over the past decade. However, there is limited theoretical understanding of the contribution of the arts to the development of social cohesion within such communities. Notably, Gattenhof et al. (2021) and Spurgeon (2013) are amongst those who have investigated the use of these practices in the Australian context. This report aims to contribute knowledge about the connection of media and communication-based activities with identity and participation for diverse CALD communities in Western Sydney, Australia

The Impact of Neoliberalism and New Managerialism on Development Volunteering: An Australian Case Study

Within the large volume of research on aid and development there had been limited study of international development volunteering generally and the ways in which it has been affected by neoliberalism. Development volunteering has undergone a resurgence over the past decade and some new forms of volunteering have emerged but state-sponsored development programs are still a key form. There programs were relatively immune from neoliberal ideas and managerial practices weer operationalised in Australia\u27s volunteering program at the same time as it, and other donor states, softened this focus in the rest of their aid program. These shifts in Australia\u27s development volunteering programs have changed the logic, forms and outcomes of development volunteering

Volunteering and the UN sustainable development goals: Finding common ground between national and international volunteering agendas?

With volunteering recognised for its invaluable cross-cutting role, this paper seeks common ground between national and international volunteering agendas within the new global context created by the adoption of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in January 2016. By highlighting the dearth of research at the intersection between national and international volunteering, and by examining opportunities for collaboration and consolidation, the authors propose that now is the time to bring the separate research agendas together

‘Life is pulled back by such things’ : intersections between language acquisition, qualifications, employment and access to settlement services among migrants in Western Sydney

This paper considers the policy environment and settlement support services provided for migrants arriving in Australia and the challenges faced by them when engaging in a complex policy environment. Using structuration theory, it aims to understand how migrants’ understanding of settlement services relates to their exercise of agency and to the institutional and social structures they draw upon to integrate in the new society. Data were collected through 14 focus group discussions (N = 164), across seven migrant communities in Greater Western Sydney, Australia. The paper highlights access to language services and literacy programmes as contributing to the obstacles affecting migrants’ ability to achieve employment and draw on available settlement services. Three main themes emerged: (i) language barrier; (ii) employment in the new country; and (iii) settlement services. Language posed as a major barrier to find suitable employment and overall settlement. While non-recognition of prior skills or education, and a lack of local employment experience, posed significant barriers for migrants looking for work, participants also found settlement services had not been able to ease this challenging process. Our findings suggest the need to consider pre-migration experiences while planning for interventions that are tailored to better integration of migrants into the Australian workforce

Youth as contested sites of culture : the intergenerational acculturation gap amongst new migrant communities : parental and young adult perspectives

Background. Immigration often results in changes in family dynamics, and within this process of dynamic relational adjustment youth can be conceptualised as contested sites of culture and associated intergenerational conflicts. This paper considers the experiences of migrant youth in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia using conflict as a useful lens through which to view issues of migrant youth identity and their sense of social connectedness, belonging, and agency. The aim of this study was twofold: 1) to explore how migrant youth cope with acculturative stress and intergenerational conflicts, and 2) to better understand the systemic and family-related factors that facilitate positive settlement experiences for migrant youth. Methods. A total of 14 focus group discussions, comprising 164 people, were carried out in Greater Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. These focus groups targeted newly arrived migrant parents and young adults (aged 18+/-24) of African, Burmese, Nepalese, Indian, Afghani, Bangladeshi and Iraqi backgrounds. Each focus group was 1.5 hours in duration and was conducted by a team of three people (an experienced facilitator, an accredited interpreter/bilingual worker, and a note taker). Data were collected using a standard interview schedule, and an accredited interpreter/bilingual worker asked the questions in the appropriate language and translated participant responses into English. Results. The findings highlight how youth in new migrant families become contested sites of culture as they try to balance integration into the new culture while maintaining their originating country's cultural values. Two themes and four subthemes emerged from the analysis: Intergenerational acculturation gap (loss of family capital and intergenerational conflicts); and factors that successfully protected positive family values while still allowing young people to integrate (the legal system that disarm authoritarian parenting practices and family rules; and parental use of children's increased knowledge of the new environment to navigate their new environment). Migrant families conceptualised family capital as the social solidarity, influence, and control governing obligations and expectations, intergenerational knowledge transmission and information flow, social norms, and cultural identity. The loss of family capital was characterised by children's refusal to associate with or meet family members, preferring to be alone in their rooms and private space. Migrant youth find themselves caught between and negotiating two cultures, with unwanted negative consequences at the family level in the form of intergenerational conflicts. The new found freedom among children and their rapid transition into the Australian society gives children an increased sense of agency, which in turn threatens parental authority, allowing children to exercise three forms of power: increased assertiveness due to legal protection of children against any corporal punishment; and English language fluency and greater understanding of the functioning of Australian social institutions. Conclusion. Our findings suggest the need for an inter-generational approach to healthy family dynamics within migrant communities when dealing with youth negotiating the complexity and sensitivity of forging their cultural identity

Demographics characteristics of focus group participants, listed in the order conducted.

<p>Demographics characteristics of focus group participants, listed in the order conducted.</p

Association between access to contraceptive services and family planning, prevention of STDs, and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.

<p>Association between access to contraceptive services and family planning, prevention of STDs, and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.</p

Association between sexual consent as a right and gender-based violence and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.

<p>Association between sexual consent as a right and gender-based violence and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.</p

Association between sexual and reproduction health needs and rights and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.

<p>Association between sexual and reproduction health needs and rights and demographic and socio-economic characteristics.</p