Youth key focus at Community Kitchen

SSI staff, volunteers, and youth from migrant and refugee backgrounds came together for the My Kitchen Rocks event.

Now in its second year, Multicultural Youth (MY) Kitchen Rocks was an opportunity for young people from diverse backgrounds to make new friends and take part in activities including sports, candle making and music workshops.

Young people from across Sydney celebrated the last few days of school holidays with live music, workshops, face painting, and a truckload of pizza.

The event, which was organised by SSI, Youth Collective and Auburn Diversity Services Inc (ADSi), attracted close to 80 participants, including a large contingent of newly arrived young people from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds.

SSI Youth Projects Coordinator Dor Akech Achiek said: “MY Kitchen Rocks creates a relaxed, fun environment for newly arrived young people to meet their peers and make new community connections over food, music and sports. It’s a great chance for participants to unwind and just enjoy being young.”

Mr Achiek said SSI was committed to supporting young refugees and people seeking asylum to build their confidence, resilience and self-empowerment.

“The young people we work with have unique skills, ideas and experiences that can greatly benefit our country,” he said. “They do, however, need extra support to overcome additional challenges such as language barriers, identity and culture.

“Events such as MY Kitchen Rocks are a good way to help multicultural young people engage with their local community and make friends with other youth who have experienced similar situations to themselves.”

The Youth Collective will host the 20 Voices Youth Symposium on Education on November 28, which aims to help young people from migrant and refugee backgrounds navigate the education system and work towards their career goals.

All young people aged between 14-24 are welcome to attend. Click here to register your interest.