The Settlement Council of Australia* (SCOA) welcomes the Government’s announcement to increase Australia’s humanitarian intake by an additional 12,000 permanent places for Syrian and Iraqi refugees.

The Settlement Council of Australia* (SCOA) supports the call for an urgent action to increase the refugee resettlement numbers in Australia in response to the growing global humanitarian crisis with millions displaced from their homes fleeing the conflict in Syria. The settlement sector in Australia are world leaders in assisting and welcoming newly arrived refugees and are well positioned to support an increase in Australia’s refugee intake.

The world is facing many challenges as unprecedented numbers of people flee their homes in search of somewhere safe to settle: how we treat fellow human beings should be a top priority.

Welcome to the SSI Food Blog. Whether they are SSI employees, volunteers, refugees or people seeking asylum, the people featured here all share a love of food. One of the many benefits of multiculturalism is delicious food, so let’s enjoy!

Multi-talented visual artist and musician Babak, from Iran, will collaborate with Ethernet Orchestra, led by musician and researcher Dr Roger Mills, for a series of special performances at the Parramatta Lanes Festival 2015. Babak came to Australia as a refugee and he receives support from SSI’s Humanitarian Services Program.  

Australia’s history is inherently linked to the ocean, with migrants arriving on the country’s shores for hundreds of years. It’s a colourful history that was introduced to a group of people who are seeking asylum in Australia earlier this month, courtesy of a group of SSI volunteers.

The world is facing many challenges as unprecedented numbers of people flee their homes in search of somewhere safe to settle: how we treat fellow human beings should be a top priority.

Essa Khan, 45, from Pakistan is seeking protection as a refugee in Australia but on Tuesday, August 18, he rubbed shoulders with Australian Government and opposition politicians at Parliament House. 

They say home is where the heart is, and for people seeking asylum in Australia this can be a difficult question to answer. For most of them, ‘home’ oscillates between the memories of the homeland they left behind and of a new place that is unknown but filled with hope.

To celebrate World Refugee Day on Saturday, June 20, 2015, SSI was host to the inaugural New Beginnings: Refugee Arts and Culture Festival, which showcased the talents of refugees and asylum seekers in the community.

Twelve staff from SSI attended Northcott’s inaugural Cultural Competency in Diversity Conference last week held in Parramatta. The focus of the two day event was to introduce an innovative model of cultural competency for the disability sector in NSW, with the launch of the Cultural Diversity Competency Framework (CDCF) and a range of tools to assist disability service providers to be more culturally competent when working with people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds.

Migrants from Western Europe who arrived in the "50s and "60s in Australia were seen with hostility and suspicion by many in the local community. These are now well-settled communities but as new comers, they struggled to fit in. 

Sefullah is from the Iranian village of Palk Lak of Arkvazi, in the Illam Province, where he lived before making his journey to Australia. Sefullah is a self-taught artist, who researches different styles of painting and schools of thought. 

Mohammed is a multi-disciplinary artist working in the areas of photography, performance and graphic design.  Mohammed lived in Iraq where he obtained a degree in theatre performance from Basra's College of Arts. In Baghdad, he had his own studio and appeared in a number of productions and radio plays.

Mohanad was born in Nasiriyah, Iraq. He started painting when he was six as he was encouraged by his grandfather, who bought painting material for him. After graduating from the Arts & Carving Institute in Iraq, Mohanad moved to Syria where he kept painting, drawing and showing his works in several exhibitions.

Mahdi, who was born in Iran, has a passion for calligraphy, creative writing and painting. After finishing school, Mahdi began painting and decorating city walls in Iran where he enjoyed turning dull city walls into colourful and bright themes.

Hayder completed a BA in Fine Arts at the University of Baghdad, in his native Iraq, in 2008. From 2009 to 2011, he worked as an art teacher with the Ministry of Education of Iraq.

Settlement Services International (SSI) today announced education scholarships worth $60,000 as part of the launch of the new SSI Foundation. Formerly known as the Connect Australia Foundation, the SSI Foundation introduces more categories of support and increased amounts distributed.

Farid was born in Tehran. He started painting at the age of 4, after his mother noticed a creative streak in him. He graduated with a Civil Aviation degree in Iran before arriving in Australia in 2013 with his wife and children. 

Damon began his photographic journey more than 20 years ago with his father’s old Konica camera in Iran. He started experimenting by taking images of nature, people and his surroundings.