The viral video of an NSW Police officer using physical violence in response to a swearing teenager has rightly caused outrage at a time of heightened racial tensions across the world.

New research by Settlement Services International and the Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University, challenges narrow economic definitions of successful refugee settlement and, instead, suggests social and civic dimensions are equally valid markers of refugee integration.

You know you’re in a toxic relationship when there is a negative change in the way you see yourself and your relationship with the world. For me, the signs have been clear for years: our country is stuck in a toxic relationship with itself, and we urgently need to come to terms with who we really are.

"The virus doesn’t discriminate but the government is discriminating by visa type." As a signatory to an open letter sent to the Prime Minister today, Settlement Services International (SSI) has backed calls across the community services sector to leave nobody behind, “build back better” and avoid mass-unemployment and social unrest after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Six months ago, we could not have predicted the immense impact the COVID-19 pandemic would have on our lives, businesses and economy.

The Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Stuart Robert, today announced Settlement Services International (SSI) would deliver frontline Local Area Coordination Services for the NDIS in two areas in New South Wales.

Like many essential services, SSI last week faced a decision about how to protect our staff and clients from the growing COVID-19 pandemic without disrupting our delivery of critical support to vulnerable communities.

Nearly 200 women from diverse backgrounds took the opportunity of SSI’s International Women’s Day (IWD) event, Empowering Women through Employment, to discuss the strengths of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) women in the workplace.

Federal Minister for Women, Senator the Hon Marise Payne, and Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business, Senator the Hon Michaelia Cash, were among the participants today at an event in Parramatta to improve understanding of the strengths of women from diverse background in work.

The 2020 International Women’s Day theme is Each for Equal. An equal world is one where we’re all responsible for our thoughts and actions. Every day, we have the power to take small steps towards gender equity.

Eighty-two signatories have endorsed an open pledge to support an affordable, inclusive community refugee sponsorship program in Australia, launched by SSI and 65 other community groups prior to the first-ever Global Refugee Forum (GRF), hosted by UNHCR in Geneva in December 2019.

A high jobless rate among newly arrived refugees is not indicative of a systemic unemployment crisis and typifying it as such ignores the long-term trends in refugee settlement, according to a leading refugee settlement provider.

Sitting in the kitchen with my mum a few weeks ago, I had the immense privilege of telling her that on January 26 I would be appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to the community, particularly in the area of refugee support.

SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis will amplify her community impact in 2020 through a series of new board appointments

A retired police superintendent, a dance artist and members of a Community Hub were among recipients of SSI’s 2019 Community Appreciation Awards.

Kurdish-Iranian journalist Behrouz Boochani’s long trip to safety made headlines around the world last month. After six years on Manus Island under Australia’s offshore processing regime, Behrouz obtained a temporary visa to visit New Zealand for a literary event and took a circuitous route to safety that involved a 19-hour layover in the Philippines.

A common misunderstanding about refugees is that they are the sole beneficiaries of our country’s resettlement program. A government-commissioned report released last week challenges this misconception by highlighting all that we have to gain by effectively welcoming newcomers.

A unique approach to regional refugee settlement is delivering strong results for integration and refugee retention in the new settlement location of Armidale, offering insights that will guide other regional centres seeking to welcome newcomers as long-term members of their communities.

Last week, Colombo Social, a fresh new Sri Lankan restaurant dedicated to providing employment for asylum seekers launched in Enmore, dishing up colourful Sri Lankan cuisine.

Leading agency calls for immediate action * Investing in Refugees, Investing in Australia: the findings of a Review into Integration, Employment and Settlement Outcomes for Refugees and Humanitarian Entrants in Australia. Settlement Services International (SSI), one of Australia’s largest refugee settlement agencies, calls for three immediate actions in response to today’s report, citing employment and community models in their Regional Settlement Strategy as key to future success.