Welcoming Futures

About this project:

Our community is made up of many people with extraordinary, multi-generational stories of settling and succeeding in Australia. However, often the knowledge and experience gained throughout this journey is siloed within the community and not passed down equitably to the next generation.

This project aims to bridge this gap by allowing people and organisations that have had success to contribute and give back in order to provide skills and inspiration for the next generation of multicultural youth leaders, thus enriching and deepening the social cohesion of their local communities and opening up new opportunities. We look forward to welcoming aspirational young people from all communities in South Australia.

By backing and contributing to this project, you are:

• Taking part in building the foundations of your local community, as well as that of South Australia. This is a South Australian project for all South Australians.

• Providing an invaluable resource to the next generation, in the forms of a free ebook (available to all in the community) and workshops.

• Inspiring the next generation with you or your family's history of settling in Australia.

• Sharing the knowledge of your culture and learning from others

How you are having a real, lasting impact.

In running Welcoming Futures so far, we've had the privilege of working with, supporting, and impacting the lives of some of South Australia's most promising multicultural youth - and this project is no different!

Here’s how you’re making a real and immediate difference!

The e-book 

With your help, we’re creating a first-of-its-kind, community-authored leadership resource guide book to inspire and develop the next generation of multicultural leaders in South Australia.

This book provides the next generation of SA youth with words of wisdom, advice and inspiration directly from people and businesses in their local community. 

The e-book will be a free resource provided to and read by many thousands of families and young people who are / have settled in South Australia - and will be a valuable resource for years to come!

Download a Sample book entry here!

The Online course

As part of this project, we’re producing our first ever online course composed of our best material in the program thus far. This course will be released on Udemy for free, and will reach thousands of young people in South Australia and abroad.

Presentations

For those with the courage to present, we’re offering a unique opportunity for local SA youth to participate in live, local workshops and benefit from your practical advice in your field of expertise! (conditions apply)

And that is just the beginning!

The motivation behind the project:

People aged 20 to 30 need opportunities to learn and develop transferable leadership skills and soft skills as they transition from education to jobs, careers and families. Different cultural communities in South Australia need opportunities to work, learn and thrive together, building the South Australia they want to belong to.

Welcoming Futures brings together young people from all backgrounds, mentored by people from different communities again, to develop skills through bespoke training. This is put into practice via community projects under the guidance and support of their mentors and each other.

Across 12 months, Welcoming Futures aims to develop confidence, resilience, connection, community and transferable skills, and longer term, this project helps build social cohesion, understanding and cultural safety in our beautiful state.

Who we are

Welcoming Futures is a leadership program that provides opportunities for all young people from diverse backgrounds, to become effective leaders and change-makers within and across their communities in South Australia . 

Welcoming Futures invests in the future of an intercultural South Australia by bringing together young people from mainstream as well as culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds for development and discussion during a one-year leadership program. South Australia has been privileged to grow from the history and cultures of the traditional owners and has matured further as successive waves of arrivals have brought their ideas and practices to this land. Welcoming Futures works to continue the cycle by bringing all of our diverse communities together and offering young people the tools and skills to advocate for their own communities while understanding and appreciating the needs and beliefs of others.

Watch our video below! 

Watch a video of how it all started below!

Our program mentors

Our programs bring in local mentors and experts to provide a rich and wonderful experience for our program participants. 

Our achievements: 

Our achievements to date have included:

• Community workshops in grant writing and understanding the tax system, to bring different people together for connection.

• Walk Together - A community celebration of diversity and inclusion

• Community sportsday fundraiser

• Beyond Arrival - community arts event with stories, music and poetry about new Australians

• Fundraising for Second Chances SA and Bushfire relief

• Community consultation about jobs, opportunities and gaps

• Community dinners to network and socialise

What participants have to say about our programs

Quotes from our participants!

"My absolute favourite thing about being in this program is just the people."

"When I think about what I've achieved so far...if I reflect on the skills I've gained and the network I have now and the confidence...I can definitely feel like an improved person."

"..made me reflect on myself; actually I have the skills and it was just the confidence to do it."

"I'm really happy that I got to know this program, to connect with people like me, to be able to share my story and listen to them"

"Before I didn't know if I had someone have my similar story. Now I know there is someone out there, my story matches."

'As much as it didn't turn out to be what I thought it would be, it's turned out to be actually better."

"I've built more confidence than  I had before. I was just mostly in my shell."

"Being part of this program has taught me a lot about myself, self development, community development....I want to inspire others...motivating myself."

"I've been a bit more outspoken on issues that I do feel more important about."

"I feel that I can be a bit more of an advocate."

"...just the energy of everyone coming together..."

"I can see a bright future for myself, where I can be successful and I can be a prominent member within my East Turkestan community and the wider Australian community and I'm excited."

"The program has helped me redefine how I define community."

"I could join and be of influence."

I am an Organisation - how can I join in?

This project presents an exciting opportunity for organisations and small business owners to help strengthen social cohesion in your local community!

Apart from recieving wonderful rewards for organisations (see rewards!), this projects provides the following unique opportunities: 

• Promote your organisation as having a local impact - through inclusion in our project collateral, e-book, online course, and our marketing
  

• Be proud of having a visible, direct, personal and lasting impact on your local community
  

• Photo opportunities with Welcoming Futures 

Larger donations and opportunities to collaborate are most welcome! Kindly contact us here: 

[email protected]

Thank you for being part of this Amazing community project!

We are a licensed, Australian Not For Profit charitible organisation.

Need help Backing the project? Watch our guide video below! 

All funds will go directly towards the Welcoming Futures 2021 project.