Diversity Award

Presented by Roshana Care Group

This award is for an individual, organisation or group that embraces diversity and promotes inclusion, with an initiative that benefits a particular population group – including, but not limited to – culturally and linguistically diverse, age, ability, Aboriginal people and LGBTQIA+.

To nominate for the 2023 Diversity Award, click here

2022 Winner:

Strong and Resilient Program, HelpingMinds

The Strong and Resilient Communities Program, by HelpingMinds, was launched and delivered in the Kimberley region, with the aim to build strong, cohesive and harmonious communities. It worked to ensure individuals, families and communities can thrive, be free from intolerance and discrimination, and have the capacity to respond to emerging needs and challenges. This program embraces cultural diversity and supports all members of the community including, children, young people, adults and families, with a focus on improving participation, particularly those who may be at risk of becoming disengaged or marginalised. HelpingMinds utilised co-design in the development of the program workshops to ensure community needs were met and accessible. Building on local partnerships, HelpingMinds established a community network meeting ‘Network Link’, across Broome, Derby and Fitzroy Crossing. It invited a range of service providers to meet regularly to discuss services, upcoming events, and how they could collaborate better together for improved outcomes in the community. Each service provider contributed skills, knowledge and services which were showcased at local events and increased local rapport and trust across providers. This proved successful in demonstrating an increase in service accessibility and referrals, and a rise in referral pathways between services, encompassing a Family Inclusive Support Framework.

2022 Finalists:

‘Words to live by' storytelling series, Act Belong Commit, Mentally Healthy WA

The ‘Words to live by’ video storytelling series, produced by Act Belong Commit, Mentally Healthy WA, aimed to showcase how seniors in the community embrace the values of Act Belong Commit within their daily lives and champion positive mental health. Just prior to the series launch, Act Belong Commit released a series of translated resources written in the 11 most used languages in WA. These assisted in providing the necessary tools to support expected interest driven from the project. Adopting the health promotion framework and behaviour change theory underpinning Act Belong Commit, the ‘Words to live by’ project showcased the Act Belong Commit ethos and encouraged people to adopt the protective behaviours known to increase mental health and wellbeing. This was achieved through the powerful art of storytelling, and more specifically role modelling. Seniors from diverse cultural backgrounds were supported and encouraged to: prioritise their mental health; increase their understanding of how they could protect and improve their mental health; and be motivated and inspired to take action. The series featured talent from diverse backgrounds and cultures, but each called WA home. The four inspiring individuals, now in their senior years, shared how they learnt about overcoming challenges, the importance of belonging to family and community, and the joy of giving back to others.

Yorgum Healing Services

Yorgum Healing Services is an Aboriginal community-controlled organisation (ACCO) that supports Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their families living in metropolitan Perth and regional WA (except the Kimberley region). It adopts an inclusive ‘no turn away’ policy that strengthens the role and importance Yorgum plays in the community. Yorgum provides people of all ages (from birth to elderly adults) with a wide range of free, culturally secure, community-based healing services that work within an Aboriginal family worldview. It utilises a holistic, trauma-informed approach to positively impact people’s social and emotional wellbeing and break cycles of inter-generational trauma. Its early intervention services divert Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people away from the mental health system, and similarly divert people away from the child protection and justice systems. Yorgum also has a strong presence in the disability and LGBTQIA+ spaces, with programs, initiatives and specialised trained staff to ensure its services are informed to respond to people whose circumstances encompass a diverse set of needs. Yorgum has developed its own Disability Access and Inclusion Plan, and it is a key partner in the ground-breaking Walkern Katadjin (Rainbow Knowledge) Research Project, led by Telethon Kids Institute and Edith Cowan University, that highlights the experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQI+ young people living in WA.