CONFERENCE: WA Migration and Mobilities Update

This year the Update tackles the important question of belonging, with the theme ‘Belonging in Western Australia: Addressing Migrant and Refugee Inclusion’. Each year around 200,000 people move permanently to Australia, and many more come temporarily for work or education – how are we, as a community, meeting their needs and ensuring they feel they ‘belong’ in Australia? Our program brings together policy makers, not-for-profits, communities and academics to explore questions such as: What does belonging look like? What are migrants’ and ethnic minorities’ experiences of inclusion and exclusion? How can services support belonging? To what extent is Australia’s migration system inclusive? How can we create inclusive spaces for migrants? What are the roles of schools, local councils, the media, and service organisations in generating belonging? Keynote Prof Paolo Boccagni (University of Trento), will speak on “Migrant Home-making: Insights from Europe”, and a range of representatives from community, government and academia will discuss experiences of belonging and unbelonging, and programs designed to promote inclusion, including arts, sports, media, local government and education based interventions.