Some of Our Parts

Internship Program with Aurecon Available in August

There is an Internship Program with Aurecon now available in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

Aurecon is a design, engineering and advisory company. They are committed to diversifying their workplace and culture to make a difference for the community.

If you have a disability, visible or non-visible, mental health condition, medical conditions or injuries and are interested in connecting with supportive and inclusive employers, you are welcome to register on the Field and apply for this opportunity.

• Applications close on 13th August 2023.
• For more details about this internship opportunity please click here and select your preferred state.

If you’d like to learn more about the Field, please contact them at support@thefield.jobs or call 03 9830 0190 Mon-Fri between 9am and 5pm AEST.

Professional Development for Young Deaf and Disabled Artists

Arts Access Victoria is providing a free program ‘Nexus’ starting in August 2023 for young people who are deaf or who have a disability.

• Nexus: Learn how to support yourself as an artist, hear from industry professionals and connect with other Deaf and Disabled artists.
• What: Facilitated by Jax Brown, Nexus is a free professional development program to tools they need to be a professional artist. This includes budgeting, bios, public speaking, grant writing and more. Guest speakers include Jes Layton, Kath Duncan, Caroline Bowditch and more.
• Who: For Deaf and Disabled artists between the ages of 18-25
• When: Starting August 3, Thursdays 1pm-4pm until September 21 (overall 8 sessions)
• Where: Online and Arts Access Offices at 222 Bank St South Melbourne.
• Price: This program is free.
• Link: https://www.artsaccess.com.au/nexus-2023/

Nexus aims to give artists the tools to create a sustainable career in the arts.

Nexus was originally created with mental health in mind, and that is still a strong part of the program.  It’s suited to emerging artists, however, even more established artists need a refresher every now and then.

This is also a chance to meet other Deaf and Disabled artists and build your community.

If you are interested, please fill out an expression of interest form. 

If you have any question or want to know more, you can email Arts Access Victoria’s Creative Producer/Coordinator for Youth Programs Arty Owens: Aowens@artsaccess.com.au

NDIS Review has Participants and People with Disability on Edge

*From ABC News Online

• By the Specialist Reporting Team’s Evan Young and national disability affairs reporter Nas Campanella
• Posted Fri 30 Jun 2023

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) has improved hundreds of thousands of lives across Australia.

However, there have been complaints about bureaucracy, inequality, a lack of transparency around decision making and more for years.

That led to a wide-ranging review of the scheme. It has sought input from thousands of people, but also left some participants nervous about how the scheme might change.

Financial Sustainability

The NDIS currently supports nearly 600,000 participants. Annual spending on the NDIS has reached $35 billion.

At the current growth rate of around 14 per cent each year, spending is projected to reach $97 billion by 2032-33.

The authors of the report emphasised the difficulty of balancing the needs of people with disability with the scheme’s finances.

“The NDIS is an uncapped, needs-based scheme. However, the NDIS must also be sustainable and its costs predictable for governments and the public. It also must provide certainty for participants and their families.”

What’s Next?

The review will make its final report in October.

But before then, now key areas for reform have been identified, the report’s authors want feedback from the Australian public, especially people with disability.

“We need your help again,” they said.

“Together, we can get the scheme we fought for back on track.”

• To give your feedback you can visit ndisreview.gov.au.

Submissions close on August 25 2023.

You can read the whole ABC News article here.

Are You an International Student with a Disability Living in Victoria?

Impact Co. is undertaking a project on behalf of the Department of Health to engage international students to better understand their experience studying in Victoria, with a particular focus on their mental health and wellbeing.

This project aims to improve the existing support services available to international students during their time in Victoria.

To accomplish this, they are seeking the participation of international students with disabilities.

They plan to conduct a 1.5 to 2-hour interview with participants to explore their unique experiences of living, working, and studying in Victoria.

They are particularly interested in understanding international students’ interactions and experiences, if any, with mental health and wellbeing support services.

• Additionally participants will also be reimbursed $175 for their valuable time.

Who Are They Looking For?

• You are 18+ and international student, living in Victoria. (This includes High school, TAFE, University, English Language Course, or other)
• You have a disability

What is Involved?

You will participate in one 1.5-2 hour interview which will explore:

• Your experience living, working and studying in Victoria
• Your interactions and experience (if any) with mental health and wellbeing support services

Will You Be Compensated?

• Participants will receive $175 for their time – *IF they are asked to participate in an interview – not for completing the survey
• If you wish to receive one, participants can receive a certificate of appreciation from Impact Co, The Department of Health and Study Melbourne
• If you are interested, please follow this link.

How to Improve Digital Accessibility at Your Workplace

It’s vital to ensure that your organisation’s digital platforms are accessible to everyone.

This can help people with disability who are your employees, customers and external stakeholders.

NDRC Professional Advisor Rob Crestani shares tips on becoming digitally inclusive and accessible.

Here are some do’s and don’ts to follow:

Do’s:

• Use alt text for images: Screen readers cannot see images. Alt text descriptions help people use screen readers to understand the image’s content.
• Use captions, transcripts and audio description for videos: making videos accessible to people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, and people who are blind or low vision.
• Test digital content with assistive technology: This will help you identify any barriers to accessibility and make necessary changes to ensure everyone can access your content.
• Use simple and clear language: Avoid technical jargon or complex sentence structures that can be difficult for some people to understand.
• Use responsive design: Ensure digital content is accessible and looks good on all devices, including smartphones and tablets.

Don’ts:

• Don’t use colour alone to convey information: People with colour vision deficiency may be unable to differentiate between colours, so it’s important to use text or symbols.
• Don’t use flashing or moving content: This can cause seizures for people with epilepsy or other photosensitive conditions.
• Don’t use small font sizes: Small font sizes make text difficult to read, especially for people with visual impairments.
• Don’t use auto-play for videos or audio: This can be disruptive and overwhelming, especially for people with sensory sensitivities.
• Don’t use inaccessible PDFs: PDFs can be difficult for screen readers to navigate, so it’s essential to provide accessible versions or alternative formats.

JobAccess Celebrates 17 Years of Service and Innovation this July!

Since 2006, JobAccess has been the first port of call on everything related to disability employment.

Over the years:

• JobAccess has assisted more than 440,000 people – including jobseekers with disability, employers and service providers – with expert advice, support and information.
• JobAccess has managed over 63,000 applications for funding workplace modifications. And each one has made a difference in supporting the employment and retention of people with disability in the workforce.
• The National Disability Recruitment Coordinator (NDRC) has partnered with over 380 large organisations to build their disability confidence and competence.
• Since 2012, the CRRS and the Hotline have lodged more than 15,700 complaints or reports of abuse to improve outcomes for people with disability and service providers.

You don’t have to go it alone when getting support or supporting someone at work. JobAccess is here to help.

• To find out more about how JobAccess could help your organisation, visit their website, call them on 1800 464 800 or email them at: JobAccess@workfocus.com.

Apply for this Free industry mentoring program for students & jobseekers with disability – Applications open

AND has applications for the Spring 2023 intake for their free national PACE Mentoring Program! Students, graduates and jobseekers with any types of disability, mental health condition or chronic illness will have the opportunity to be mentored by an industry professional from one of the Australian leading businesses and organisations from August to December 2023.

International students are welcome to apply too.

• Applications open now and close end of June (with potential of extension to July; late applications are welcome too).

Be Employed as Short Term RAs on Research Projects

This is a Monash wide scheme for Undergraduate and Postgraduate Coursework students to be employed as short term RAs on research projects.

• You can find info on research project opportunities here.

Summer and winter research scholarships are run over the summer and winter breaks.

If you’re interested in a research career or furthering your studies through an honours program, this is a great opportunity to get ahead over the holidays.

Research scholarships aim to provide you with:

• experience in an area of research
• an insight into future opportunities within research
• encouragement to pursue a career in research or academia.

If successful, you will take part in research-related activities.

Faculty of IT Student Team on Assistive Tech

Modelled off the very successful Faculty of Engineering model, the Monash IT Faculty has launched its own Student Teams initiative.

This is designed to get students together (not just from FIT) to work under the banner of a main idea/topic/initiative on semi-autonomous projects.

• You can find more information on Student Teams here. 

A dedicated team on Assistive Tech was launched and after a slow start is gathering some momentum.

You can find out about Assistive Tech here.

2023 Give Respect Art Competition Now Open!

We are excited to announce that the Give Respect Art Competition is open for submissions!

As an opportunity to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion in our community, the competition challenges participants to create artwork that encourages reflection on these topics.

This year, we have revamped the creative challenge to align with the launch of Monash’s new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Framework.

We encourage Monash students and staff to submit an original piece of art that relates to this year’s theme: Art that evokes reflection about equity, diversity or inclusion.

• The competition is open until the end of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Week on Friday 8 September.

So, you have plenty of time to get into your creative flow and submit your artwork.

The winner will receive recognition for their contribution, as well as:

• $1000 for 1st place student
• $500 for 2nd place student
• and 2 x Gold Class movie vouchers for 1st place staff!

To learn more about the competition requirements and submission guidelines, please visit the Give Respect Art Competition website.

We encourage everyone to participate in this exciting initiative to promote respect and help contribute to thriving communities.