Refugee Reflections, the newsletter of the Canterbury Refugee Resettlement and Resource Centre (CRRRC) is produced to bring people in the communities up to date with what the CRRRC has been up to. It's an insightful read. Here is some of what the newsletter says.
Refugee Reflections
Annual Regional Refugee Forum 2018
Canterbury Refugee Resettlement & Resource Centre organised its annual regional forum on Thursday the 15th of March which was another outstanding success. This year’s theme was the challenges facing refugee youth, and attendees heard a variety of speakers from the health and academic sectors as well as a panel discussion of articulate and ambitious young people.
In a year which is already proving remarkable for youth both locally and internationally, we were very privileged to hear the voices of refugee youth speaking on issues of concern in a way that bodes extremely well for refugee background communities and for the wider New Zealand society we are all a part of.
If you would like a copy of the presentation please email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
CRC Housing meetings outcome
It was decided to reconvene the meeting once the next quota of refugees would come to Christchurch as no decision has been made yet. In regard to the housing situation for those living in Christchurch the group agreed on strengthening the inter-agency collaboration while noting that it is just not a problem for specific groups but is a regional issue.
Active Citizen Programme in New Zealand
Active Citizens is a social leadership training programme by the British Council that promotes intercultural dialogue and community-led social development.
The programme aims to bring together people with different beliefs and perspectives to learn from and share with each other. The participants are trained in the skills and knowledge needed to affect social change in their communities. The programme is delivered around 54 countries across eight regions.
The first Active Citizens programme in New Zealand was held in Auckland in March. One of the staff from Canterbury Refugee Centre was a part of the programme, and got the opportunity to network with a new network of people doing incredible work in their communities.
Human Rights Commission Consultation meeting
The Canterbury Refugee Centre organised a consultation meeting with the Human Rights Commission on Saturday 14 April. The purpose of the meeting was to seek feedback from people who wear religious head coverings for example in public, when
applying for jobs and while working orstudying.Theconsultationisapart of the response from Human Rights Commission to a high number of complaints they have received from people all around the country reporting discrimination because of their attire.
Through the meeting HRC seeks to engage in respectful dialogue on some of the challenges and solutions to help them develop an appropriate response.
For more on the CRRRC's work go to http://www.canterburyrefugeecentre.org.nz/