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http://blogs.nybg.org/plant-talk/2015/08/garden-programming/join-mario-batalis-chefs-for-a-garden-to-table-meal/

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http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/01/in-berlin-a-market-focuses-on-food-and-community/?_r=0

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My contribution is to take photos of the agreed location and to write a speech for the opening of the garden.

I referenced a couple of speeches given over the past that focused on what I believe to be the real strength of the project. Multiculturalism and community.

I wanted the tone to be a little conversational as the audience would probably only number in the double digits and anything more formal could be quite isolating.

The language repeats a little to make sure that the common threads stay throughout the whole piece.

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Welcome Speech to be delivered at the opening of the garden

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Welcome Speech to be delivered at the opening of the garden

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SPEAKER : SABA VASEFI

ASYLUM SEEKER CENTRE AMBASSADOR

To some extant we have all been outsiders at some point in our lives. Whether we changed jobs, moved cities, or even countries. This sort of change can be daunting, even when done in the best of circumstances. While some may have the support of family through the whole process some come from a much more isolated background, but, there is one thing we can all gather around, and that is the table.

I am Saba Vasefi and we are here to open a market garden in conjunction with the Newtown Asylum Seeker Refuge. We hope that this garden will create a community table where we can welcome members of the community, both old and new, and the people that are coming into the refuge with no home, no connections, and at times only a faint cultural identity.

Newtown is an amazing place. You can walk down King Street and see people from all walks of life. It is the perfect example of what makes Australia such a wonderful place to live. It is no surprise that Australia is often ranked highly in terms of multiculturalism. We can see it everyday on the streets here, and do you know what one of the best things about it is? Food.

We can walk ten minutes on King Street and pass Thai restaurants, Malaysian, African, Mediterranean, and the list goes on. No matter who you are this is something that you can welcome. We eat better and more varied food everyday. And now we are bringing it to your block.

Consider this a large family kitchen. You are welcome to come and plant and nurture this garden, and in time harvest a connection to the other people here. There are so many stories that we see come through the doors at the Refuge, and we want you to have a chance to get to know these amazing people. I think that when you do, you will wish that you had that chance sooner.

I can tell you that when I moved here from Iran I was scared. I felt alone. But, there were people that welcomed me, and to them I am eternally grateful. I am here to ask you to be that for someone. Be the person that makes them feel a little joy, and maybe you could even learn a new recipe or two while you're at it.

REFERENCES

“Our Ambassadors” Asylum Seekers Centre. 2015. https://asylumseekerscentre.org.au/about-us/our-ambassadors/

Soutphommasane, Tim. “Multiculturalism and 'Team Australia' : Speech to community relations commission for a multicultural NSW symposium”. 2014. https://www.humanrights.gov.au/news/speeches/multiculturalism-and-team-australia-speech-community-relations-commission

Debnam, Peter. “Practical Multiculturalism : Australia Day speech”. 2007. http://www.peterdebnam.com.au/content/view/364/77/

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This is also a workshop that will also be aimed at getting the kids involved. It is a creepy crawly tower, all built will recycled materials for the purpose of providing a home for pollinators, pest controllers, and beneficial insects for the garden. It will also provide a huge amount of fun for the kids.

I will simply follow the step-by-step guide from garden designer and blogger Dawn Isacc:

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/gardening-blog/2009/jun/17/wildlife-stack

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One of the more helpful ways to get the community behind a project & potentially loosen funding purse-strings is to show what you plan to do with an area by using before & after conceptual pictures.

So my contribution to the project is to use location photographs - in this case location scout photographs taken by Manuel (see left) and overlaying elements we intend to design the area with (stone ovens, murals, plants etc) to create a conceptual design of how the garden can look in its completed state.

I will also take cues from Clarissa's input from local artists and incorporate them into the design. (Table-top mosaics, menu boards etc)

This way we can communicate our vision. Take a look! ===>

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Discipline: Digital Design

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Some to be included in a printed newsletter and others in books accessible through a community bookshelf nearby.

Fun Word Origins: Carrot (n.) 1530s, from Middle French carrotte, from Latin carota, from Greek karoton "carrot," probably from PIE *kre-, from root *ker- (1) "horn, head" (see horn (n.)); so called for its horn-like shape. Originally white-rooted and a medicinal plant to the ancients, who used it as an aphrodisiac and to prevent poisoning. (Source: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=carrot&searchmode=none) Vegetables Featuring in English Literature: "To a Gardener" by Robert Louis Stevenson "Peter Rabbit" by Beatrix Potter "Mushrooms" by Sylvia Plath Word games for children:

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In conjunction with Danielle's worshops and the Asylum Seeker Centre in Newtown, which runs English classes, I plan to use our garden as an additional means to learning the language. This will help the refugees adapt to their new surroundings. Additionally, improving English skills can help them to become citizens. According to Amnesty International, Asylum seekers from non-English speaking backgrounds are disadvantaged by the citizenship test (http://www.amnesty.org.au/refugees/comments/8775/).

I believe any opportunity to learn English skills will be helpful in these ways.

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This page contains a short story alongside pictures of the community garden which tells us about the resulting "community pride and stewardship."

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This webpage is an example of engaging the public by putting a face and personality to individual refugees. As explained in the article this also helps to eradicate stereotypes.

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Australia has long provided refuge for those who have had to flee their home countries and prides itself on being a cultural mosaic, but for some the word 'refugee' conjures up a negative image.

Many rights groups believe misinformation and the political debate on border protection is overshadowing the positive contributions refugees make to society.

The Refugee Council of Australia is calling on people to cast out stereotypes and instead put a face, and a personality, to the refugee label.

As Refugee Week is marked around the country, a handful of former refugees who now call Australia home share their stories with ABC News Online.

A place to call home

In 2010 Australia received around 10,900 asylum applications, 1.04 per cent of the global total.

As of 2010 there were 10.55 million refugees under the UNHCR's mandate.

That year, Australia ranked 46th on the UN's global ladder of nations hosting refugees.

That reflected an intake of 21,805 refugees, or 0.2 per cent of global total. Adjusted on a per capita basis, Australia's ranking slipped to 69th.

Australia's contribution to refugee resettlement is more substantial, being ranked third in the world with 8,516 refugees in 2010.

The 10 countries with the highest refugee intake to the end of 2010 were:

Pakistan (1.9 million)

Iran (1.1 million)

Syria (government estimate of 1 million)

Germany (594,000)

Jordan (government estimate of 451,000)

Kenya (402,900)

Chad (347,900)

China (301,000)

United States (264,600)

United Kingdom (238, 100)
Source: Immigration Department, UNHCR
Isaiah Lahai- fled Sierra Leone and spent 14 years in a Guinea refugee camp before being granted asylum in Australia.

Najeeba Wazefadost - was smuggled out of Afghanistan when she was 12. She flew into Indonesia on a false passport before coming to Australia on an asylum seeker boat.

Kiarash Zangeneh Pourzadeh - a pro-democracy and gay rights activist who left Iran on the basis of his sexuality.

Mohammad Al-Khafaji- an Iraqi who says his passage to Australia was delayed because of corruption in Syria.

Joseph Hameed - fled Iraq with his family, including his disabled daughter, because he believed they would be killed.

Tshibanda Gracia Ngoy- fled the bloodshed of the Second Congo War when she was 14.

Essan Dileri - an Afghan national who has been waiting two years for his wife and children to be able to join him in Australia.

Sahar Abdullah - an English teacher who fled Iraq and went to Jordan before coming to Australia.

Miriam Bah - left the deadly civil war in Liberia and headed to Sierra Leone. Less than a year after she arrived in Sierra Leone, a civil war erupted in the country.

Isaiah Lahai

Isaiah fled Sierra Leone in 1991. He walked for three days to cross the border into Guinea, where he spent 14 years in refugee camps. Isaiah, his wife and their two children arrived in Tasmania in 2006 after being granted asylum.

Now a father of four, he drives taxis to earn a living and also studies at university. He serves on the Advisory Council on Multicultural Affairs and was the founding member of the African Communities Council of Tasmania.

When I was growing up I thought all hope was lost, there was nothing I could live for. It was all full of horror, war - all types of evil things that could come to the life of a young man. When I was in the refugee camp, whenever I used to think about the atrocities, the murders, the amputations, the horrors that took place in my country, I never used to sleep. I thought I'd be hunted in the refugee camp.

Insecurity was one of the biggest concerns. Famine and lack of shelter was another concern. A little bit of a similarity is... Black Saturday. The way you saw those people after the fires - homeless, helpless - refugees are more miserable than that.

However I was fortunate enough to come to Australia with my wife and two kids. Since then, I am talking to you now, I have a second chance at hope, at a future.

Coming to a new country with completely opposite way of life is a bit of a challenge, I will confess that. Presently my kids are going to school. My wife is going to school. The dream I was hoping for as a child to study at a university level is coming true. I am doing social work at the Tasmanian University.

My mother, my father, brothers and sisters are back home. Most of them are still living in refugee camps, fearful of political prosecution. All their hopes and aspirations are now on us. If they are to survive, we have to send over the little we get from Centrelink.

It is a proud moment for me to actually share my story. I would really like to stress the fact that Australians should be proud of Australia.
Read more of Isaiah's story here.
Najeeba Wazefadost

Najeeba was 12 when her family was smuggled out of Afghanistan and flown into Indonesia on fake passports. Her younger brother was born in Indonesia and was just days old when they set sail for Australia. The boat was intercepted by the Australian Navy in 2000.

Najeeba now lives in Western Sydney. She heads up the Hazara Women's Association, and is an ambassador for Amnesty International and Welcome to Australia. In 2010 she was a finalist of the Young Human Rights Medal Award. She has a Bachelor of Medical Science and is now studying a second degree.

I am from an ethnic minority called Hazara. Hazaras still face massacres by officials and warlords in Afghanistan. There was no other choice for us than escaping the country and going to somewhere safe - we would not have survived there.

When we left Afghanistan we didn't have any means of transport. Sometimes we had to walk barefoot, sometimes we had to get into a truck and hide within a truck, sometimes we were walking in the night. It was very difficult to get out of Afghanistan, but we finally got to Pakistan. From Pakistan we went to Indonesia and then to Australia by boat.

It was a horrifying journey to come to Australia by boat, or I should actually call it a piece of wood. We had to sit in the boat for more than a week, just hoping to survive. We risked being drowned in the Pacific Ocean.

We had no clue that we would arrive in Australia and be imprisoned in a place like Curtin detention centre. The first thing we saw was security guards with guns coming towards us. We were coming from a war-torn country where we were really traumatised. I was a child, and being detained in a jail-like environment only added to that trauma.

I am a refugee, but that no longer defines who I am. I feel safe. I feel secure. In Afghanistan I never would have had the opportunity to have access to education or employment.

There is no simple answer to racism. I've come across some Australians who initially have had a negative image about boat people coming to Australia - saying they're queue jumpers or they're taking the jobs away from other people. And we gave each other a chance to be heard. They heard my story, and I heard their negative comments.

Sometimes we need to hear what negative things people are thinking, or assuming, in order to show the other side. If we do not interact with each other, if we do not hear each other's voice, if we do not hear each other's pain or problems, we will always have questions being unanswered and that will create problems.
Read more of Najeeba's story here.
Kiarash Zangeneh Pourzadeh

Kiarash, a pro-democracy and gay rights activist, left Iran on the basis of his sexuality. He hitchhiked across the border and was granted refugee status in Turkey, where he lived for more than a year before coming to Australia.

Once settled in Melbourne with help from AMES, he faced the challenge of telling his parents that he is both gay and a refugee.

The government does not accept homosexuality, it is illegal. But more than that, the people of Iran do not accept it. Wherever I went - even if I just had an earring in and nothing else to show my sexuality - the people around me made me feel like nothing. I wish they could understand that I have no choice in this, but I don't think they can accept that.

In late 2008, early 2009 ... I took part in Green Movement protests, which were just trying to get democracy in Iran. I was also volunteering at an Iranian gay rights group. We ... had discussions about discrimination on radio and magazines, and sometimes I would meet with gay people in Iran and help them come out, or just help them deal with their orientation.

I used another identity so I wouldn't get recognised. It was a good move, but still the police came close to catching me.

I left Iran in late 2010 because I thought I would absolutely be persecuted for the rest of my life. I went out through hitchhiking thousands of miles across the border and into Turkey. I was leaving legally but thought it would be safer to go across the border by walking. You don't need a visa to go from Iran to Turkey, and there are a lot of gay Iranians living there. I went to the UN office and they accepted me as a refugee after a long interview.

I arrived in Australia on a humanitarian visa in February this year. I had some ideas about what Australia would be like, especially from my Aussie ex-boyfriend.

I didn't come by boat - I don't have that bravery. As much as I feared for my safety in Iran, I did not want to risk my life to find a new country. I met two Iranians in Melbourne who had come here by boat: their stories were really scary.

My parents did not know that I was a refugee. They didn't know I came here, they didn't know about my sexuality. I came out once I was in Australia. It was a shock for them ... but the next day they called me on Skype, and they were really okay with it. I couldn't believe it. I thought they'd be shocked for one year, two years, but it only took one day.

I would go back to Iran only if there was a revolution, a change. I do believe that will happen, one day.
Read more of Kiarash's story here.

Kiarash takes part in a pro-democracy protest.(Supplied )

Mohammad Al-Khafaji

Mohammad left Iraq as a child and came to Australia via Syria eight years ago. He has since graduated from the University of Adelaide with a degree in software engineering.

He will be one of many refugees taking part in Welcome to Australia's Walk Together events to mark Refugee Week. He also co-chairs the Minister's Youth Council in South Australia, and has been selected to participate in the Prime Minister's 2020 Youth Summit.

I was born in Iraq and left the country when I was very young. My family had to flee the country due to the dictatorship regime who was targeting anyone with any links to the opposition and automatically sentenced them to death if caught. Every Iraqi that was fighting for justice and freedom of the country was in the same situation and many fled to neighbouring countries.

I came to Australia with my family through the UNHCR program in 2003 after living in Syria for four years. The process should not have taken four years, however due to corruption in Syria our case was sold to someone else in bribery, which meant we had to start the process all over again. We had the choice to do the same but chose not to.

I think the hardest thing for us was the adaptation to the new system and understanding the expectations from it. Appointments were a challenge at first because we no longer could afford to be late 30 minutes to an appointment, whereas this was acceptable back in Iraq or Syria.

I really admire the generosity and the kindness of Australian people and the welcoming nature that they embrace. Australia is my home. Australia has given me everything I need to grow as a healthy, educated, and respected young man. I'm proud to have graduated from the University of Adelaide with a bachelor of engineering, a childhood dream which has now been achieved.

[However] we need to acknowledge that racism in Australia exists and it's ugly. Nobody likes to be told to go back to where they've come from just because they look different or speak a different language. Unfortunately [some people] are filled with fear and prejudice against other races or cultures. Our job is to reach out to them and show them the true colours of this nation and the beauty that comes with it.

Mohammad Al-Khafaji (left) with his siblings and father in Syria around 2002(Supplied )

Joseph Hameed

Iraqi man Joseph Hameed arrived in Australia two months ago with his wife and two children.

His 18-year-old daughter has a significant intellectual and physical disability after receiving an out-of-date vaccination as a baby.

He says touching down in Australia was a rebirth for his family.
While speaking to the ABC, Joseph at times used the help of an interpreter.
I escaped from Iraq with my family in October 2009. They wanted to kill me ... because I spoke English.

I have one son and one daughter. My daughter is disabled - she is one crime of the Saddam regime. They gave her a very bad injection, an expired vaccine. She suffered when she was just eight months of age. It affected her brain, and she had problems moving. She lost control. She can't move, she can't talk. We suffered this matter for 17 years in Iraq - a long time. I lost everything. The regime destroyed my life, and my family's life.

We went to Turkey and were recognised as a refugee by the United Nations. We arrived to Turkey on October 11. On October 12, we were recognised as a refugee. My family and I stayed in Turkey for three years. On March 21, I got a visa to come to Australia.

It's amazing that I am in Australia because I have a second life for me and my family - even my daughter. I am 57 years old, but I was born again on March 22, 2012. Being in Australia is my rebirth.

We are in a safe country, a beautiful country. I have all my rights. The people here are different to the people in Iraq. Here they have rights to have other religions, wear what they like, eat what they like.

I would like to thank the government of Australia for bringing me to this country. Sometimes I feel like I am in a dream - this was my dream before, and it has come true.

I would like to try to support Australian people. I've never done anything for Australia, and yet I have received so much support from Australia. I need to be more than I am now. I would like to be a man who can offer my support to all Australians. I would like to help new arrivals also, and be a very honest man.

One of my plans: I want to write a book about my life in Australia, because the life in Iraq wasn't worth writing about. I hope to work, without salary, for AMES. AMES now is my big family, because they have helped me so much. It's a very useful organisation, it supports me and puts me on the right path for a good life in Australia. My community guide George is like my brother. He is like my shadow. Always when I have some trouble or misunderstanding, I find George and he helps me. And I tell him: I hope to be like you.

Tshibanda Gracia Ngoy

The Ngoy family fled Congo in 2002 during the deadly Second Congo War, when Gracia was 14. The family spent three years in South Africa before coming to Australia.

She is now an author and a recipient of the 2011 Young People's Human Rights Award. She is also an ambassador for Welcome to Australia and Refugee Week.

She has been awarded the NSW Young Volunteer of the Year Award for her work with a variety of community organisations.

We left Congo in 2002 and went to South Africa. From there we came to Australia in 2005, on a humanitarian visa. For us, Australia was the place where we wanted to rebuild our lives and start afresh. It's hard moving to a new place, let alone moving to a new country, but it was an amazing moment to arrive.

I went back to Congo in July 2010 to do a lot of humanitarian work to do with the environment. When I went back there was immense pollution and also a lot of rubbish there - everything was just messed up. I wanted to see if I could make a difference. I gave them ideas on how to recycle, but it is very hard to work with people who are not willing to change or willing to cooperate.

I went there as an Australian citizen... and there was the sense that I don't really belong in the Congo any more. Sometimes I used to wonder whether I felt like a real Australian - that visit let me know that I do. Even though in Congo we looked the same, and spoke the same language, I didn't really feel a sense of belonging.

All refugees should be treated as individuals, not as a group. It's very dangerous to put people in a corner, put stereotypes on them, and exclude them from the wider community. Even the word refugee is disempowering. They are regarded as incompetent, illiterate, dependent, and youth have to fight free from that. I remember I had to fight against those stereotypes and say, young refugee people are not that way, young people from refugee backgrounds can excel, can rise to the challenge.

Reminding people that they are refugees has disempowered many youth and stopped people from going forward. People should not be ashamed of their past, but it is hard to move forward when people are constantly reminded of their past. Let's not put a tag on people's foreheads that makes them stay refugees for the rest of their life. We have to make sure we give a voice to the voiceless.

Essan Dileri

Essan grew up in Kabul, where he worked for an NGO and advocated for human rights. He studied in Pakistan and Ireland, where he completed a thesis on alternative livelihoods for farmers involved in the Afghan opium trade.

He came to Australia in 2009 to present his work, however his political activities made it too dangerous for him to return home and he was granted asylum. His wife and children, now in Pakistan, have been waiting two years for the outcome of their asylum application.

Essan now works with refugees and has worked with children in detention centres. He is also a recipient of the prestigious Victorian Refugee Record Recognition.

Before coming to Australia I lived in Kabul with my family: my wife and three kids, and my parents as well, all in the same house. I used to work with an NGO that was working in the field of education, community development, peace building and community health. In 2009 I came here to present my work at the Parliament of the World's Religions ... but things got very bad, and my family started getting problems. I waited three months - until I was sure it was not safe for me to return home. I then began seeking asylum as a refugee.

The process took four or five months. That time was really tough and difficult - I was in a strange land, I was really missing my family and I had run into depression.

I became a permanent resident in 2010. My family are not here yet - they fled to Pakistan with my parents. They are safer there than in Afghanistan, but you know the situation in Pakistan - it's not safe.

I applied for them to join me here in July 2010. It has been two years. I haven't heard anything - the only thing I know is that the application has been transferred to the Australian Embassy in Dubai, where it will be processed.

I don't know how many more years I have to wait. It really frustrates me ... I am in limbo and I can't really predict what will happen. So it's very very hard being apart from them. It's still a challenge. I miss my kids, and it's badly affected my relationship with my wife. But life without a challenge - I don't think it is possible.

Since being in Australia I have worked with unaccompanied minors in detention centres, for Life Without Barriers. At the time we had 140 unaccompanied minors in a space that had the capacity of only 70 people. It was very stressful, quite full on, but also rewarding because I was able to work with so many young people.

I've worked with the Humanitarian Crisis Hub and the Brotherhood of St Laurence. The other thing I am doing at the Spectrum Migrant Resource Centre is working with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Because I know that I have gone through all these phases, and I know how it feels, I hope I can do something to help others.

Some people think refugees come and storm Australia ... but the number of people that are coming to Australia is very minimal. If you compare Australia with very poor countries like Pakistan, Iran and Syria, they host millions of refugees. It seems like other countries are quite generous. The media obviously makes this quite a big political debate. I don't understand why this is so. If you see other important matters in the country ... there are so many other matters that media and politicians can discuss, but all the debate focuses on refugees.

Sahar Abdullah

Sahar Abdullah left Iraq for Jordan before coming to Australia in 2005.

The Baghdad university graduate taught English in Jordan and has continued her career here.

She now teaches refugees and new migrants at the same Navitas English language college where she was a student when she first arrived in Australia.

I am from Iraq but I was born in Iran. I wanted to come to Australia because I wanted a better life. I had to wait a long time, one year, for a humanitarian visa. I arrived on November 5, 2005.

I wanted to work when I came here, but I had no idea what to do to find work. I wanted to teach. I was a student at UTS and also at Navitas English College in Fairfield.

I want to teach because I want to be able to change students' lives the way my teachers changed mine.

I think I will be able to change lives. I want to give to them what was given to me.

I miss my parents, and my friends, and my country. But Australia is my country now. I love Australia, I love everything about it. For me it is hope, because we have so many opportunities to reach our goals.

I would change nothing about Australia ... or Australians. They have helped me so much. I appreciate the government, the people, and my teachers.

Miriam Bah

Miriam Bah left the civil war in Liberia in 1996 and headed to Sierra Leone on a boat.

Less than a year she arrived in Sierra Leone, a civil war erupted in the country.

She arrived in Australia in 2005 and settled with help from the Brotherhood of St Laurence, and now works to help African women refugees in Australia.

I was born in Liberia, where there was a civil war in 1995. It was horrible. We had curfews in place. People were hiding all the time - everyone was hiding - because they were raping women, there were murders. And you'd think, my next door neighbour just got killed, who's next? That question is always on your mind: who's next?

We left in 1996 and went to Sierra Leone. I think it was three days we were on the ship. It was a horrible experience - it was raining, we all thought we were going to sink. And then we went to the refugee camp.

But in Sierra Leone there was a civil war within a year. So I experienced it twice. From Sierra Leone in 2005 I came to Australia on a refugee visa.

I felt really relieved. It was peaceful and safe. Here I can live happily without the worry that maybe we going to get burned in our house. I came by myself; I left my parents back home. They came over three months later. To come over here alone was a really huge challenge for me - I had never heard about Australia before, I didn't know what was going to happen to me and I was worried about the people back home. Being separated from my family was so hard.

When I first came, I experienced racism on public transport a lot. But I didn't want to carry another burden with me, so I try to ignore it. Sometimes when you don't understand another person's culture, you tend to be afraid of them a little bit. But once you get to know them you go, 'okay, I can talk to them, they are okay'.

I'm married now and I have two children and I am in school at university. I also volunteer in the community. I am CEO of a women's group called MAWA - the Migrant African Women's Association. I actually formed that organization, I think because I understood the challenges women face when they arrive - with the language, the culture etc. It basically empowers women to be productive and happy in the community. I am really, really proud of that.

I miss my country because I came here and left everything behind. I still remember the war, thinking about how my mother was going to be, if people would survive, how life would have been if I was still there. I think about it all the time. But I am so grateful to be here.

What's what?

Refugee: a person who is recognised as having been forced to leave their home country for fear of persecution - such as torture, imprisonment or execution - and they cannot return for fear of that persecution.

The definition of refugee does not cover those who leave their country only because of war or other civil disturbance, famine, natural disasters or in order to seek a better life.

Asylum seeker: a person who is seeking protection as a refugee and is still waiting to have their claim assessed. Every recognised refugee has at some point been an asylum seeker.

Most of the confusion about the legal status of asylum seekers stems from those arriving without a valid visa. Most asylum seekers who arrive by air usually enter on a valid visa, while most who arrive by boat do not have a visa.

Migrant: someone who decides to leave their country in order to seek a better life and can return home at any time. Migrants may be granted temporary or permanent status to reside in Australia.
Refugee Week runs from June 17-23, and coincides with World Refugee Day on June 20.

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Calling Australia home: refugees share their stories

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Australia has long provided refuge for those who have had to flee their home countries and prides itself on being a cultural mosaic, but for some the word 'refugee' conjures up a negative image. Many rights groups believe misinformation and the political debate on border protection is overshadowing the positive contributions refugees make to society.

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Many experts agree that stories have the power to provide people with great inspiration to act in our daily lives. Here are some of them:

“Stories not only teach us how to act – they inspire us to act. Stories communicate our values through the language of the heart, our emotions. And it is what we feel – our hopes, our cares, our obligations – not simply what we know that can inspire us with the courage to act.” (Ganz, Marshall 2007)

“Storytelling is an essential part of our existence” (Bell, John 2011)

“Thinking about the world through someone else's eyes, observing that world from new perspectives, offers a powerful window on alternate futures. Imagining those different future states and the characters who might inhabit them, we can then identify the problems they might face and imagine solutions from an entirely new perspective.” (Petrick, Irene 2014)

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Workshop 4 - From the Garden to the Table

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Workshop 4 - From the Garden to the Table

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This workshop is open to the Community Garden members, the Asylum Seeker Community as a whole and members of the general public. The workshop involves Community Garden members cultivating produce from the garden and creating meals incorporating this produce from either recipes discovered in Workshop 3, or new recipes added on the day. Any newly added recipes can then be included in the Asylum Seeker Community Garden Cookbook. The meal created will be shared around the table sourced and designed by Clarissa. The idea behind this workshop is to create a meal shared among the community, which will help build friendships and trust and a sense of belonging. Sharing a meal is important in any culture and can help breakdown barriers. It is envisaged that this workshop will be the beginning of an annual event - The Asylum Seeker Community Garden's Garden to the Table Dinner

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This workshop is open to the Community Garden members, the Asylum Seeker Community as a whole and members of the general public. The workshop involves different members of the Community Garden sharing recipes from their cultural origin and discussing where the recipe may have originated eg, family tradition, cultural tradition, religious or ceremonial significance. The recipes can be documented on the day with permission of the contributors to be published in a Asylum Seeker Community Garden Cookbook. The idea behind this workshop is to encourage interaction with other cultures, sharing and trust and building communication networks in the broader community. Gardeners can feel a sense of pride in their recipes being included in a published cookbook, which can be made available to the whole community. It is important to celebrate culture, but it is also important to feel included and honoured in the wider community, which will be apparent throughout this workshop.

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http://gardeningenvironmentalprotection.weebly.com/your-community--gardening.html

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This workshop is open to the community garden group, Asylum Seeker community as a whole and the general public. The workshop begins with a tour of the garden and introduces everyone to different aspects of the garden and points of interest, and the culture of the garden. The second part of the workshop is to be led by individual members of the gardening community and focuses on gardening techniques, plants, plant use in cooking and culture, and things of interest. By being able to participate in the workshop, gardeners are able to actively contribute to creating how the garden will be represented to the community - this will show the garden is a place of sharing and collaboration, where members feel valued and honoured - this further builds on the garden's visual culture. The idea behind the workshop is to share, educate, collaborate, and build a sense of community among the gardeners, Asylum Seeker community and general public.

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Workshop 1 - Introduction to Fellow Gardeners

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Workshop 1 - Introduction to Fellow Gardeners

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This workshop is open to the Asylum Seeker Community who express interest in being involved in a Community Garden. The workshop begins with a volunteer lunch and a talk from the Community Garden organisers, which introduces the future gardeners to the idea of a communal garden where the entire space is gardened as a collective and the produce is divided among members or donated to specific causes decided on by the group. The Gardeners will be introduced to the idea of thinking about how they want the garden to represent them to the community - their visual culture. Once discussions have taken place, workshop attendees can decorate terracotta pots, donated by local businesses, in designs decided on and created by the group, which will then become recognisable - like a logo - these designs can be added to t-shirts and hats to be sent off for printing, so that the gardeners can identify themselves as belonging to the gardening community. Seeds, also donated, will then be distributed to plant within the pots, so that gardeners can begin to propagate plants in their pots at home, and then bring in later to plant in the garden. Gardeners will also be asked to nominate any plants they might like to see grow in the garden so organisers can begin sourcing them. This workshop should see the formulation of the garden and it's culture begin to emerge, which is owned and shared by the Community Garden as a collective and is important to the success of the garden as the gardening community will take ownership.

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My contribution to the Asylum Seekers Centre Community Garden is to create a series of workshops, which aim to enable and encourage active community involvement. The idea behind the series of workshops is to offer ongoing education in gardening, life skills, to encourage participation in healthy recreational activity, create a space where people feel welcome and can develop friendships, feel valued, belong, share ideas and can collaborate and cooperate with others and become committed as a community to the longevity of the garden and be part of creating a collectively recognised visual culture through active participation in creative processes which help to establish the way the garden is viewed by fellow gardeners and the community as a whole. I have developed a series of four workshops, but envisage this would continue throughout the gardens lifetime. The workshops are:

1. Introduction to Fellow Gardeners

2. Garden Tour and Talks

3. Recipe Workshops

4. From the Garden to the Dinner Table

All workshops will be filmed for future reference so that new members may understand the visual culture, which is "the shared practice of a group, a community through which meaning is made of the visual, oral and textual world of representation" (culturevisuelle.org 2012) being developed by the Community Garden members.

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Discipline: Visual Culture

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Newtown is fortunate to have quite a diverse range of media covering local issues. The Sydney University publication "honi soit" has a history of covering issues related to Asylum Seekers and their plights. Being a small publication they specialise in local news matters and have a diverse audience. ciao Magazine is distributed to local cafes and various retail outlets and has a relatively large readership locally. The publication itself is quite liberal and they love a good food-related article or story so coverage should be easy to acquire. Along with local print media, websites such as humansofnewtown.com provide a range of services such as networking and Public Relations services. They also publish stories regarding local events and personalities on their webpage. Humans of Newtown would be very interested in stories and photo's regarding the Asylum Seekers Community Garden. In fact, they actively seek these kind of stories out in all forms of media

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Discipline: Journalism

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My contribution to the project will be to build media exposure and maintain the media profile of The Community Garden. This will be done at first with regular updates regarding the construction and long-term intentions of the project provided to local media publications and possibly independent radio networks broadcasting in the local area. As the project develops and crops are sewn, then a regular half-page piece may be published in local magazines "ciao" and "honi soit" magazine highlighting up-coming workshops. This regular article may also include some of Shane's contributions such as interviews/background stories of participants along with news regarding crops that may be coming into season and other up-coming events.

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This garden loom workshop will be mainly aimed toward the children and youth. The loom will be designed as a wonderful art instillation piece, but it will also serve the purpose of attracting wildlife which will benefit the garden as a whole. We will collect and weave twigs, clippings, flowers, leaves, dried fruit, wool, and train spring flowers to climb and weave themselves into the instillation.

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This workshop will be run in collaboration with moss graffiti artist Anna Garforth. We will also be collaborating with a small team of talented local graffiti artists from Newtown. Together we will work to come up with a great mural for the main wall. I see the the design as one of the main focusses of the garden, with layered textures of recycled brick, specifically spray painted graffiti, and then Garforth's moss graffiti layered over the top, creating a really interesting focal point.

The idea of this project is to get Newtown's local graffiti artists involved, so that they can be involved and feel ownership over the space. This will also contribute to the gardens protection from unwanted graffiti and vandalism.

http://www.annagarforth.co.uk/

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Outdoor festoon lights bring such a warm and inviting atmosphere to any space, and they will definitely help to make the space more usable and inviting at night time.

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Outsourced: Large Recycled Outdoor Table

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Outsourced: Large Recycled Outdoor Table

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I will work on designing the large recycled outdoor table in collaboration with a company called "Coopers Store" located in Sydney. Gratefully, I have been able to negotiate the donation of this piece. It will be built using recycled, durable and cost effective materials. Bench seats will be built into the piece. It will have a capacity to seat up to 28 people comfortably.

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This workshop will be run in collaboration with artist Jai Vasicek of Ahoy Trader. Together we will be teaching those enclined to being more creative, how to design and hand-make their own mosaic tiles, which will be used to cover the top surface of the table. For this project, I was inspired by the ladies of the past who would make patchwork quilts, where each square would tell a story, or send a message, or reflect the heart of the one who created it. I want this table to do the same. To create conversations, to tell a story, and to reflect the different cultures of the asylum seekers, their beliefs and backgrounds. It is just another way for the residents to contribute to their own belonging, to encourage the building of diverse relationships, and contribute to creating a space they can be proud to call theirs.

http://www.ahoytrader.com/

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The blackboard will be painted on a wall with blackboard paint, in close vicinity to the pizza oven, with plenty of chalk provided.

The blackboard will simply be a place where residents can get creative and share their pizza recipes (or other recipes) with the rest of the community using the seasonal ingredients from the garden. It will also be a place where children and youth can contribute their ideas and have fun with their artistic skills.

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This workshop will be a great one for the men to get involved in, and will be run in collaboration with a builder, using donated recycled materials to keep costs to a minimum. The design will have a space underneath for storing wood, bench space for preparing food, and a sink for cleaning and washing up.

The idea of the wood fire pizza oven is to encourage people to come together to cook and share food, and to learn how to use the produce in season from the garden. Once the pizza oven has been completed, Danielle will be running cooking workshops, where residents will share recipes from their cultural origin, encouraging the continual building of relationships across all cultures. I will also work with one of the Community Garden members to organise a Friday night pizza night each week to instill and encourage tradition within the community.

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My contribution to the Asylum Seekers Centre Community Market Garden will be to partner with the residents in creating an artistically beautiful, unique and positive space in the garden. This will be an area where the residents can gather together, work together, cook the produce from the garden, eat, relax, and enjoy each others company, all while building relationships and growing a healthy and thriving community. I will be working alongside Danielle, as well as collaborating with other local artists, in running workshops that will contribute to this initial period of 'designing, building and creating' beautiful spaces in the garden. I will be responsible for making sure that these projects are well designed and built, affordable, and easily maintained, while also making it a priority to encouraging the thoughts and ideas of the residents so that they feel ownership and pride over the space as a cherished place for the long term. The workshops I will be running will be aimed at involving all generations.

Along with other projects, these are the following workshops I will be running for the residents:

1. Wood Fire Pizza Oven

2. Large Mosaic Table

3. Moss Graffiti Mural

4. Garden Loom

5. Creepy Crawly Tower

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Discipline: Fine Art

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My contribution to the community garden will be to help the asylum seekers share their story with each other and the wider public in a series of short biographical style profiles. With their permission and Justin's help, some of these will be included in the story of our project which will be used to help create public interest and support. Later on I will write a success story about our project in order to encourage continued involvement and the growth of similar projects. I will also be providing opportunities for the community to develop their English skills through an interactive newsletter, volunteer teachers and translators, and on-hand reading materials.

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Discipline: English

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We acknowledge that this project will be held on the traditional lands of the Aboriginal people, and we recognise the strength, resilience and capacity of the Aboriginal people of this land.

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Manuel Nielsen - Possible Locations / Speech 

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Manuel Nielsen - Possible Locations / Speech 

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Discipline : Professional Writing

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Park Chelmsford St between Kent & Lennox Newtown

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Corner of Station St behind St Josephs Newtown