Course organiser:Peter Moody
“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” Desmond Tutu
23 Sep:
Shirley Wright, General Manager for Christchurch Resettlement Services, on 'Understanding Culture, in Particular the Dimensions of Ethnic Culture.'We hope the participants of the talk will be able to gain an understanding of one evidence based model of the dimensions of culture, and be able to define 4 elements of cultural competency when engaging with people from cultures different to their own.
30 Sep:
Nick Winchester on 'The Whole of the Rainbow.'A look at some experiences of the LGBT community through a combination of current statistics and a tale of lived experiences from a local transgender man.
7 Oct:
Dean Sutherland, Assoc. Prof. School of Psychology, Speech and Hearing, on 'Diversity in Human Communication: Can our Differences Bring us Closer Together?'This talk explores the many different ways by which humans communicate and how these differences lead to stereotypes and discrimination. Strategies to change our thinking about differences will be described with the aim of reducing barriers to meaningful human connections.
14 Oct:
Max Rashbrooke, journalist, author and researcher based in Wellington on 'Against the Myth of Them and Us: Poverty in New Zealand.'He will talk about poverty as a function of inequality – of an economic system that involves us all, and discuss the way that we all benefit from welfare, subsidies and government spending, not just people in poverty.
21 Oct:
Michael Toothill, CEO of Kilmarnoch Enterprises on 'Removing Barriers to Employment for People with Diverse Abilities.'In this presentation Michael will provide an overview of how Kilmarnock
Enterprises includes adults with learning disabilities in the workforce
empowering them to live purposeful lives. He will also explore some of the
barriers facing people with disabilities when entering the workforce and how
businesses are addressing diversity and inclusion.