this week in social inclusion & diversity

1. New ACE CEO
2. Human rights education resources

1. New ACE CEO
The ACE Board has announced the appointment of Ms Lynette May as the new CEO of ACE National. ACE National Network Inc is the peak body for Australia's Disability Employment Network. It represents the interests and views of disability employment professionals, people with disability looking for specialised employment support and employers investigating the business benefits of employing people with disability.

As ACE’s new CEO, Ms May will promote the sector nationally, devising effective, high quality disability employment policies and solutions, conduct appropriate ministerial and departmental liaison and engage with, and advocate on behalf of, the ACE broad membership.

She will take up her position on 2 June 2010. You will have the opportunity to meet Lynette at the ACE National Conference in Hobart, 16 -18 June 2010. Following the conference, Lynette plans to visit many services in a variety of locations throughout Australia during the months ahead.

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2. Human rights education resources
Teachers and students now have access to a new range of interactive human rights education resources, released by the Australian Human Rights Commission on 22 April.

Commission President Cathy Branson QC, launched the new rightsED resource this week by sending a complimentary DVD to schools around the country in a bid to help students develop a critical understanding of human rights and responsibilities.
“The importance of human rights education should not be underestimated in our efforts to create a more respectful human rights culture in Australia,” Ms Branson said.

“Human rights education is critical if we are to make real inroads in our efforts towards true social inclusion in Australia.”
Ms Branson said the rightsEd resource includes a range of interactive education activities for teachers and students which introduce human rights concepts in an engaging and relevant way.

rightsED is guided by a clear set of education principles and learning outcomes and consists of nine resources which each feature activities around different human rights issues and topics searchable by the Key Learning Area into which they fit.

The nine resources in the new range include: Understanding human rights, Commemorate Human Rights Day, Child rights, Bringing them home, Face the Facts, Voices of Australia, Disability Rights – What about Doug’s Rights?, Young people in the workplace, and Tackling sexual harassment.

“rightsED comprises more than 400 pages of worksheets, resources and activities and is the culmination of over a year’s work. The resource fits in well with the emphasis on human rights education announced by the Attorney-General yesterday,” Ms Branson said.

“Education will be a key focus of the Commission in the coming year,” Ms Branson said. “I urge all teachers to take advantage of these practical tools that will bring human rights to life for students around Australia.”

All resources are available free online at www.humanrights.gov.au/education or the DVD can be ordered by calling publications on 1300 369711 or emailing education [at] humanrights [dot] gov [dot] au. 

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