Text on screen - Letitia Hope, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Committee
[Speaker - Letitia Hope, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Champion]
My name is Letitia Hope. I'm currently the Deputy Secretary of Families and Communities here in the Department.
I am a Bundjalung, Torres Strait Islander, South Pacific Islander, Irish, Scottish, Viking woman who has an incredibly diverse family. So within my nuclear family, I have, sons in love who are Zimbabwean, Italian. I have sisters in love who are Chinese-Maori and First Nations American. And I have brothers in love who are Fijian-Indian. So I am so excited about the opportunity to be the Diversity Champion for culturally and linguistically diverse community.
Text on screen - What does it mean to be a Diversity Champion?
Champion’s a funny word because it kind of conjures up all kinds of imagery for people. But for me, the role of being a champion is really about bringing issues to the fore. Bringing issues to the, to the table for discussion and creating these safe places, around being able to have conversations around inclusion and around equity. Being able to kind of drive the thinking of the department the turn their mind to these issues. And also to the Executive to turn their mind to these issues and how you embed, celebrate difference, but also embed it into just the the general business of what we do. When you think about a department like ours and the community that we serve, it's a really important issue for us to be able to understand what is happening for our CALD community across Australia. How do we understand, and celebrate the amazing expression and the tapestry of everything that they are? But also, how do we respond with that in partnership, in shared decision making understanding the issues, having safe conversations and also stretching our own understanding of those issues.
Text on screen - What is a goal you want to achieve in the role?
Me personally, what do I want to achieve in this role? Learning, greater understanding, greater cohesion in my own thinking. So I'm on a learning journey here too. And one of the things I love about doing this kind of work, is one, yes, there's a role that I have in the department as part of the Executive to bring these issues forward. And as I say, create safe spaces. But two, there is so much value return for me, in my understanding of these issues and what I need to challenge my own biases and preconceived ideas, so that I can be a better person, so I can be a better Executive, so I can be a better policy maker, better program deliverer, because there is a mutual reciprocity to doing a role like this.
Text on screen - How is your role as a Champion reflected in your day-to-day work?
So families and communities. In this country, families and communities are made up of all kinds of diverse people. There are all kinds of diverse entities. And so when you think about the role that I have in relation to family and community services policy making, program and delivery, this particular thing becomes all the intersectionality of all the diversity groups become really important for us to be able to create really good, equitable, fair, inclusive, safe, policy programs, service delivery and of course advice to government. So, as I said, it's I'm really I feel very privileged to be able to do this role.
