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Welcoming Cities

City of PAE is embracing a culture of welcome

Introducing Welcoming Cities

Welcoming Cities, an initiative of Welcoming Australia, was established to support local councils and their communities in the advancement of Australia as a welcoming, prosperous and cohesive nation. It is a countrywide network of cities, shires, towns and municipalities who are committed to an Australia where everyone can belong and participate in social, cultural, economic and civic life. The Welcoming Cities initiative helps to foster a culture of welcome and inclusion for all members of our diverse community.

What does this mean for our city and the community?

The City of PAE is one of the most culturally diverse councils in South Australia. Over 33% of PAE residents were born overseas and 24% of the overseas born population were new migrants during the 2016 Census. This varies across the council, with some areas attracting much higher rates of overseas born residents – up to 50%. Between 2011 and 2016, the number of people born overseas increased by 17.8%. PAE has become home to increasing numbers of people from India, China and Afghanistan. Currently, the City of PAE is home to residents born in 102 different countries, speaking 82 different languages. Almost a third of our residents speak a language other than English at home. Non-English languages predominant in the City include Vietnamese, Mandarin, Persian/Dari/Hazaraghi, Italian, Greek, Punjabi, Gujarathi, Cantonese, Filipino/Tagalog, Hindi, Arabic and Polish. This brings an exciting mix of cultural backgrounds, values and traditions, all of which add diversity and vitality to the community.

At City of PAE, we are proud of our diversity. The rich heritage of our First Nations people, together with those from countries around the globe, is what makes PAE such a unique place to live, work and play. Our community’s diversity inspires and is reflected in our food, art, enterprise, traditions, festivals and celebrations.

The continued success and prosperity of our city will depend on our ability to further embrace diversity, foster social cohesion and build economic success in the face of complex population changes. The challenges and opportunities lie in our capacity to harness the ideas, strengths and innovation that come from being welcoming and inclusive.

For these reasons, City of PAE committed to participate in the Welcoming Cities network in 2017, and is currently progressing towards achieving the Australian Standard for Welcoming Cities. The Standard establishes the framework for local councils to:

  • Benchmark their cultural diversity and inclusion policies and practices across the organisation
  • Identify where and how further efforts could be directed
  • Assess progress over time.

Council’s commitment to become accredited as a Welcoming City is embedded in the City Plan 2030 and associated action plans.

The City Plan 2030 puts forward a vision of “a city that values its diverse community and embraces change through innovation, resilience and community leadership”.

What are the benefits of Welcoming Cities accreditation?

Accreditation through Welcoming Cities has a range of benefits, including:

  • Increasing the impact of council initiatives for the whole community
  • Providing a mechanism to plan for improvement and change
  • A positive and welcoming reputation; and,
  • Opportunities for shared learning.

What are the next steps?

The City of PAE is working towards achieving the first level of accreditation which is 'Established'. The process involves self-assessment of Council policies, procedures and practices against the Standard to assess our current status and identify opportunities for the future.

We are focusing on the following areas:

  • Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as First Peoples, and engagement of local Aboriginal communities in welcoming work
  • Partnering with diverse stakeholders to promote a welcoming culture
  • Supporting and promoting activities and initiatives that nurture connections between migrant and receiving communities
  • Ensuring cultural diversity and inclusion is incorporated into strategic, business and community planning.

The Council is already taking positive steps towards creating a more welcoming and inclusive city for our diverse communities by supporting initiatives such as the Refugee Welcome Zone and Racism it Stops with me, as well as by holding annual Nunga Week celebrations and a broad range of cultural events and social programs.

In addition to the accreditation, the main goal of the Welcoming Cities work is to develop a comprehensive action plan and a process for evaluation of Council’s activities in the cultural diversity and inclusion area.

For more information about Welcoming Cities and the accreditation process, please visit the Welcoming Cities website.

If you would like to be involved and work with us on advancing our efforts to become a more welcoming and inclusive city, contact Alicja Clisby, Council’s Cultural Diversity Officer on (08) 8405 6600 or by email: Alicja.Clisby@cityofpae.sa.gov.au.

"We acknowledge and pay respect to the Traditional Owners of the land on which we stand, the Kaurna People of the Adelaide Plains. It is upon their ancestral lands that the Port Adelaide Enfield Council meets. It is also the Place of the Kardi, the Emu, whose story travels from the coast inland. We pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging. We respect their spiritual beliefs and connections to land which are of continuing importance to the living Kaurna People of today. We further acknowledge the contributions and important role that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to play within our shared community."