Australia

By Jade Bae, UNICEF Australia Communications Intern

About two months ago, I walked into the UNICEF Australia office, slightly nervous, excited (I’m a multi-tasker, can you tell?) and determined to not make a fool of myself on the first day.

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By Kaitlin Bakker, UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador
Imagine a world where poverty is unheard of, where children of all races, genders and sexes are equal, where women are empowered and where all children are fed and educated. As young people in Australia, we can create this dream. Read more...

By Verity Smith, UNICEF Australia Advocacy Intern - Adults make decisions about so many aspects of children’s lives. This is not a license to control the voiceless or the powerless – it is a responsibility to make sure that we protect them. Read more...

By Roopa Varadharajan, UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador. This week we reflect on the milestone of the 4th anniversary of the Australian Government’s apology to Indigenous Australians. Read more...

By Kaitlin Bakker , UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador. Human trafficking in girls and women is becoming a disturbing trend. Just recently, as I explored some Eastern European countries, I became aware of the alarming number of females ‘selling themselves’ on the street with the hope of better opportunities such as marriage, employment and freedom.
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By Verity Smith, UNICEF Australia Advocacy Intern January 26th is an important day. Not only is it Ellen De Generes’ birthday, it is also the countdown of the Triple J Hottest 100. These momentous occasions aside – it’s Australia Day. Apart from looking forward to a day off, it has got me thinking about what makes me proud about Australia. Read more...

By Adam Baidawi, UNICEF Young Ambassador. We should be rightly proud as a country to have contributed $50 million to polio eradication in 2011. But just as polio seemed an unconquerable beast mere decades ago, it will take a concerted global effort to overcome other crises. Read more...

By Adelaide Rief, UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador
Reflecting back on being a teenager I have, for the most part, some really lovely memories of going to a great school, being pretty happy most of the time and having a great family who could put food on the table at every meal (and delicious food at that).  And importantly I had all those things because and despite of the fact that I am a girl.  Read more...

By Jo Gardener, UNICEF Australia Advocacy Intern

When I looked in my diary yesterday morning, the words “Universal Children’s Day” was printed in the fine small print in the corner of Wednesday 26th October, and I began thinking about what the purpose of this day is actually all about. Read more...

By Lauren King, UNICEF Australia Communication Intern
This week marks the ten year anniversary of the Tampa crisis, an event which called into question Australia’s commitment to its human rights obligations and legal responsibilities. Read more...

By Lauren King, UNICEF Australia Communications Intern
Numerous unaddressed child rights issues and violations are taking place in Australia and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children remain some of the most disadvantaged and ignored children in the country. Read more...

By Kaitlin Bakker, UNICEF Australia Young Ambassador
Did you know that indigenous kids are 28 times more likely to be imprisoned than other children in Australia?
It’s a shocking statistic that belies the common belief that Australia is the land of the fair go.
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By Miriam Cox, UNICEF Advocacy Intern
It seems to have been a stroke of political luck for the Gillard government, as the kafuffle over leaked documents about Australia’s asylum seeker swap plans with Malaysia, was usurped by the drama of live cattle being exported to meet their grizzly ends in Indonesian abattoirs. Read more...

By Ali Hiscocks, UNICEF Australia skilled volunteer

Growing up in Australia, we are taught Aboriginal Studies in school. We are taught about the history of white settlement. We learn about discrimination and exclusion, murder, dispossession and the destruction of a traditional way of life. Guilt and obligation creep in to young hearts and minds early on. Read more...

By Alison Hiscocks, UNICEF Australia skilled volunteer
I don’t like jogging. I know it’s good for me but somehow, when it comes to the crunch (excuse the fitness pun), any excuse will do. A fail safe way to get me going is to tell someone my intention. Accountability makes it harder to lapse on my commitment. Accountability leads to action. This is true for everyone.
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By Sarah Drury, UNICEF Australia Skilled Volunteer
Overshadowed by Japan's terrible earthquake and tsuanami, it was easy to miss another event on the weekend: a riot by detainees at the Christmas Island detention centre, suppressed by tear gas and so-called “bean-bag bullets.” Read more...