Everything Under The Sun: An Infusion Of Culture To Promote Cultural Appreciation

Saturday, December 17, 2016

An Infusion Of Culture To Promote Cultural Appreciation

Various indigenous presenters, who deliver cultural programs in various parts of Australia.

Every place needs an organization like CULTURAL INFUSION, especially a place that has a widely diverse population. For Abbotsford, Victoria, in Australia, it means they have the great fortune of being its home.

So, what does Cultural Infusion do? It promotes cultural harmony and well-being in order to benefit a more cohesive and richer type of society. The organization works with schools, youth, and communities to promote a greater understanding of the cultures that make up the community through enriched cultural and intercultural arts and social initiatives.

One of the areas that Cultural Infusion has been working is the digital world. With the help of the WISE ACCELERATOR program, the organization was assisted in promoting their educational app, JOKO'S WORLD, which helps kids learn about the world and other cultures through games. Kids can choose various segments of the game in which to explore, such as musical instruments and folk songs from various cultures. The site also contains articles for teachers to use in their classrooms, or parents can use at home, through Joko's blog.

For another program, Cultural Infusion teamed with the Royal Society of Victoria, and Australian Science Communicators. Known as the Migrant Science Communication Accelerator, this program trains migrant scientists to be presenters in schools. Eligible individuals have a Masters degree in science or engineering, or an undergraduate degree with work experience in their field. They must have been struggling to find work in Australia.

Every year Australia's schools and teachers employ science communicators to come into the schools and provide specialized science programs that are beyond the knowledge of the teachers. In 2017, the schools will also be presenting science as a human activity, along with intercultural understanding.

Students working with Joko's World app.

The migrant scientist are actually working through Cultural Infusion's schools program. Those who become part of the program are assisted to create their presentation on their chosen topic, suitable for the classroom; are coached on delivery; and assisted to market the presentation to classrooms around Australia. Communicators already working in the program provide mentoring to those newly employed. A plus for the program is that those hired as Communicators are invited to science events that help them to connect with Melbourne's scientific community.