Welcome to Refresh Australia!
The Refresh
Australia! Campaign is about
engaging with others -- family, friends, co-workers,
members of your faith community, politicians and electoral
candidates -– and taking action to add values to
the discussions and debates in the current political
climate. We need to shift the agenda towards a refreshed
Australia and so we have targeted three key policy
areas for this campaign –-
- Climate Change/Renewable Energy
- The future of Indigenous Australia
- Industrial Relations/our work/life balance
This campaign will extend well beyond the federal election
2007 as we believe that the social/sustainability justice
values implicit in the three agenda areas must be incorporated
into ongoing policy development for the future prosperity
of this country.
We invite you to be part of the campaign by
engaging in one or more of the following specific ACTIONS. See
the specific campaign sheets below for details.
-
Lobby Peter Garrett and/or Malcolm Turnbull re a legislated
renewable energy target of 30% by 2020 and an interim
emissions target of 30% cut in emissions by 2020
-
Lobby the Prime Minister and Mal Brough and/or Leader
of the Opposition Kevin Rudd and Jenny Macklin re genuine
partnerships with Indigenous Australia
-
Lobby Julia Gillard and/or Joe Hockey re a fair IR
system that ensures proper work/life balance, rights
for workers and the role of unions.
And also …
-
Distribute the cards and campaign kit
materials (our ‘campaign
on a card’ message and the three A4 sheets
- one per issue - with information and suggested
actions - see below) to
family, friends, co-workers, members of your faith
community. Engage in conversation with them around
the importance of these issues in building a prosperous
and sustainable future for all Australians. SET UP
A STALL AT YOUR LOCAL MARKET. SAO can help with resources.
-
HOST A DINNER OR TEA PARTY discussion
on the issue you feel most passionate about… TO
MORE DEEPLY ENGAGE WITH THE ISSUES IN CONVIVIAL WAYS.
SAO can help with resources.
-
CONTACT YOUR LOCAL FEDERAL MEMBER AND OPPOSITION
CANDIDATES ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN because the
upcoming election is one of the best opportunities
to make our positions and values heard loud and clear.
Send them the campaign card and/or a letter outlining
your concerns. Ask them to meet with a group of you
to talk about these issues. Choose 1, 2 or all 3 issues
and feel free to use the points below and the campaign
notes pages as a guide (see Resources below) when writing
or speaking with MPs or your local electoral candidates.
Points you may wish to include in
letters and lobbying …
-
Australia has one of the strongest economies in the
world.
-
We are in a position to be world leaders in developing
and adopting renewable energy sources, especially solar
technologies, wind power and geo-thermal energy. As
a developed nation we can show true leadership for
a future that is renewable and sustainable but to do
so we need substantial and definitive interim and long-term
targets to reduce our carbon emissions and develop
strong industries in renewable energy provision. Advocate
30% by 2020 cut in emissions and 30% by 2020 renewable
energy targets legislated as mandatory.
-
As long as the gap between the living standards
and life expectancy of non-Indigenous and Indigenous
Australians continues we are not a truly prosperous
country –-
there is dis-ease in our prosperity. We have the
resources to turn this around. We need the political
will and commitment to do so and essential to this
is a bipartisan approach and genuine partnerships
with Indigenous people.
-
The changes wrought in the way we work and organise
the workplace are adversely impacting work/life balance
for families and communities. The power balance has
been skewed too far in favour of employers. It is crucial
to enshrine the rights of workers and the role of unions
in ensuring fairness and balance with regards to work/life.
-
As an Australian I am concerned about these issues.
Ask to know what the party’s policy position
on these issues is.
Campaign Card
If you would like copies
of this card,
please contact us on (07) 3891 5866 or email
SAO.
Click
here for a larger
view of the card.
To receive regular campaign
updates and event information
via our free enewsletter SAO Bytes
go to sao.clriq.org.au/contact.html to
subscribe
Campaign Resources
Welcome Note as above (pdf document)
Welcome
to Refresh Australia!
Briefing
Notes (pdf documents)
Food for Thought - some further thoughts on the issues
of
PolMin Report Card (pdf document)
Just
Work - how the Political
Parties currently view Australian workplaces
Campaign
Ecard
Refresh Indigenous
Australia
TAKE ACTION to urge our political leaders
to:
- form genuine partnerships with Aboriginal communities
in the Northern Territory
- work with Aboriginal communities to develop effective
solutions to address the issues of child sexual abuse
and neglect.
More Election Material
Australian Catholic Bishops Conference
“A
Vote for Us All” – Australia’s
Catholic Bishops have issued a statement urging Catholics
to consider the common good when casting their vote this
year. The policies are all on the table. It is time to decide
what policies will best promote the common good.
Information on all candidates for the House of Representatives
and the Senate and their allocated preferences are now
available from the Australian
Electoral Commission website.
Australian Catholic Social Justice Council
“A
Vote for Social Justice” – The Australian Catholic
Bishops Conference mandates the ACSJC to promote research,
education, advocacy and action on social justice, peace
and human rights, integrating them deeply into the life
of the whole Catholic community in Australia, and providing
a credible Catholic voice on these matters in Australian
society.
PolMin
The
Australian Political Ministry Network Ltd (PolMin) is
a national membership organisation committed to bringing
about systemic change in Australian society through the
influencing of public policy for the common good in accordance
with the principles of Catholic Social Teaching.
NetAct
“Voting
for our Values” – The NetAct Federal
Election Kit says: “As we prepare for the Federal
Election we call to mind the values, which we hope will
guide us at this time – human dignity, the common
good, solidarity with, and preference for those ‘made’ poor,
and ecological responsibility.”
Centre for an Ethical Society
“Building
a More Just and Compassionate Australia” – The
objective of the Centre for an Ethical Society is to
promote Christian Social Justice within Australia’s
democratic traditions and co-operate in the development
of a more just and compassionate community.
From: Mercy Institute Justice Network
Contact: Carmel Heagerty RSM, Institute
Justice Co-ordinator
Email: Institute.Justice@mercy.org.au
Kathleen Tynan pbvm, Kay McPadden rsj, Janice Howard osu,
Joan Murphy sgs and Angela Ballard (SAO Project Officer)
at the launch of the Refresh Australia campaign on 30 August
2007
 |
 |
SAO members
were involved in the Refresh
Australia campaign
and the Make Indigenous Poverty
History stalls
at the Australia at the Crossroads forum
in Brisbane
on 8 August 2007 |
