Internet Search Analysis on Advocacy - Case Study Example

Internet Search Report on Advocacy Name Institution Course Lecturer Date Introduction An advocacy is an action taken by an individual or a group to enforce or influence a public policy or the allocation of a particular resource in a political, economic or social system. This paper seeks to address various advocacy services that are offered in New South Wales (NSW) Australia. It also describes the different activities that are carried out by these advocacy groups in bid to achieve their set goals. Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW (MDAA) This is an advocacy for all people living in New South Wales who have disability especially those who come from a culturally and a linguistically diverse (Non English speaking) background. MDAA aims at having a society that includes, welcomes and supports everybody regardless of their background or disability. The main objective of this advocacy organization is to ensure empowerment and strengthening of multicultural disability associations. The organization has been working to attain its goals through general and individual advocacy, networking, training, capacity building and industry development. MDAA helps in advocating the ability of Non English speaking groups to express themselves and be given their rights in the community. It also promotes the observance of rights of the disabled persons in the community by creating a positive attitude and increasing awareness among the community to care for the disabled. In bid to attain its goals MDAA has been carrying out two major activities in various ways for instance through workshops and forums as well as sibling creativities. (Qian, 1996) The organization has since 2008 been advocating for equity of women with disability through empowerment. MDAA has been doing this by calling upon women with disability to publicly share their experiences with others in a friendly and a comfortable atmosphere. They are also involved in free workshops where they educate women with disabilities on skills they can apply within their own life settings and be able to cause an impact in the community or beyond. The organization has currently partnered with the government to establish CALD sibling Support Network project that targets young people and works in connection with information and Cultural Exchange to help in developing digital media skills that enables young people to express their experiences of having lived with a sibling who had a disability and were diverse culturally and linguistically. This project started in 2012 and is being carried out up to date. (Riches, 1996) The Aged-care Rights Service (TARS) Advocacy This is an advocacy service that serves the residents of the low and high aged homes that are funded by the Australian Government and the beneficiaries. It is under the national Home and Community Care (HACC) programme, which is community organization that works with other regional organizations such as the TARs to give services and enable people to live in their own homes without depending on any one even at an old age. TARS of NSW ensures that such services as home care services for the aged are well provided to them for instance; personal care, nursing care, housework, handyperson services, and transport among others. Where such services are already being provided by the family members, the one who provides them to the elderly person, TAR ensures that he/she receives carer’s benefits or carer’s allowance. In some cases TARS ensures home care services are provided even to the residents of mobile home parks and retirement villages. (TARS, 2005) Mainly the organization engages in advocating for the rights of the aged people to be provided with all basic needs and be cared for irrespective of their financial capabilities. It ensures that the aged receive oral hygiene, proper toileting and dressing, catheter, colostomy care and other medical services from trained nursing staffs as well as shopping and social outings. Therefore TARS is a legal group advocacy that brings together a people who share a common interest or goal that is the aged only and caters for their legal and non-legal issues that are vital for their well-being. (Breeding & Turner, 2002) Currently TARS has been involved in an exposition being referred to as ‘2014 Central Coast Annual Seniors Lifestyle, wellness and Volunteer Expo’. In this exposition the organization is aiming at supporting the local businesses as they inspire the seniors in the community to explore their resources and support Central Coast. The organization is campaigning for this through a participatory advocacy tool. The Early Childhood Inclusion Advocacy (ECIA) NSW ECI is an active advocacy group that has been formed in NSW Australia that calls for the inclusion of children with disability to attend early childhood education and care. It further advocates for the involvement of children with disability into all aspects of life in the community. ECI has produced a video resource that is aimed at helping people to reconsider their present practices towards children with disability and thus enable them change their focus. The organization’s main activity that enables it meet its goals is through educating people using various resources including Learner’s Resource Book, Trainer’s Guides, training DVD and presenter’s CD-ROM among others. There also other tailored training courses provided by the organization such as “Does This Child Need Help? Identification and Early Childhood Intervention” that help educate people on the importance of including children with disability in all aspects of life. (Breeding & Turner, 2002) ECI in connection with the Early Childhood Australia (ECA) advocates for the rights of the young people who have disability to acquire and live a life that is not in any way different from the other children. ECI runs this campaign all over North South Wales, educating and advocating the community to take a new focus towards the children with disability. This peer type of advocacy has helped lift the lives of those children who could not have been able to fight for their rights. Through the ECI activities and by the use of different tools to achieve its goals, a considerable number of children with disability within New South Wales have been assisted in obtaining various basic needs. The four fold inclusion tool used by the organization has enabled it change the perspective of many Australians as far as children with disability are concerned. ECI has currently been carrying out workshops and seminars that are aimed at sensitizing and improving awareness to the communities regarding the care for children living with disability. Among such seminars is the NDIS seminar that was held in March 2014. This informative advocacy tool that the organization has all through been employing in its campaigns has helped it reach to a quite large population. Institute for Family Advocacy and Leadership Development- (NICAN) This is a community based organization that focuses on the interests, needs and rights of people who are not able to meet their personal developmental goals. This family advocacy holds advocacy-based workshops for families, programmes and conferences, provides telephone advices to people, produces newsletters and other resource materials such as fliers as well as books, videos and articles through its library. The advocacy mainly focuses on the rights to development of people with disability and makes representations to the government so that changes are made to legislation to accommodate policy and services that enables disabled people gain better lifestyles. Nican is a legal family advocacy whose activities are normally aimed at family level. It employs tools of advocacy such as media kit which entails preparing and organizing for media releases and promotional opportunities, proforma media releases as well as draft backgrounder. Nican is also involved in school sports non sport activities that encourages fun and healthy practices to persons of all abilities. (Gething & Fethney, 1997) Nican is currently involved in the research being carried out by the University of Technology, Sydney & OT solutions for the NSW department of family and community services about the private vehicle access, modification, and trip planning by people with disability. In this research the organization aims at providing private transport services for the disabled by making modification to the vehicle to suit the needs of the disabled person. The organization is doing so by inviting people through various channels to make their contributions on the same. Tenant union of New South Wales This is a part of the countrywide known service provider for the tenants and helps in providing them with legal advice and advocacy on matters pertaining tenancy. The union trains tenant on consumer laws, negotiation skills, tenancy as well as educates the community on Aboriginal social housing systems. It also publishes the rights and obligations of the tenants on the Tenants NSW website and also offers IT management and database administration. Tenant union of NSW has several generalist services and specialist services for the Aboriginal tenants as well as services for the older tenants and specialist services for the residential park residents. The union ensures that reforms for policies and laws are made so as to make renting more affordable, appropriate and quite secure to all consumers. The unions main priorities for policy and law reforms targets marginal renters, social housing, raising standards, affordable housing and reasonable grounds for termination. (Harris, 2007) Tenant union advocacy is a group advocacy that aims at bringing together different tenants especially within New South Wales and fight for their rights as one team. Their main aim being to call for community change and improvement in the service delivery as far as tenancy is concerne.in January 2014 the union announced the subluxation of the Consumer Trader and Tenancy tribunal (CTTT) into NSW Civil and Administrative tribunal (NCAT). Currently the union is advocating for the acceptance of the changes that have come along with this action to the tenants. The union has been using media releases and newsletters as its main tools of advocacy Environmental Defender’s office This is one of the many EDOs in Australia that have been established to provide legal advice and make public representation on the needs to take care for the environment. The office also takes an active role in policy formulation and making of law reforms that favours the community’s environmental wellness. Moreover, EDO NSW has been in the front line to organize for community programmes on environmental law, provision of scientific advice to help the community acquire knowledge on the basics of having improved environment. The EDO areas of focus include environmental planning and development, biodiversity conservation, corporate social responsibility, natural resource management, and environmental justice among others. The office has actively been fighting for community’s adherence to these environmental rights to an extent of being involved in taking some of the victims to court. This environmental advocacy has helped the community to enjoy a well catered for environment. (Padgett & Kriwoken, 2001) Environmental Defender office is a legal advocacy aiming at environmental sensitivity and awareness for the good of all citizens in the community. In April 2014 for instance, the office held a case that aimed at preventing the residents of the Hunter Valley village of Bulga against the destruction of the forest by an open coal mine expansion. A forest that contains a number of endangered animals and plants would have been destroyed were it not for the existence of EDO. Though the case has been appealed the office continues to represent the environmental rights. Conclusion Advocacy groups and organization as discussed in this paper plays a critical role in the community in ensuring that the rights and regulations regarding the well-being of the people are adhered to. They also help in making sure that the marginalized groups in the community are respected and given equal rights. For instance the disabled’s interests are well represent by the advocacies that stand for their rights. This helps the community development to take into consideration all the groups present. References Breeding, J., & Turner, D. S. (2002). Registered nurses' lived experience of advocacy within a critical care unit: A phenomenological study. Australian critical care, 15(3), 110-117. Gething, L., & Fethney, J. (1997). The need for disability awareness training among rurally based Australian general medical practitioners. Disability & Rehabilitation, 19(6), 249-259. Harris, M. (2007). Limited Care, No Responsibility: The plight of residents of licensed and unlicensed boarding houses in NSW. Parity, 20(6), 12. Nagel, C. (2009). Collaborate: A guide to advocacy peak bodies in NSW. Rattler (Sydney), (89), 21. Padgett, R., & Kriwoken, L. K. (2001). The Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: what role for the Commonwealth in environmental impact assessment?. Australasian Journal of Environmental Management, 8(1), 25-36. Qian, D. (1996). Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW (MDAA) PO Box 9381 Harris Park NSW 2150 Australia Ph.+ 61 (0) 2 9891 6400. Riches, V. (1996). A review of transition from school to community for students with disabilities in NSW, Australia. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 21(1), 71-88. TARS, The Aged-care Rights Service, NSW, & Advocacy service. (2005). TARS: Publications. Read More