We're excited to bring you a great meetup event at Canva in Surry Hills to commemorate NAIDOC week, a week that celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across the nation.

The topic for the event is "Finding Our Voices", a very relevant one at the moment as our First Nations people find their voice individually, through their communities, through their great businesses and social enterprises, and as a nation.

Finding our voice is relevant to everyone, something we need to do in particular within the social enterprise space, finding our voice and making it heard through all the noise and challenges we are constantly faced with.

Hear from 3 amazing Indigenous social enterprise and impact businesses who share their thoughts behind how they found their voices, how they help others find theirs and some great lessons for how we all can find and share our own.

Our meetups are about having fun and enjoying each other’s company while sharing and learning from each other. We start with about 45 minutes of networking before getting into the content. It's a way to make new connections, stay connected with old friends, and the focus to bring the community and ecosystem together.

We also want social enterprises attending to share quick updates of what is happening in your organisations and in how others in the room can help.

Our meetups start at 6.00pm in person (this time at the Canva Learning Centre in Surry Hills) and includes drinks and snacks.

Speakers

Kylie Captain - Dream Big Education Wellbeing & Consulting
A proud Gamilaroi woman, born and raised in the inner-city Sydney suburbs of Redfern and Waterloo. Kylie is an educational leader and a highly engaging and experienced public speaker.

She trained as a teacher and has had a successful career making a difference in the lives of students, teachers, leaders, and professionals. As a once-disengaged student heading down a path of self-destruction, she understands the power of education to transform lives. Thanks to a teacher who never gave up on her, she now lives a life full of freedom and choice.

She is the author of her recently published book Dream Big and Imagines the What If. Kylie’s book and accompanying journal are making a difference in the lives of many across Australia and abroad. As a published author she shares her heart-wrenching story of loss and circumstance. In her honest and powerful voice, she explains how she found the strength and inspiration to overcome the challenges she encountered to now enjoy a full and abundant life.

Kylie is the President of the Aboriginal Studies Association and, over the past 23 years, has had an impressive career working in Aboriginal affairs, education, finance, and community service. Kylie has experienced grief, injustice, and tragedy; however, her resilience and inner strength allowed her to transform her life and become the strong, proud Aboriginal woman she is today. She is a sought-after speaker and has extensive experience delivering keynote presentations and workshops at conferences around Australia.

Colin Kinchela – Our Race
Colin is a Gomeroi artist, Story Teller and Transformational Ethical Storytelling designer and facilitator, currently residing on the Lands of the Burramattagal. He has over 20 years’ experience working across the arts sector as an actor, writer and director with a keen interest in how Stories are created and told. After working across TV, film and theatre Colin now dedicates his time to educating others on the principles of Transformational Ethical Story Telling.

As a strong advocate for First Nations’ led storytelling Colin has become a lead designer and facilitator of Transformational Ethical Storytelling. In this role, Colin brings his wealth of experience working across the arts sector to ensure all of Our Race’s projects and partnerships have strong cultural safety protocols embedded from the beginning.

As a strong advocate for First Nations’ led storytelling Colin has become a lead designer and facilitator of Transformational Ethical Storytelling. In this role, Colin brings his wealth of experience working across the arts sector to ensure all of Our Race’s projects and partnerships have strong cultural safety protocols embedded from the beginning. He has played an integral role in the development of the Transformational Ethical Storytelling framework, which has included collaboration with Story Holders, advocacy groups and law firms Terri Janke and Company and Marque Lawyers.

Colin is passionate about changing how First Nations’ stories are constructed and told and believes in the strength of genuine collaboration and creating safer spaces wherever stories are told.

Colin Gordon – Worthwhile Ventures
Colin was born in Brewarrina on Ngemba country north west NSW. He spent his teenage years in Maitland. After leaving school he worked with Telstra for ten years before starting out on his own business journey. Over the last twenty years, he has had businesses in a few different industries such as labour hire, hospitality, employment and security. These businesses were built around giving disadvantaged Aboriginal people a chance to gain employment.

Having seen first-hand what a successful Aboriginal business can do for Aboriginal people, Colin has long championed the Aboriginal business sector. His security business was one of ten Aboriginal businesses that were part of the AIMSC pilot which is now known as Supply Nation. Colin aims to bring his passion and knowledge of the Aboriginal business sector to assist the businesses that are engaged with Worthwhile Ventures to reach their full potential.

Sponsors

Thanks to Canva for their generous support as the venue and refreshments sponsor.

About SECNA Meetups

SECNA’s purpose is to nurture a healthy and connected social enterprise sector in NSW and the ACT… and beyond, including everyone in and around the ecosystem.

A connected and engaged social enterprise community is key to increasing awareness, understanding, and advocacy - while building strong partnerships and collaboration. This will help us progress to our shared vision of a world where we collaborate to ensure all people, places, and our planet thrive.

That’s what SECNA Meetups are all about. A regular way for us to meet, make new friends, stay connected with old friends, and bring the community and ecosystem together. Having fun and enjoying each other’s company while sharing and learning from each other. Exchanging ideas, celebrating the wins, and learning from the fails. In the spirit of collaboration.

Our meetups aren’t just for current SECNA members. We welcome everyone in and around the social enterprise ecosystem… and even those who are just curious to see what it’s all about. We come together valuing and including our diversity.

We meet on the first Thursday of the month and the focus is on convening and holding space for connection in a fun and friendly way. We also have talks, panels, and interactive sessions on a range of topics related to social enterprise. Most of our meetups are hybrid and provide connection beyond Sydney and Canberra to other metro, rural, and regional locations across NSW and the ACT.

We’d love to hear from you if you’re keen to speak, there’s a topic you’d like covered, or if there’s someone you’d like to hear from. There are also sponsor/partnership opportunities available.

Thanks!

SECNA Meetups Organising Team