The Power of Hope with Kon Karapanagiotidis
In The Power of Hope, Asylum Seeker Resource Centre founder Kon Karapanagiotidis describes how he prevailed over a childhood of racism, bullying and isolation – and went on to create one of Australia’s largest and most influential human rights organisations. ‘Hope is only exhausted if we forsake ourselves,’ he writes. ‘It is both our sanctuary and our destiny to live a life with love, belonging, connection and community.’
To celebrate his heartfelt memoir, Karapanagiotidis will talk about the personally and politically transformative potential of hope – and host a night of hope-driven storytelling with Alisha Fernando, Banok Rind, Abiola Ajetomobi, Leila Gurruwiwi, Jane Vadiveloo and Carolina Cabezas.
Paperback will be our bookseller at this event.
Featuring
Kon Karapanagiotidis is the CEO and founder of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, the largest independent human rights organisation for refugees and people seeking asylum in Australia. They assist thousands of people each year, with the help of over 1200 volunteers and 125 staff. Kon grew up in ... Read more
Alisha Fernando is the Associate Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Melbourne where she is responsible for leading the Diversity and Inclusion portfolio across the University, with a strong focus on implementation of programs and initiatives supporting 5 key pillars: Gender, L... Read more
Abiola Ajetomobi is the Director at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) Innovation Hub. Abiola has more than 17 years management experience, in local and state government as well as in not for-profit organisations, both here and in overseas. With a background in business, humanitarian, account... Read more
Banok Rind is a proud Yamatji Badimaya woman from Western Australia. She is a registered nurse and currently the Deputy Executive Officer at the Koorie Youth Council. Banok has a background in Aboriginal health and wellbeing, and advocacy within the Aboriginal mentoring, leadership and health space... Read more
Carolina is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of Education at Monash University. Her research focuses on multilingualism and multilingual education in the early years, exploring how young children, educators and families negotiate and practice languages in early childhood classrooms. Carolina’s inter... Read more
Jane Vadiveloo is the founding CEO of Children’s Ground. She has a Masters in Forensic Psychology and has a 20-year history leading reform and services provision with communities experiencing extreme disadvantage and trauma. She has lived in the Northern Territory for 19 years and has over 30 year... Read more
Leila Gurruwiwi is a proud Yolngu woman originally from Galiwinku on Elcho Island in North East Arnhem land. Growing up most of her life in Bendigo, Victoria, Leila finished Year 12 in Melbourne and six months after finishing her VCE was thrown into the deep end when The Marngrook Footy Show was com... Read more
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