Junior Melo and Thomas White shared valuable insights at the National Sports Convention 2024.
At the recent 2024 National Sports Convention, Junior Melo, CMSport Senior Project Officer, and Thomas White, Culture Spring Project Support Officer, delivered compelling presentations sharing insights on accessibility and participation in sports and recreation – from the perspective of multicultural young people and their communities. Their talks underscored the significance of creating supportive and inclusive environments, both in sports and urban development.
Thomas spoke at the session “Planning and Unpacking Global Learnings for Local Delivery”. In his presentation, Thomas advocated for community-driven urban design, using the contrasting examples of easy-to-navigate and well-designed suburbs to newly developed suburbs that have major infrastructure and accessibility issues which particularly impact multicultural communities. He shared valuable insights on accessibility, transport, and unfulfilled promises by stakeholders in urban planning, as well as emphasised the importance of inclusive planning, community engagement, and equitable access to public spaces. Thomas stressed the need to involve young people and multicultural families in decision-making processes to avoid the pitfalls of suburban developments and to foster a more inclusive and equitable environment – which will result in more active participation in sports and recreation.
Thomas reflected on his experience at the convention, expressing his privilege in attending and running a workshop on multicultural youth as stakeholders in community planning and active transport. He hopes that the discussions and ideas generated during the convention would inspire attendees to consult, co-design, and empower disadvantaged communities, especially those who could not be present.
Junior Melo spoke at the “Intersectionality: Celebrating that people experience things differently” workshop. He discussed CMSport’s partnership with Melbourne Victory and Melbourne United through the United Victory Youth Leadership Program. This program aims to increase opportunities for multicultural young people to develop leadership skills, strengthen their abilities, and create platforms for them to voice their concerns.
Junior shared insights on the challenges faced by multicultural youth, such as scarcity of opportunities and the lack of role models. He focused on the the importance of youth empowerment, cultural safety, and combating negative stereotypes in sports clubs and programs. By sharing his personal experiences as a multicultural person himself navigating the sports world both recreationally and professionally, Junior highlighted the significance of intersectionality and the necessity of creating inclusive and supportive environments for all.
If you’d like to learn more about either Thomas or Junior’s presentation or want to get in touch to have a more in-depth conversation reach out to the team!