Speeches
Wednesday, 05 March 2025
Presentation of the 2024 Governor’s Multicultural Awards
Rod and I are pleased to welcome you to Government House for the presentation of the 2024 Governor’s Multicultural Awards.
Here in South Australia, we walk together on ancient lands in the footsteps of an ancient culture.
We are a society that has evolved over time with many faces and many voices from many lands; shaping who we are and providing our essential character.
Our culturally diverse community is one of our state’s greatest assets.
I am proud to support multiculturalism and interculturalism through activities such as the Governor’s Multicultural Awards, which began during the term of Rear Admiral the Honourable Kevin Scarce.
In the past 12 months it has been my Rod’s and my pleasure to engage with multicultural community organisations through attendance at special events and through our school visits program which has taken us from Pipalyatjara Anangu School in the north-east to Penola High School in the South-East and here in Adelaide to Australian Islamic College and just last week to Plympton International College where classes are taught in English and Chinese.
We have enjoyed hosting receptions at Government House to celebrate a range of milestones, including the 50th anniversaries of the Multicultural Communities Council of SA and Bene Aged Care and we’ve hosted a Christmas barbecue for tertiary international students and a welcome picnic for secondary students from overseas and their host parents.
We’ve been delighted to see young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds become school leaders, receive SACE merit awards and Governor’s commendations, become debating champions and become citizens of the year in the local government areas.
Importantly, we’ve also seen young people volunteering and “giving back” to their schools and our wider community.
Rod and I look forward to our continued engagement with all South Australians – young and older - this year.
Friends,
Multiculturalism is often associated with cultural features such as food, dancing and national costume.
While these are an enjoyable and educational doorway through which to experience different cultures, the benefits of cultural diversity run deeper and wider than this.
As Governor and previously as a diplomat, I have come to appreciate the cultural, social and economic benefits of cultural diversity, and the range of perspectives it brings, to our society.
Evidence from the private sector has shown that diverse and inclusive workplaces can improve organisational performance through better decisions and higher levels of innovation.
Our culturally diverse community helps to open opportunities for trade and investment through people-to-people connections between our state and the world.
It bolsters our ability to produce world-class cultural festivals, such as OzAsia, building cultural links between South Australia and neighbouring regions, but also including Adelaide Festival and Adelaide Fringe currently underway.
It makes our state attractive to international students, whose presence enriches our community, while growing South Australia’s reputation abroad in education and tourism.
These are just some of the benefits. There are of course many more.
I thank this afternoon’s award recipients for their contributions to enriching multiculturalism in our state and for sharing their cultures with our broader community.
We celebrate your generous donation of time and energy to your various projects and endeavours.
I thank His Honour Judge Rauf Soulio for his stewardship of the judging committee, as well as committee members for their diligence.
I thank everyone who nominated a person or group deserving of recognition, as well as the nominees themselves, who do so much for our community.
Creating an inclusive society where everyone feels they belong is a work in progress.
It is ever evolving, and the gains we have made should not be taken for granted.
We need to continue to advocate for them, to strengthen them, and to acknowledge and celebrate them as we continue to build a society of which we can all be proud.