Sara's journey in Australia

After months of displacement and uncertainty,Sara is finally granted a temporary protection visa and arrives in Australia.

Despite dreams of pursuing a medical degree in her native Afghanistan,with low finances and limited ability to speak English, completing hereducation in Australia will be incredibly challenging. Facing cultural barriers and discrimination that prevent her from integrating into societycompounded with ongoing physical and psychological trauma, Sara's mental health suffers. She may find a low-paid blue-collar job thatprovides short-term stability, but with no tertiary education and nonetworks to leverage she will never have the opportunity to progress.Meanwhile, Sara's life in Australia is under constant threat as there is noguarantee her temporary protection visa will be renewed. Heartbreakingly, Sara's situation is incredibly common. The glassceiling is set and the floor may disappear at any time.

A Self-Perpetuating Cycle of Disadvantage

From the moment they arrive in Australia, refugees face significant financial, cultural, educational and employment. A vicious cycle that is extremely challenging to break.

Our Mission

At the Crescent Foundation, our goal is to provide pathways to prosperity for refugees seeking a new life in Australia.

Our three refugEEE initiatives are designed to break the educational,cultural and employment barriers refugees like Sara face when beginning a new life in Australia.

1.EDUCATION

Refugees often work several jobs to stay afloat, support their families and continue their education.

Undertaking any form of extra-curricular activity is a luxury. At the Crescent Foundation, our first catalytic initiative is the provision of bursaries helping refugees minimise the financial burden of fulfilling their academic potential. In supporting their education, you have an opportunity to make a real impact on the young person, their families and the communities they go on to support.

Impact

In 2016, we partnered with Western Sydney University to provide 3-year scholarships worth $7500 each to 20 refugees. We have since extended our partnership to more universities, including the University of Technology Sydney. We have provided over 80 years of refugee scholarships! We are committed to providing more scholarships in the coming years. We are looking for passionate partners to help us reach our goal of over 50 scholarships each year provided across 4 institutions.

2. EMPOWERMENT

Our second catalytic initiative provides refugees a guided and structured mentorship through the "Crescent Champions Club", our network of influential leaders. Facilitated by our partners Deakin University and their Center for Refugee Employment Advocacy Training and Education (CREATE), we ensure that refugees are paired with Crescent Champions experienced in their field of interest to maximise potential career outcomes. Through the 6 month program, mentors guide students through a variety of career skills modules including:

Our Crescent Champions Club provide structured guidance on career progression, life choices and access to valuable networks and connections. Our goal is to deliver many morementorship opportunities and we would love you to join theexclusive Crescent Champions Club in helping refugees integrate into all aspects of Australian life.

Impact

We have facilitated over 80 mentorships that have opened many doors to career opportunities. Our personal connections between mentors and mentees have not only opened the door to meaningful employment for over 69% of our mentees but have also led to actual saving lives. 

Two stories that personally resonated with us were the saving of Arifa Hakimi from the clutches of the Taliban and the opportunity for one of our High Distinction mentees on a temporary visa to gain a full scholarship (worth $350,000) to study Medicine at Western Sydney University. Do go on and read them:

https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/escape-from-kabul-one-woman-s-perilous-path-to-freedom-20220211-p59vv2.html 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/morrison-must-show-he-stands-with-the-afghan-people-20210820-p58kmi.html

3. EMPLOYMENT

Refugees face both logistical and discriminatory barriers when seeking employment. 

Employment is one of the cornerstones of a meaningful life. Our final catalytic initiative involves providing pathways to employment. Our research partnership with The University of Sydney has provided vital insights into the employment barriers refugees face in Australia informing our partnership with Community Corporate, an organisation that helps refugees find work. Our support for Community Corporate helps pay for the corporate placement of refugees.

We have partnered with more than 40 companies creating sustainable employment pathways! Together we have already helped to engage companies including Ikea, BGIS and Woolworths that have committed to providing employment and skills training to refugees. We need your support to reach our goal of engaging corporates to hire refugees into skilled positions – that will provide more than 1,000 employment opportunities for refugees. 

GET INVOLVED

The Crescent Foundation is driven by our passionate and generouspartners. With our ambitious goals to expand the reach of our refugEEE initiative the years ahead, we would love you to be involved. 100% of funds contributed by our partners flow directly into our 3 interventions. We do not deduct any fees from your generouscontributions. All donations are tax deductible and all our partners have Deductible Gift Recipient Status (DGR). Contribution options are flexible and every dollar counts.

To learn more about our refugEEE initiatives or to register your interest in becoming part of the Crescent Champions Club, please contact us via the channels below.

E: info@crescentfoundation.com.au

W: crescentfoundation.com.au