Search Results for: yarnin money

ICAN will provide outreach financial literacy training to remote communities across North Queensland and the Torres Strait in 2015 in a new program funded by Financial Literacy Australia.  The Grants Program run by Financial Literacy Australia recognised ICAN’s extensive experience in delivering Indigenous financial literacy programs late last month by awarding the Yarnin’ Money Project $274,000 over a three-year period. Yarnin’ Money was 1 of 19 successful projects to be funded in the inaugural grants round. The Financial Literacy Australia grants program received over 245 concept proposals from a great range of non-government organisations interested in financial literacy.

The Yarnin’ Money Financial Literacy program is targeted at service providers and residents in some of Queensland’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged remote Indigenous communities (see map). The three-phase financial literacy training program will develop and deliver two financial literacy training tools for local service providers and community residents.  Both training programs will be offered for online professional development of financial counselling/capability workers and community service providers nationally.  To determine our impact, evaluation of the program’s training resources and delivery will be a key ongoing focus of the program over the three year period.  Through action research, our evaluation will tell the story of the program’s ‘Theory of Change’ with tools created to measure how the program will assist Indigenous peoples living remotely to address barriers to financial literacy and move along pathways from financial ‘crisis’ to ‘thriving’ towards financial (& social) inclusion.

Financial Literacy Australia (FLA) is a not for profit organisation committed to advancing financial literacy in Australia*. The national financial literacy grants program sought proposals that would:

• Work to improve the financial literacy and money skills of Australians;

• Provide practical materials that will advance financial literacy in Australia;

• expand the body of knowledge around financial literacy*.

For more information about Financial Literacy Australia and the grants program, see:

http://finlit.org.au/.

*Source: Financial Literacy Australia

L to R: Lynell Richards, Valerie Dick, David Jack and Leara Aiden.

It has certainly been a long time since I’ve been to the “Place of Many Waters” (Kowanyama) and I needed to find my feet again.  I did that literally and let me tell you, it was proper hot up there! A mental note for our next visit – Eddie is to hire a car.

My initial visit to Kowanyama was to re-establish connections, promote and organise our free ICAN Consumer and Financial ‘Yarnin’ Money Training to occur on the 22nd October 2014. My role at ICAN (NQ Indigenous Consumer/Financial Literacy Taskforce Program) is to assist in organising the logistics, etc to conduct the Training in Kowanyama, Lockhart River, NPA and Wujal Wujal.

The training is aimed at service providers in the community, providing an opportunity to share information about the relevant government and non-government agencies that can assist in addressing financial and consumer issues raised by individuals or families.

The ICAN ‘Yarnin’ Money Training consists of 4 topic areas;

1.         Introduction to financial counselling and consumer education.

2.         Identifying a client problem.

3.         Referring clients with financial/consumer cases.

4.         Supporting the clients.

During the couple days spent in Kowanyama, I had the opportunity to meet and yarn with a wide range of community organisations and departments delivering essential services on the ground as well as the residents of the Kowanyama community.

Another part of my visit on behalf of ICAN was to acknowledge and pay tribute to the Kowanyama Post Office Staff for their administrative assistance, support, time and effort with our Kowanyama clients in collaboratively addressing financial and consumer issues. ICAN Financial Counsellors have only previously had phone contact with Kowanyama Post Office staff and now they can put faces to the names. Thanks again to the Kowanyama Post Office Staff.

I’m looking forward to seeing Kowanyama again in October 2014 to deliver the Training. Will yarn to you about that visit next time.