2021 WELCOME FROM AALA NATIONAL PRESIDENT KINGSLEY LIU
Be the Change that You Want to See
You joined us on our journey across 2020, we bore the burden of COVID-19 together, you stood with us to present and participate in our first National Summit, your feedback from surveys was invaluable.
We hear you, we are grateful for your volunteer support, we shaped our activities to give you more benefits.
We will continue to respond to your feedback on how best we can provide members with what they need.
On behalf of the new expanded National Executive Committee, enlarged from 18 to 22 members, we welcome you.
We have recently welcomed 3 new Branches in the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia and Tasmania. Their committees have been formed and inaugural events are being announced.
Welcome to a sea of change with adaptions and new ideas. Prior to the festive and New Year’s break, the Executive Committee crafted the basis for an exciting year of activity, including the following:
Building our organisational structure - We will be adding new Patrons from overseas and locally to the National body and State and Territory Branches. Announcements will follow.
Building our capacity for change - The AALA National Summit will be held again in 2021. Last year’s Summit explored our advocacy directions and pondered the basis for future action and workshops. As a result, AALA will collaborate with a number of stakeholders to define the future shape of access to law, judicial appointments and collaboration for diverse legal networks.
Building our voice and power - AALA is committed to engaging with government and industry panels at hearings and inquiries. William Ah Ket Scholars will become the founding block to generate submissions and to be participants.
Building your skills - AALA will offer members opportunities to learn and practise leadership, take charge and build interpersonal skills. We will be innovative and make these opportunities available to all our members. Such training sessions will cover a range of topics, including:
Finding your unique self and developing your own particular career personality
How to work the cocktail circuit (including virtual networking), deliver public presentations, moderate discussion groups and craft memorable speeches.
Building our communication -
Developing the online AALA Members' Blackboard to light up and grow our membership of 1,000 and opening up our internal connections to facilitate professional and work opportunities with members
Finding out what you want through regular member and event surveys
Keeping open a good dialogue with all members over Q&A and encouraging greater direct interaction with the National & Branch Committees.
Providing opportunities for new positions for project and event volunteers at National level and Branch levels. This will give you the opportunity and experience to discuss diversity plans and deliver projects for our fast developing association. The Executive Committee and all 7 State and Territory Branch committees (all up over 100 member volunteers) are active in areas of event planning, media and messaging, sponsorship, membership, marketing and design, administration and governance, website and IT management, financial management, communications at all levels and liaising with many people in the legal industry.
Above all, AALA is here for you in facing the challenges together!
- Kingsley Liu
AALA WA LUNAR NEW YEAR BANQUET 2021
There was an unexpected 5-day lockdown last week in Perth and its surrounding regions. As a result, the AALA WA Lunar New Year Dinner scheduled for 5 February 2021 has been postponed to 12 March 2021. All other details remain the same. We look forward to our belated celebrations with you!
OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF INAUGURAL AALA SA BRANCH
Please come celebrate the official launch of the AALA SA Branch and network with other AALA SA members.
Thursday 25 February 2021 - 5.30pm to 8.00pm Adelaide time - Kosho, 26 O’Connell Street, North Adelaide 5006 - Guest speaker: Her Honour Magistrate Jayanthi McGrath
Free for AALA members and non AALA members - Canapés and drinks will be provided free for AALA members.
For non AALA members, canapés provided but pay for your own drinks.
Please note that we have reached maximum capacity and are no longer accepting registrations, although you can join the waitlist.
NEW BRANCH OF AALA IN TASMANIA
We are pleased to announce that AALA has formally established an inaugural AALA Branch in Tasmania!
We will have more to announce about an official launch event soon. In the meantime, if you wish to get involved, please contact:
AALA Tas Branch President Jessica Sabapathy at tas@aala.org.au
AALA Tas Branch Secretary Diane Xu at tas@aala.org.au.
AALA NSW BRANCH NEWS
NSW March Madness
The NSW March Madness Series is hosted between 1 - 31 March and provides a series of opportunities for practitioners to gain their last-minute Continuing Professional Development (CPD) points. The majority of the events will be available online via Zoom and we encourage our Members from across Australia to tune in. While the CPD Points will only be available to NSW practitioners or eligible practitioners interstate, this is an opportunity to keep up to date and connect with your colleagues in NSW.
NSW Diversity Series
Partner with the NSW Committee to host an event for the Diversity Series: Following on the success of the inaugural 2019 Diversity Series, the NSW Committee is inviting practitioners, firms and organisations to join as event partners in hosting an event that has a specific focus on any aspect of intersectional diversity. The objective of these events is to unite the community and give the audience an opportunity to listen, share and learn. Submit your EOI to nsw@aala.org.au by 26 February 2021.
NSW President's Message
Meet the NSW Committee of 2021 and take a glimpse at the NSW Committee's plans for the year by reading the NSW President's New Year Message.
AALA QLD BRANCH NEWS
The Qld Branch of AALA has come across another amazing production and would like to share this with our members – The Welcome, created by La Boite and Kiosk (airing January – September).
The Welcome is a collection of life-affirming short films entailing 9 storytellers from diverse backgrounds sharing their honest and authentic stories about their migrant and refugee experiences and what it means to belong in Australia.
The Welcome is an extension of La Boite’s critically acclaimed 2020 stage production, The Neighbourhood. AALA Qld Branch hosted an event night at La Boite for the viewing of The Neighbourhood in early 2020 and received positive feedbacks from those who attended the night.
The Welcome screens across multiple digital platforms, in recognition and celebration of Queensland’s diverse communities and can be accessed via La Boite’s website at https://laboite.com.au/the-welcome.
Join AALA or renew your membership now
KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING: AALA MEMBERS' BLACKBOARD
The AALA Members’ Blackboard is an interactive online discussion forum where members can post anything they would like to share with other members, such as:
Job advertisements
Expressions of interest for career opportunities
Expressions of interest to assist with any particular areas of legal work
Expressions of interest to collaborate with other practitioners
Legal industry news
Health and wellbeing issues
Cultural diversity issues
The AALA Members’ Blackboard can be accessed via the following link:
https://padlet.com/secretary20/afdo2b01zulp2y9e
Log on to Blackboard
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