VicForum 2021: Unmasking the Pandemic

Many questions are being asked about what we could have done better during COVID over the last 12 months. How can communication with people of multicultural backgrounds be built into recovery plans? Will the pandemic encourage a serious assessment of how we engage? Will it help diverse communities make more informed choices, feel included and improve outcomes?

Polaron’s vision for the sixth annual diversity forum, Unmasking the pandemic: CALD, COVID and Communication, is an opportunity to share ideas on how to work effectively with diverse communities in a post-pandemic world. The forum will grapple with the complex communication issues of today and tomorrow and will include tips on how to craft multilingual messages that are fit for purpose.

Dr. Brett Sutton, Victoria’s Chief Health Officer, will participate in this event as one of the guest speakers. Vivienne Nguyen, chair of Victorian Multicultural Commission, and Sheena Watts, Member of the Victorian Parliament in representation of the Ministry for Multicultural Affairs, will also be joining this event.

VicForum 2021 is a joint effort by people and organisations who care about how we communicate with our multicultural audiences, including the Centre for Culture, Ethnicity and Health, Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC), Cancer Council Victoria, Partners in Culturally Appropriate Care (PICAC) and the Multicultural Communities Council of Illawarra.

The forum will be online and is free to attend thanks to Polaron’s commitment to diversity and generous support of our key sponsor, the National Authority for Accreditation of Interpreters and Translators (NAATI).