Community leaders and service providers seeking practical, culturally responsive strategies will also find this very valuable.
This presentation will explore AMC Services' design and delivery of "Money Smart for Seniors" - a project co-created with culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) communities to tackle the 'silent crimes' of elder financial abuse, scams, and fraud.
This session highlights the impact of communities leading the way in designing culturally appropriate education.
Presenter - Dr. Medha Gunawardana, Australian Multicultural Community Services (AMC Services)
Moderator - Helen Wallace, EAAA Board Member
The discussion will delve into:
the unique challenges older people from multicultural backgrounds face when identifying scams and financial abuse
how cultural perceptions and stigma affect reporting and help-seeking
the barriers older people face in accessing support and protection
Medha will explain:
why involving older people with lived and living experience is crucial to effective co-design
lessons learned from creating accessible, culturally relevant education tools
how community-led approaches can build confidence, capability, and resilience
the value of a strengths-based approach to empower multicultural communities in taking action against financial fraud and protecting financial wellbeing
A bit about our speaker
Dr Medha Gunawardana, Manager Community Strengthening - Australian Multicultural Community Services (AMC Services).
Medha has worked extensively in the multicultural sector in Victoria for over seven years. She currently serves as the Manager of Community Strengthening at Australian Multicultural Community Services (AMCS).
Medha is a Board Member of both the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria (ECCV) and Elder Abuse Action Australia. She also chairs ECCV’s Positive Ageing and Aged Care Policy Advisory Committee.
A dedicated leader in multiculturalism, Medha is actively involved in cultural and community development. She is committed to promoting equality of opportunity for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities, with a particular focus on seniors and newly emerging communities.
Her passion lies in supporting older people facing challenges, empowering them to age meaningfully and live independently with dignity and hope.
Our Moderator - Helen Wallace
Helen will be filling in for EAAA Executive Officer, Bev Lange, as Moderator for this session. Helen is an EAAA Board member and has 40 years’ experience working in human services delivery, social policy and planning, and community development in large and small government and non-government entities.
Her current role at Caxton Legal Centre (since 2015) includes direct service delivery to older Australians experiencing abuse using a lawyer–social worker model where human rights, protection and autonomy are key considerations.
Helen is a collaborator across sectors for raising awareness of elder abuse and law and policy reform to prevent abuse and improve Australian responses to it.