Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I second the motion. I want to use my contribution to this debate to talk about some of the people and organisations in my own community who engage in humanitarian aid. These are often people who come and see us to lobby members of parliament about increases to the aid budget but they are very often also people who put themselves in harm's way, who raise money for aid projects around the world and who are there to benefit mankind. Many of the organisations that come and see me are Christian organisations whose basis for working in the aid sector comes from the Gospel of Matthew, that they should love their neighbour, that they are called to love and serve the least of their brothers and that loving our neighbour extends to our neighbours all around the world.

Since I've been a member of parliament, I've been regularly visited by representatives of the Thornleigh Community Baptist Church on issues of foreign aid, whether that's been about the quantum or where that aid is being directed. That church has shown a particularly strong interest in all aspects of aid policy from raising funds to engaging in active volunteering projects. They've spoken to me and other MPs and participated in the Voices for Justice conference hosted by Micah Australia in Canberra each year, where hundreds of Christians come to advocate on behalf of the global poor for increases in aid. This year, the Thornleigh Community Baptist Church also raised over $40,000 for its Christmas appeal. Last year, the funds went to the food crisis in Yemen and East Africa, drought relief in rural New South Wales and the establishment of a free community legal clinic. Every May, the Thornleigh Community Baptist Church raises over $40,000 for mission work around the world, including audiology clinics in the Pacific Islands, vocational training centres in Indonesia and leadership development training in the Middle East.

The TCBC are very proud of their education project in the Solomon Islands. For the past four years, their young adults aged 18 to 30 have partnered with a village in East Honiara in the Solomons to establish an early education centre. They've focused on empowering and financially supporting gifted local female teachers to make their vision of education for all in their community a reality. The centre has 70 students, aged three to seven, who mostly come from poor families with illiterate parents. Usually they'd miss out on the most basic education as children, and struggle to keep up at primary school, with many dropping out before the age of 12. This school is greatly improving the educational prospects of poor children in the Solomons and helping them break the cycle of poverty. Every year, TCBC's youth pastor, Todd Darvas, who is one of the most impressive leaders I've met in our community, leads a team of young adults in their first year out of high school to visit the school. These teams have raised over $20,000 in four years to support the school, which is about to build three new classrooms and grow their impact in the community.

I'd also like to pay tribute to the work of Rotary in East Timor, led by the chair of the Rotary education training group, Theo Glockemann OAM, who is a member of the Rotary Club of Pennant Hills. Rotary operates two residential leadership programs for young people, and they're well known to members: Rotary Youth Leadership Award for adults under 26, and Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment for school leavers facing unemployment and challenging futures. Shortly after Timor gained independence in 2002, Theo brought together selected Timorese students to Sydney for our district RYLA program. After a core of Timorese delegates had a RYLA experience, Theo and his team decided to export RYLA to Timor, as leadership is absolutely critical to that country's future. They raised funds from within Rotary in 2010 and 2011; however, it became apparent that, without a sponsor, the work would not be sustainable. In 2012, Theo Glockemann secured the sponsorship of Woodside Energy and its joint venture partners Shell, ConocoPhillips and Osaka Gas, and they've sponsored the program ever since.

The program has equipped many young East Timorese with the knowledge and skills to step into leadership roles in industry and civil society. Since 2010, there have been 1,000 RYLA alumni, over 300 of whom continue to study at university; over 160 have full-time jobs, many in leadership positions. Timor RYLA is now 95 per cent managed by its own trained facilitator team and receives over 800 applications every year. RYPEN has seen similar growth since it started in 2013, and is running in multiple districts in Timor. These successful programs represent an immense opportunity for young people in Timor to make a future for themselves. I want to acknowledge Angelo Raveane, David Boyce, Eddie Pinto and other members, 14 Rotary clubs strong, whom Theo has led to Timor every year since 2008, along with an army of East Timorese volunteers.

It is a great opportunity today, presented by the member for Fowler, to draw attention to two of the community organisations in our electorate that are making a real difference to the world through their participation in aid programs.

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