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WELCOME TO THE SOUTH ASIAN RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY HUB

Our Goals

At SARAH, we aim to:

  1. To research the condition, identity, and future of the South Asian Australian diaspora;
  2. To understand and create awareness of South Asian legal systems;
  3. To apply our lived experiences and knowledge to advocate on behalf of the communities;
  4. To empower South Asian youth to become leaders in research and advocacy.

Our Projects

SARAH members regularly contribute to 5 main, ongoing projects; Submissions to Parliament, Policy Briefs, Research Articles, Vilayum Payir and Panel Discussions.

  1. Submissions to Parliament:

    Australians of South Asian heritage occupy a space in the population where policy affects them uniquely, especially as this group grows. SARAH's approach to submissions operates within this space and works to champion and voice the rights, experiences and interests of South Asian Australians in the context of relevant Parliamentary Inquiries. These submissions tend to be short term group efforts, where interested researchers approach a submission using their lived experiences alongside practical research.
    To explore our completed submissions, see the Submissions to Parliament tab.

  2. Policy Briefs:

    At SARAH, we use Policy Briefs as a mechanism to respond to matters of public policy and legislation that we identify as needing improvement for the benefit of South Asian Australians. We outline problems in the existing frameworks and provide recommendations for decision-makers to consider. The content of these briefs is determined by SARAH members to reflect the areas that we feel are most relevant to the South Asian diaspora, based on our understanding of the implementation and impact of Australian policies and legislation. Our aim is to bring a South Asian perspective to policy conversations, on health, migration, education, international student rights, and more.
    To explore our completed policy briefs, see the Policy Briefs tab.

  3. Research Articles:

    The interests and passions of SARAH members are extraordinarily diverse and in order to capture this, we encourage our members to write Research Articles on topics of their interest. These are shorter pieces with a research-focused foundation allowing our members to explore their interests and contribute to discourse on South Asian matters. The topics of these articles are incredibly vast, from economic policy, to overseas political conflict to critical analyses of art and film and more. These articles are published with various sources.
    To explore all our completed articles, see the Research Articles tab.

  4. Vilayum Payir (Tamil Radio)

    SARAH partners with Canberra Multicultural Service's Tamil station Thendral FM to present a bilingual radio show, Vilayum Payir. Discussing social issues facing Tamil youth in Australia, our show won an award for Best Coverage of Youth Issues at the National Ethnic and Multicultural Broadcasters’ Council 2024 Conference. From art to film to racism, we critically examine issues from the perspective of Tamil youth living in Australia, with fun Tamil songs mixed within.
    To listen to our latest episodes, please visit: Thendral FM on CMS

  5. Panel Discussions

    At SARAH, we like to engage with the academic community, both in ANU and externally, through Panel Discussions. We collaborate with several organisations to produce topical and well researched panels on South Asian issues and points of interest. The scope of these panels is varied and largely dependent on the panel and the nature of our collaboration. We publish a summary and research notes on our panels to this website.
    To explore our completed panels, see the Other Projects tab.

These 5 projects provide a versatile and comprehensive platform for members to engage in research and publication with SARAH and span our primary focus as an organisation. However, we always welcome new opportunities for collaboration and new projects that are relevant to South Asia and champion the interests of South Asian Australians.

Contact Us!