Archives
by Joan Martin | Nov 25, 2022 | 16Days of Freedom, About Modern Slavery, Ending Modern Slavery, Survivor News
Connection is at the core of the work that we do here at The Freedom Hub. Unfortunately, like many businesses, lockdowns and stay-at-home orders had vast and lasting impacts on us, our survivors, our staff, our volunteers, our café, and the overall running of the...
by Joan Martin | Nov 25, 2022 | 16Days of Freedom, About Modern Slavery, Ending Modern Slavery, Survivor News
One of the highlights for the Freedom Survivor School this year was the establishment of a Freedom Hub Mothers Group. We run this group weekly, with our mothers taking turns to host the group at their homes. Why host Mother’s Group in their homes? Hosting...
by Joan Martin | Nov 25, 2022 | 16Days of Freedom, About Modern Slavery, Ending Modern Slavery, Survivor News
While many of us wish we could end modern slavery with a snap of our fingers and ‘free’ everyone trapped in those conditions, it may not feel possible. What would that actually look like? If people are simply taken out of slavery and left on their own, are they truly...
by Joan Martin | Nov 21, 2022 | 16Days of Freedom, Ending Modern Slavery
It’s 2022 – the year 22-yr-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody, sparking a wave of protests in Iran and around the world. Violence against women is a significant international human rights issue, and whilst some may believe it’s an atrocity that happens elsewhere,...
by Sally Irwin | Nov 15, 2022 | Ending Modern Slavery, Ethical Business, Stats and Facts about Modern Slavery
On 10th November the NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner, Dr James Cockayne gave an address in the NSW Parliament House. The title of the speech was Anti-slavery as Smart Public Policy. About the Commissioner’s Address In his address, the NSW...
by Sally Irwin | Oct 13, 2022 | Ending Modern Slavery, Social Impact Report
Last quarter The Freedom Hub received an award, two accreditations and two visits from the new Anti-Slavery Commissioner for NSW. Award It was pretty exciting to win the Third Sector Award for ‘Social Entrepreneur of the Year’. The Third Sector are...
by Sally Irwin | Oct 13, 2022 | Ending Modern Slavery
Our Ethical Cafe, Catering, Retail, and Events is full of Highs and Lows Let’s start with the The Freedom Hub Cafe highs! The Freedom Hub cafe ‘Corporate Catering’ has grown so much over Q3 that we are now looking for funding to develop an online...
by Sally Irwin | Oct 11, 2022 | Donor Newsletters, Ending Modern Slavery, Social Impact Report, Survivor News
Survivor School and Advocacy – helping victim/survivors rebuild, recover, and thrive in life. The last few months have been a very busy time in the survivor school for both Survivor School work and advocacy! We have had 6 new referrals join...
by Sally Irwin | Oct 11, 2022 | Donor Newsletters, Ending Modern Slavery, Social Impact Report
Ethical Business is our Business Our Ethical Business Training and Consulting work continues to grow with the increasing need for businesses to work with experienced anti-slavery NGOs. Over the year The Freedom Hub has had to further expanded our Ethical Business team...
by Sally Irwin | Apr 14, 2022 | Blog, Ethical Events, Social Impact Report, Waterloo Cafe
Purpose has become more important than ever over the last two years. How has consumer spending changed toward purpose, and what is The Freedom Hub doing to leverage this opportunity. Since the day we opened our first cafe in 2015, The Freedom Hub has been...
by Sally Irwin | Apr 12, 2022 | Blog, Ethical Business
Partner to end Modern Slavery? How has the pandemic made this a huge battle? The third arm of our social purpose is to ‘partner in the fight to end global slavery.’ Partnering is the only way we are going to end this crime. The official...
by Sally Irwin | Apr 11, 2022 | Survivor News
It’s a Rebuild of confidence, lost dreams, and hopes for the future. How Q1 has been a huge challenge for our survivors. Many of us are unsure or not confident about going out or mixing in crowds again, yet we know we must. We know it is vital to socialise and...
by Sally Irwin | Apr 11, 2022 | Blog, Forced Labour, Slavery in Cocoa
Easter Means Chocolate Time! Here’s How to Get Your Spring Fix Ethically Easter is a time of eating chocolate– chocolate eggs, chocolate bunnies. It is something we share with family and friends. There is no denying the happiness we feel when we bite into a piece of...
by Sally Irwin | Apr 3, 2022 | Child Labour, Ethical Business, Forced Labour, Slavery in Cocoa
The chocolate industry makes an estimated $103 billion globally each year. As a result, there are greedy individuals willing to take shortcuts if it means more money in their pockets. Hence, the plague of modern-day slavery and child labour runs rampant in the farming...
by Joan Martin | Mar 20, 2022 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery, Ethical Business
In a progressive milestone for human rights, for the first time in Australia, thousands of entities have submitted their first modern slavery statement in response to the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth), beginning the significant process of stamping out slavery...
by Joan Martin | Mar 20, 2022 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery, Ethical Business
The Australian Government has created several action plans and frameworks to combat and prevent the gruelling practices of modern slavery. At the end of 2020, Australia introduced their Fourth Action Plan, a five-year plan to combat modern slavery from 2020 to 2025....
by Joan Martin | Mar 20, 2022 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery, Ethical Business
The environmental crisis is spurring people worldwide to alter their everyday lives to combat climate change. To fight dwindling natural resources and prevent the environment from suffering further devastation, scientists and engineers have developed ways to create...
by Joan Martin | Feb 23, 2022 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery, Ethical Business
Modern Slavery Statements are pouring into the Australian register. But are they making an impact on modern slavery? The Issue New insights have just been delivered in an extensive collaborative report by prominent academics and civil society organisations....
by Ebony Stanmore | Dec 6, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Survivor News
Freedom is defined as the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants; a state of not being imprisoned or enslaved. For many of us, the idea of ‘being free’ might evoke thoughts of travelling around the world or dreams of gaining the ability to...
by Sally Irwin | Dec 4, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Forced Labour, Sex Slavery
Slavery is happening in our backyard. It is not a distant concern for developing nations. It is present and prevalent here on Australian shores. Behind the closed doors of many Aussie homes and businesses lies voiceless individuals. They have been tricked or forced...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Forced Labour
Last week, we published an article discussing the significance of knowledge and education, emphasising its role in future advocacy and action. Now that we are (sadly) coming to an end in our 16 Days of Freedom series. Where we have introduced and discussed, in detail,...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Slavery in Coffee, Slavery in Fish, Stats and Facts about Modern Slavery
Christmas Shopping that’s Ethical The Christmas holiday season is fast approaching, and it can be easy to be swept up in all the shiny objects when you’re shopping – especially when the newest toys and electronics dominate the shelves. But, unfortunately,...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Sex Slavery
Through The 16 Days of Freedom so far, we have talked about the idea of imprisonment and modern slavery. But what is it actually like to live it? Sadly, these experiences are far too real for far too many people. People such as Maria*. Maria was a victim of, and...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Debt Bondage, Forced Labour
Modern slavery takes form in many ways; domestic abuse, sexual exploitation, trafficking etc. One of the most common forms of slavery is labour exploitation and debt bondage. What is labour exploitation? Labour exploitation involved forcing people to work for...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Forced Labour
Happy Human Rights Day! Human Rights Day, celebrated annually on December 10th, is the celebration of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This is a milestone document that proclaimed the inalienable rights EVERYONE is entitled to, regardless of...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Survivor News
Dreams and goals are the foundations of our future. Consider dreams the drawing board, providing us with a vision of where we’d like to go, who we’d like to be, and what we’d like to accomplish and experience. Dreams, however, cannot produce achievements on their own....
by Sally Irwin | Nov 28, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog
It is a year ago now that my sister told me about an event that she attended at The Freedom Hub. Within the beautiful venue, enjoying the food and wine, an alarming reality check was also served. That is, modern slavery continues to be rampant around the world,...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 24, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery
Last night I asked my six year old niece two questions. Firstly, the age old tried and tested, “what do you want to be when you grow up?” This was met with the swift response of “an artist”. (The Christmas present request I’d just received for a new set of Sharpies...
by Ebony Stanmore | Nov 24, 2021 | About Modern Slavery, Blog, Ending Modern Slavery, Forced Labour
Racial inequality and discrimination is ongoing social epidemic. It has taken its toll on too many individuals who do not deserve such treatment. Unfortunately, this discrimination and mistreatment are often based solely on differences in skin colour, culture, and...
by Sally Irwin | Nov 24, 2021 | 16Days of Freedom, Blog
International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, December 2, reminds us that people should never be considered ‘property’ again. Owning a property is a significant milestone for many Australians. With over 23 million private dwellings in Australia (Housing Data...
