The harmony of our culture

Australia is one of the most culturally diverse parts of the world and according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics around 45 per cent of Australians were born overseas or have at least one parent who was. This has been an important factor in shaping modern Australia; where we embrace international cuisine, participate in new traditions and familiarise ourselves with a mix of languages – here at Entity Solutions half of our workforce is bilingual.
In Australian workplaces, inclusivity is paramount to creating a healthy, productive workplace and strategies around an inclusive culture are being implemented more readily. Being a workforce solutions provider, we know that talent is talent regardless of where you were born and that is why our cultural diversity helps to sets us apart.
So today being Harmony Day (21 March 2017), we celebrate with a staff lunch where ‘everyone belongs’. This is the 7th year we have held this cultural celebration in which the nationalities of all staff members are represented by a dish from each country’s cuisine for everyone to share. The big hits included the Chinese dumplings, All-American chili, Bosnian cevapi and the UK Yorkshire puddings.
At the lunch, we asked some of our staff members to share their thoughts on culture and what they love most about Australia.
Sabah from Kashmir (General Counsel) “I come from the beautiful valley Kashmir which lies between the Himalaya mountains in India. Due to political conflict rising in the late 80s, it was no longer safe to live there and my parents decided to send my brother and I to Australia to live with my uncle. It has now been 21 years and Australia is now home!
In everyday walks of life, I have met so  many people from different parts of the world and they all have a fascinating story to tell about their journey and making Australia their home. I feel blessed to be in this country and raising my children in such a culturally rich and diverse place.”
Cathy from GuangZhou, Southern China (Customer Support) “I came to Australia 14 years ago to study my Master degree of Accounting, and two years later my husband and I decided to stay in Australia permanently. My most memorable times as a young adult were spent getting together with my family and friends to enjoy the different cuisines China has to offer.
I feel so lucky to have my kids grow up in Australia. We are surrounded by friendly people, nice climate and a great welfare and education system.”
Louise from Horsham, UK (Marketing) “I feel like it’s celebrated in British culture to be eccentric. We don’t do things half-heartedly and we don’t take ourselves too seriously either. Much like the British culture, Australia has an inclusive community approach – since living in Melbourne I have noticed that there are many events that encourage all cultures to come together through sport, food, music and entertainment.”
Garima from New Delhi, India (Customer Development) “I love the diversity in the Indian culture. Each state in India is unique and different – all with exciting variation in their language, customs and most importantly FOOD!  I see this diversity in the beautiful Australia landscape from beaches, rain forests, deserts – you name it and the Aussie land has it all.  I only recently came to Melbourne to live with my partner – and I can say proudly there is a reason why it has been ranked the most liveable city for six consecutive years!”
We wish everyone a warm Harmony Day from all of us at Entity Solutions!