It’s Harmony Week! Come celebrate our cultural diversity at Fusion Festival
Today is the start of national Harmony Week (Monday 20–Sunday 26 March) – a week in which we reflect on and celebrate our cultural diversity.
Australia is pretty special – we’re home to the world’s oldest continuous living cultures, as well as people from more than 200 countries. In 2021, just over seven million people in Australia were born overseas, representing 27.6% of the population. That makes us one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse populations in the world.
Harmony Week is about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. It’s a nationwide celebration of cultural respect for all of us who call Australia home.
Likewise at Deakin, we all belong. We are proud of our diverse community, and we value and embrace the cultural differences and perspectives each of us bring to the University.
Join us on campus for Fusion Festival!
Fusion Festival, our celebration of cultural diversity at Deakin, launches today and runs until Thursday 23 March. We’re hosting a range of events across the Burwood, Waterfront, Waurn Ponds and Warrnambool campuses to recognise and honour our impressive mix of cultural backgrounds.
Come celebrate our cultural diversity with exciting events and activities. Highlights include:
- a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony delivered by an Indigenous elder
- delicious food from around the globe
- multicultural music, including Japanese Wadaiko drumming
- student performances
- Indigenous basket-weaving, henna body art and more!
It’s all free and everyone is welcome, so come and soak up the friendly vibe. Some events require registration, so see what’s happening on your campus via our Fusion Festival events page.
Download your global playlist now
We recently asked you to help us create a 2023 Fusion Festival Global Playlist that showcases the range of cultures, influences and backgrounds that make up our Deakin community. And did you deliver!
We’re launching the playlist on campus during Fusion Festival today, so listen out for your requests! You’ll hear all your favourite tunes playing in Student Central and at other locations across campus throughout the week. You can also download the playlist here via Spotify for all your study and party needs.
Happy Harmony Week!