Source www.indigenous.gov.au

After receiving more than 300 images from 36 countries around the globe it’s time for you to help select the winners of the World Indigenous Network’s photo competition.

The World Indigenous Network is supported by the Australian Government. It brings together land and sea managers to share stories, knowledge, cultural experiences and ideas to better manage ecosystems, protect the environment and support sustainable livelihoods.

The global photo competition showcases the work and experiences of Indigenous and local community land and sea managers across the world.

The theme is ‘through your eyes’ and each image tells a unique story of land and sea management, knowledge sharing, communities, families, youth and culture.

A panel of judges narrowed down the entries to 35 finalist photos. From here it’s up to you to vote for your favourite images online.

Anyone can vote and the winning photos will all be selected by people’s choice.

The images are split into two categories, open and youth (for under 27s), and you can vote for as few or as many images as you like.

Voting will close on Tuesday 28 May with the winners being announced at the inaugural World Indigenous Network Conference being held in Darwin 26–31 May.

Key sessions of the World Indigenous Network Conference will be steamed online and information posted on theWorld Indigenous Network website.

Source www.moneysmart.gov.au

MoneySmart has published a series of new videos for Indigenous people to help them manage their money and be better prepared. The videos have been produced in conjunction with Last Kinection.

Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect with the video on avoiding phone bill shock.

Videos cover the following topics:

• Budgeting and saving
• Your bank account
• Borrowing money
• Book up
• Mobile phones
• Cares
• Door-to-door sales
• Superannuation
• Scams and warnings
• Make a complaint
• Get help with money
• Wills
• Paying for funerals
• Indigenous Outreach Program

To watch more videos, visit MoneySmart.gov.au

Media release from The Hon. Jan Lucas, Minister for Human Services

Families are being reminded to lodge outstanding tax returns and provide income estimates for next financial year to make sure they get the right Centrelink payments.

Minister for Human Services, Senator Jan McLucas said around 1.7 million families receiving Family Tax Benefit or Child Care Benefit are being sent a reminder letter, SMS or email.

“Families receiving Family Tax Benefit and Child Care Benefit can update their income estimate for next financial year now,” Senator McLucas said.

“These payments are income-tested, so by giving us a reasonable estimate of their income for the coming financial year, families reduce the risk of being overpaid or accruing a debt.

Families who received fortnightly Family Tax Benefit need to lodge their 2011-2012 tax returns before July, to avoid getting a debt for the total amount of Family Tax Benefit they received last financial year.

If families are not required to lodge a tax return, they need to tell the Department of Human Services before July to avoid a debt.”

“Families who are on income support payments and receiving Tax Benefit A and have a child who turns four in 2012-2013 financial year must also complete a Healthy School Kids check and tell Centrelink before 30 June to receive their Supplement worth up to $726.”

Senator McLucas said the Australian Government’s new Express Plus Families mobile app is a quick and easy way for families to do business with Centrelink.

“The Express Plus Families app allows busy parents to complete a range of Centrelink business such as updating family income estimates and viewing transaction history without visiting an office,” Senator McLucas said.

“The great thing about the app is that families can do their Centrelink business at any time of the day or night, wherever they may be.”

“You can also make your updates or let us know you don’t need to lodge a tax return using our online services. If you’re not registered yet you can log in using a one-time login code you’ll receive from the department. Otherwise, call our self-service line on 136 150.”

To stay updated on important information and changes for families, News for Families is available at humanservices.gov.au/familynews or via the news icon on the Express Plus Families mobile app.

Source www.psnews.com.au

A series of multimedia classroom activities has been launched by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to help teenagers navigate the costs of mobile phones.

The activities aim to teach students in Years 5-8 how to be smart mobile phone consumers and have been developed as part of ASIC’s MoneySmart Teaching program.

They were developed with the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO), Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA).

Chairman of ASIC, Greg Medcraft said mobile phones were part of everyday life for the majority of teenagers as they moved into secondary school.

Mr Medcraft said the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures showed 22 per cent of children aged nine to 11 owned a mobile phone, a figure which jumped to 73 per cent for 12 to 14-year olds.

“Mobile phones give us unprecedented access to information, entertainment and our friends and family, but their features can be expensive if they are not understood and used responsibly,” he said.

“We need to teach young people to use their mobile phones responsibly now, so they can make more confident and informed decisions, prevent costly mistakes and avoid falling into debt later in life.”

He said the ACMA had proved how costly those mistakes could be for young adults only a few years out of school – with research showing 43 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds admitting they overspent on their mobile phone plan.

Mr Medcraft said the ACMA survey found that  when asked how much extra they overspent on their last bill, 23 per cent of respondents said $51 to $100; 18 per cent said $100 to $200; and 15 per cent over spent by $200 to $499.

>> Access the activities

Source www.moneystuff.net.au

Now in its 13th year, the Money Stuff Challenge has transformed a generation of students into savvy consumers. Every year the competition attracts more than a thousand students from schools across NSW.

The competition challenges students to be creative in researching and developing consumer messages using fun, interactive media and creative publicity that will appeal to their peers and quickly grab their attention. It is a fun and engaging way for students to learn about their consumer rights while meeting syllabus learning outcomes.

More details on the competition and how to enter are outlined below. The winners will be announced at the Money Stuff Youth Forum 2013 in November and winning entries and videos may be posted on the Money Stuff website.

2013 Money Stuff Challenge entries close Monday 5 August 2013.

Categories and prizes

The total prize pool this year is up to $16,000. The competition is open to NSW high school students in Years 8-10. Team entries are limited to a maximum of four team members. All participants in the challenge will receive a special Money Stuff certificate.

NSW Metropolitan and Regional schools categories, Years 8-10:
Winners (one in each category) receive $200 for each student and $2,000 for the school.
Highly commended (two in each category) receive $100 for each student and $1,000 for the school.
People’s Choice category winner receives $100 for each student and $1,000 for the school.
Teacher’s Prize category winner receives $1,000 for the school (may be shared between one metropolitan and one regional school).

The People’s Choice Award

The People’s Choice Award is back and offers a cash prize of $1,000 for the winning school and $100 for each student from the winning entry. More details will be provided in September, so keep an eye on the Money Stuff website for an opportunity to vote for your favourite. Last year over 10,500 online votes were placed!

The winners will be announced at the Money Stuff Youth Forum 2013 in November. Visit the People’s Choice Awards page to view the last year’s winner and shortlisted entries.

Teacher’s Award

All teachers who submit student entries to the Money Stuff Challenge will be in the running to receive a cash prize of $1,000 for their school for demonstrating a high level of commitment to helping their students understand consumer issues.

Money Stuff Challenge 2013 – Information pack

Here is some information to help students getting started, where to find information, how to present the information, submit the entries and judging criteria. There is also a sample assessment task sheet especially developed to assist teachers when applying the Money Stuff Challenge in the class.

You can download or print the Money Stuff Challenge 2013 competition information, poster and sample assessment task sheet, which can be customised to suit your needs.

Money Stuff Challenge 2013 – A3 Poster (PDF size: 1.23Mb)
Money Stuff Challenge 2013 – Competition Information (PDF size: 515Kb)
Sample Assessment Task Sheet (Word size: 100Kb)

Presenting the information

Students are asked to choose a consumer topic or issue that is important to them and their peers such as buying a car, scams, avoiding a debt trap etc. and develop relevant, accurate, creative and fun presentation. All entries must be in electronic format only and include clear instructions on how the entry should be viewed. Some possibilities and acceptable file types are:

• movie, song, radio play or short story – video/audio files, maximum 2 minutes in length
  (avi, flv, mov, mpeg, mpg, mp3, mp4, wav, wmv)
• mobile phone application – indicate the name and location of the application
• website – provide URL address
• magazine, comic strip, brochure, calendar or poster – electronic only (gif, jpeg, jpg, pdf, png, tif, tiff).

Entries will become the property of NSW Fair Trading. Winning entries and videos may be posted on the Money Stuff website. In general, entries will not be returned but special requests will be considered.

IMPORTANT: Students, please check your entries, CDs/DVDs/USBs – any with viruses or information, including images and music, that you do not have permission or licence to use will be disqualified.

Judging criteria

A panel of independent judges will assess each entry on how well the work:

• promotes understanding of a consumer issue for young consumers
• communicates to a youth audience
• explains why the issue is important for young people to know, and
• delivers the intended message creatively, succinctly and in an original manner.

Copyright, brand names and logos

Student entries that contain images or music should include a statement confirming permission has been obtained or they risk being disqualified. For example, using a popular song or image from the internet without permission.

Entries must also not include brand names, store names, logos or other marks, which are the property of or represent existing commercial businesses. References to government agencies are allowed.

Entering the competition

Money Stuff Challenge is open to NSW high school students in years 8-10. To enter the competition students must complete the Competition entry form online, where they can also submit their entry if the file size is under 15Mb. If the file size is over 15Mb students must print the Competition Entry Confirmation page and send it, with each entry on CD/DVD or USB, to the address below by Monday 5 August 2013:

Money Stuff Challenge
Education and Information Services
NSW Fair Trading
Level 9, 2-24 Rawson Place
Sydney NSW 2000

GOOD LUCK!

See the last year’s winners of the Money Stuff Challenge

The financial inclusion repository blog by RMIT University and the Smart Services Cooperative Research Centre aims to collate as much information about financial inclusion in Australia as possible, both past and current. It includes reports, programs and regulatory information. Three new items are loaded every week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday), and there is a twitter account as well. While they have a lot of information, they are hoping that people will start sending information to post on the blog as well, such as links to reports and programs etc. They aim to provide comprehensive coverage of all matters pertaining to financial inclusion in Australia. 

Blog: http://financialinclusionrepository.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/fin_inclusion 

While you’re on twitter, don’t forget to follow other key influencers and informers on the subject of financial literacy including:

• MoneySmart
• MoneyMob Talkabout
• MoneySmart Week
• ASIC Connect
• FaHCSIA

Source www.moneysmartweek.org.au

The MoneySmart Week Awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of organisations and individuals working to improve Australians’ financial literacy.

The definition of financial literacy used by MoneySmart Week is: the ability to make informed judgements and to take effective decisions regarding the use and management of money (National Financial Literacy Strategy, 2011).

The 2013 MoneySmart Week Awards will recognise outstanding achievements by individuals and organisations over the past few years.

The Awards were first held in 2012. For more information see past Awards.

The MoneySmart Week Awards attract media coverage and publicity, giving you a valuable opportunity to promote your efforts. The Awards also bring together like-minded people and organisations to share knowledge and promote and foster partnerships.

The MoneySmart Week Awards are based on merit and provide recognition of achievement rather than prizes. There are two types of Award in each category: Outstanding and Highly commended. The number of Awards given in each category is at the Judges’ discretion.

Recipients of Awards are encouraged to publicise their success. Licensing is available for individuals and organisations wishing to use the Award recognition logos. Information will be made available once the Award recipients are announced.

Award Categories

Schools

This category is for financial literacy programs or resources that have been developed for school students. Applicants may include both schools and organisations that support schools by providing them with financial literacy programs and resources. (Individual teachers, members of a school executive or educations specialists are encourage to apply through the Individuals category.)

Community

This category is for financial literacy programs or resources that have been developed for the broad community or for a specific target audience, other than workplaces or schools.

Workplaces

This category is for financial literacy programs or resources that your organisation has developed to be used in the workplace. Applicants could include both workplaces and organisations that support workplaces by providing them with financial literacy programs and resources.

Research

This category is for organisations who have conducted research concerning financial literacy in Australia or for organisations who have conducted evaluations of financial literacy programs or resources.

Individuals

This Award recognises outstanding contribution to financial literacy by an individual working in:

• A school (such as a teacher, a member of the school executive or an education specialist)
• A community
• A workplace or
• In research.

Who can enter

The Awards are open to all individuals and organisations working to improve Australians’ financial literacy. No formal qualifications are required.

Individuals and organisations can nominate themselves or nominate others. If nominating someone else, you must receive permission from the nominee.

For example, the Awards are open to:

• Schools, universities and other educational bodies
• Not-for-profit and community organisations
• Corporate businesses
• Government departments
• Individuals

Preparing your application

All applications are reviewed on how well they address the criteria. You must rely on your answers to the criteria, rather than supporting material, to tell your story. Supporting material may be supplied but may only be relevant to distinguish between entries in the later stages of judging.

When preparing your application, make sure you respond to each of the criteria outlined in the application form. Use data or other evidence where you can to support your claims against each criteria. This will strengthen your application.

You may wish to take into account some of the pointers listed below each criteria in the application form. It is not essential that you address each of these considerations. They are intended to provide guidance on what information may be relevant to include when preparing your response.

Application process

Applications are now open and you can download the application forms below.

Applications will close at 5pm on Friday 14th of June 2013.

Once you have completed your application, please email it to awards@moneysmartweek.org.au or post it to:

MoneySmart Week Awards
C/O ASIC
GPO 9827
SYDNEY NSW 2001

Application Forms

• Application for schools
• Application for community
• Application for workplaces
• Application for research
• Application for individuals

Source www.financialliteracy.gov.au

Improving financial literacy skills can have significant benefits for everyone, whatever their age or income. Good financial literacy skills help individuals and families to make the most of opportunities, meet their goals and secure their financial wellbeing, and contribute to the economic health of society.

In 2011 the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) published a National Financial Literacy Strategy to promote a national approach to improving the financial wellbeing of all Australians. The Strategy recognises that improving financial literacy is a complex and long term behavioural change initiative.

This Strategy is being reviewed and updated in 2013. We welcome the views of stakeholders to contribute to refreshing the Strategy for 2014-26.

Since the Strategy was launched in March 2011, there have been many developments in financial literacy and in community needs.

In 2013 ASIC is leading a review of the Strategy to take stock of progress and develop a framework for action that addresses the key priorities for 2014-16.

Download the 2011 National Financial Literacy Strategy

If your organisation delivers a financial literacy program, we encourage you to participate in the National Financial Literacy Stocktake Survey.

The survey will be used to create a snapshot of financial literacy initiatives around Australia. These are programs, activities and resources designed to help people make informed judgements and take effective decisions about the use and management of money.

The snapshot of initiatives will help identify possible partnerships among financial literacy providers. It will also help ASIC to detect potential gaps and overlaps in what is currently available.

Complete the online survey

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) hosted a National Financial Literacy Forum in Sydney on 30 April 2013 to kick off the consultation period on a 2014-16 National Financial Literacy Strategy. 

The Forum was a valuable opportunity for many in the business, education, community and government sectors to share views . 

However it is not your only opportunity to share views on the strategy !! You can also send in your thoughts via email submission@financialliteracy.gov.au.

In addition, a series of consultation meetings will be conducted.
Copies of the consultation paper and a companion background report are available at www.financialliteracy.gov.au. 

Please submit your views by 30 June.

Source www.humanservices.gov.au

It’s important to give Centrelink the most accurate family income estimate you can, so they can pay the right amount of family assistance.

It’s time to update the family income estimate for the new financial year. The quickest and easiest way to do this is by using the Express Plus Families mobile app, Centrelink Online Services or your One Time Access Code.

Using your One Time Access Code to update your family income estimate

If Centrelink have sent a letter, SMS or email asking to update the family income estimate for the new financial year, Centrelink will have included a One Time Access Code. With this One Time Access Code, you can provide the family income estimate without having to log on to Centrelink Online Services. Every customer receives their own One Time Access Code to make updating their family income estimate quick and easy

If you have your One Time Access Code and your Customer Reference Number, you can update the family income estimate right away.

What we do with your estimate

Centrelink will use the family income estimate to work out how much family assistance you get, like Family Tax Benefit and Child Care Benefit.

It’s important to give Centrelink the most accurate family income estimate you can so they can pay the right amount of family assistance. If you underestimate, you may be overpaid and incur a debt, which will need to be paid back. If you overestimate your family income, you may be underpaid. If you are underpaid, you will receive a top up of family assistance once Centrelink has balanced the entitlement at the end of the financial year.

How to get your estimate right

You can help by letting Centrelink know as soon as possible of any income changes throughout the year. The easiest way to do this is by going online.

Here are some tips to help you get your estimate right:

• remember to update the family income estimate whenever the circumstances change.
• partner’s income also counts, so don’t forget to include their details too
• children’s income also matters, so tell Centrelink if they start working or change jobs
• think about all of the income. This can include rental property income, any income you may get from overseas or even superannuation contributions from your employer
• if you’re updating your income estimate part way through the year, make sure to include any income you have already earned.