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Australian High Commission

Trinidad and Tobago

High Commission address: 18 Herbert Street, St Clair, PORT OF SPAIN - Telephone: 822 5450 - Fax: 822 5490

2013 Hurricane Season

The 2013 Atlantic Hurricane season officially began on Saturday, June 1, and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Management Agency (CDEMA) is urging people in the Caribbean to be prepared for a very active season.

Noted hurricane forecasters Dr William Gray and Philip Klotzbach of the Colorado State University have predicted an above average season and have named 18 storms, nine hurricanes and four major hurricanes to occur during the six-month period.

In light of this, the Australian High Commission recommends that persons living in or thinking of coming to the region between June 1 - November 30, 2013 consider the information available: here and here very carefully.

Australian Volunteers for International Development

AusAID is working in partnership with Australian Volunteers International, Austraining International and Australian Red Cross in delivering the Australian Volunteers for International Development program.

Australian volunteers play a vital role in the fight against poverty. Volunteering overseas is one way that Australians can make a positive contribution to poverty reduction, sustainable development and cross-cultural understanding.

Australian volunteers come from a diverse range of backgrounds and include men and women aged from 18 to over 80 years. Australian volunteers have varying professional backgrounds which enable them to work on a raft of activities including setting up medical clinics so that women can give birth safely, building stronger homes to withstand cyclones and helping children with disabilities to get to school. Volunteers enrich the communities they help.

The profile of the program has expanded into the Caribbean, as you can see here.

Australian Federal Election 2013

An Australian Federal Election will take place on Saturday September 14, 2013.

For complete current information on the election, including enrolment and voting whilst overseas, please visit the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) website at www.aec.gov.au or contact the AEC via email (info@aec.gov.au) or telephone (+61 2 6273 8606).

ANZAC Thanks

The Australian High Commission would like to thank all who attended our 2013 ANZAC Day Dawn Ceremony on April 25, 2013. This solemn event which commemorates the sacrifice of all those who have died in war, continues to be a very poignant reminder of the ideals of courage, endurance and mateship.

Observing a minute of silence

The Last Post

L to R: Acting Commanding Officer Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, Darryl Daniel; British High Commissioner, H.E. Arthur Snell; Australian High Commissioner, H.E. Ross Tysoe, AO; TTDF Bugler

Homage to the fallen Australian servicemen

Development Assistance

Direct Aid Program (DAP)

The Direct Aid Program (DAP) is a flexible, small grants scheme for development activities available to most CARICOM countries. The emphasis of the program is on alleviating basic humanitarian hardships.

DAP Recipients 2012-13:

Medical Relief Association - St Vincent and the Grenadines: Primary Health Screening and Education
The Caribbean Institute - Suriname: Protected Organic Horticulture and Adaptation to Climate Change
St David's RC Church - Grenada: Restoration of the Marian House
Mt Airy Community Centre - Grenada: Construction of Upper Level for use by the Mt Airy Young Readers' Programme
Pointe/Salybia Development Committee - Dominica: Repairs to the Tunubuku Reference Library
The Nevis Agricultural Youth Forum - St Kitts and Nevis: Procurement of Shade House for the Charlestown Secondary School
GRENSAVE - Grenada: Women and Youth Income Generating Project
WINAD - Regional: Arms Trade Treaty Workshop
HUMANA People to People Belize - Belize: Empowering Women Through Income-Generating Activities
St Lucia Crisis Centre Corporation - St Lucia: Educational Support and Capacity-Building - Ione Erlinger-Forde Education Project
Grenada National Organization of Women (GNOW) - Grenada: Basic Carpentry and Joinery Training for Impoverished Women
Kalinago Council - Dominica: Bataca Water Supply Project
Tucker-Clarke Primary School - St Kitts and Nevis: Brighter Sparks Library/Resource Centre
Rainbow Unique Nursery & Pre-School - St Vincent and the Grenadines: Early Childhood Development and Building Renovation Project
Charlotte's Nursery School - Dominica: Fencing and Renovation of Charlotte's Nursery School
Royal St Kitts and Nevis Police Force - St Kitts and Nevis: Police Junior Drum Corps Enhancement
Women in Agriculture for Rural Development (WARD) - St Vincent and the Grenadines: Promoting Small Vegetable Farm Production
St Theresa's RC School - Grenada: Completion of Playing Field
GRENCODA - Grenada: Upgrading GRENCODA's Physical Operating Space and Computer Lab
Sherwin Fraser - Guyana: Literacy and Numeracy Intervention Programme for Children with Learning Difficulties
Canaries Estate - St Lucia: Canaries Estate Agro-Tourism Project
Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College - St Kitts and Nevis: Design and Construction of Solar System and Water Catchment
Antigua and Barbuda Red Cross Society - Antigua and Barbuda: Preventing the Spread of HIV & AIDS Amoung Our Youth - a "Together We Can" based approach
Voices of Women, Nevis Inc. - St Kitts and Nevis: "Second Chance" Teen Mothers Program
The Salvation Army - St Kitts and Nevis: Motivating Young Minds Through Interactive Learning and a Safe Environment
Spanish Town Citizens Against Gun Violence - Jamaica: Spanish Town Steel Band
Sacred Sports Foundation - St Lucia: Learn, Work and Lead - A Youth Employment Training and Social Development Programme

Award Winning Short Films Available to the Public

The Australian High Commission is pleased to announce that two award-winning Australian educational short films, "Tagged" and "Quiet Signs of Love" can now be viewed free of charge online.

Tagged is aimed at educating young people about cyberbullying, sexting and how to protect themselves online. It has won the gold medal at the World Media Festival in Hamburg and can be viewed at www.cybersmart.gov.au/tagged

Quiet Signs of Love is a love story between two characters, one of whom is deaf. It was designed to help raise awareness about the National Relay Service, a Commonwealth Government initiative that enables people who are deaf, or having hearing or speech impairment, to communicate by phone. Quiet Signs won the award for Best Short Film (Hearing Director's Category) at the Rome Deaf Film Festival - Cinedeaf and can be accessed at www.relayservice.com.au/quietsignsoflove