Social Impact and Accountability - Community Flower Studio

Social Impact and Accountability! by Dr Bibiana Chan

Growing up in Hong Kong, I learnt much from my parents and elders about Chinese wisdom. I still remember as a primary school student, I had to recite many 4-word Chinese idioms which were loaded with histories and important values as well as morals. This particular idiom came to my mind when I was reflecting on what CFS has achieved at its 3^rd anniversary. “只問耕耘，不問收穫”(Zhǐ wèn gēngyún, bùwèn shōuhuò ,pay attention to the cultivation, not so much about the harvest)!

I think any manager in today’s ever competitive business world would disagree with me and say, ‘Show me your KPIs (Key Performance Index)! What is CFS’ social impact? How many members do you have? What is your annual turnover?

I’m by no means ignoring the importance of objective statistics to measure success or accountability. In our application to become a member of the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profit Council (ACNC) and Deductible Gifts Recipient (DFR) endorsement, the CFS Committee answered many questions about the kind of ‘business’ (the social enterprise division) and ‘services’ (mental health promotion division) CFS engaged in. The tables (1 to 5) below provided a glimpse of what CFS has achieved in the past 3 years. Taking COVID-19 Pandemic into account, CFS has done pretty well in the past 3 years! At least, CFS has achieved what it is set up to do! Our vision is to ‘Help Young People Learn Life Skills and Find Meaningful Employment’! Perhaps the bonus is CFS, being a youth-focus charity, also provides a unique community platform for people from all ages and from multicultural backgrounds to come together.

To create something they are proud of (build creativity and confidence),
To share some stress-less tips (build resilience) and
To ‘talk in a common language’ of growth, support and resources (build a community).

This sums up the 6 petals on the CFS logo. I hope while CFS is stepping into its 4^th year of operation and having our Deductible Gifts Recipient endorsement approved, it will continue to ‘grow’! There will be a series of fund-raising events planned for the next 12 months. You can also donate a workshop or make donations for the CFS ‘Petal-it-Forward’ Campaign! We welcome donations big or small, every cent counts! Donations over $2 will receive tax deduction. Shoot me an email or give me a call if you have a brilliant fundraising idea! Thank you in advance.

Table 1

Description	No.
1. Young People found meaningful employment after engaging with CFS	7
2. Young People co-facilitated CFS creative workshops	11
3. Young People assisted with CFS pop-up stall	6
4a. Total number of creative workshops hosted	31
4b. Total number of virtual workshops via Zoom	7
5a. Total number of attendants to the CFS workshops	340
5b. Total number of CFS workshops attendants who were ≤ 25 yr	209
6. Total number of Pop-up Stalls	24
7. Ethnic groups of participants	17
8. Total number of visits to the CFS website	7,789
9. Total number of countries with 10 or more visits to the CFS website	11
10. Organisations collaborated with CFS	14

Table 2: Top 11 Countries of visitors to the CFS websites

Countries	Visitors to CFS Website
Australia	6469
United States	551
Hong Kong SAR China	302
Canada	125
China	72
Ireland	65
United Kingdom	49
Singapore	27
Philippines	18
Panama	13
India	10

Table 3: Organisations collaborating with CFS

1. SBS	Mental Health Talks
2. Commercial Radio 2ac	Mental Health Talks
3. Commercial Radio 2rrr	Laughter Yoga Explained
4. Willoughby City Council,	Family Festival & Emerge Festival
5. Eastwood Chinese Senior Citizen Club	Succulent Terrarium Demonstration & Laughter Yoga Program
6. Willoughby & Northbridge Uniting Church	Climate Action Mixed-Media Art workshops
7. Sydney Autism Community Lions Club	Autism Awareness Pop-up Stalls
8. Balgowlah Scouts,	Climate Action Mixed-Media Art workshops
9. StreetWork,	Youth Week Creative Workshops
10. Ryde City Council	Laughter Yoga Program
11. SECNA (Social Enterprise Council NSW & ACT)	Media Workshop
12. Mental Health Coordinating Council	NDIS Re-Imagine – Multi-lingual resources
13. Lane Cove Council	Succulent Terrarium Workshop
14. Chinese Australian Services Society	Mental Health Training

Table 4: Community Flower Studio Activities

Pop-up Stalls	24
Creative Workshops:	31
Face-to-face	24
Virtual	7
Total No. Workshop attendance	340
≤ 25yr	209
25 yr +	131

Table 5: Ethnic backgrounds of CFS Workshop participants

Australian

Chinese

English

German

Hongkonger

Indian

Just look at the smiles on these faces!

This Flower Crown Workshop was first offered at ShoreShocked 22 Music Festival with a huge success. The full version of the workshop was held at Chatswood Youth Centre on 26 Nov 2022.