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The argument of this paper is that social ties beyond the boardroom matter. At the structural level, social ties from non-profit foundations, cultural organizations, university boards, policy planning organizations, and private social clubs add unique ties to those established by interlocking directorates. In addition, the multiple configurations of these social affiliations increase the centrality and reduce the social distance among the corporate directors. Although visualizations of these social networks underscore the changing roles these extra-corporate ties play in uniting corporate directors, they cannot precisely capture the unique effects of ties created by social affiliations outside the boardroom. Utilizing the concepts of structural redundancy and multiplicity, the paper describes the unique contribution each set of ties makes in constructing the social mosaic of corporate America during the second half of the 20th century. The results indicate a dramatic reduction in the role private clubs play in supplementing corporate ties, and an equally significant rise in the importance of social ties generated by policy planning organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The majority of South Sudanese-Australians arrived in Australia, and other host countries outside Africa, after spending a greater part of their lives in refugee camps or conflict-affected areas. In addition, refugees are often not able to return to their home countries because the causes of their departure (wars, insecurity, hunger) continue to apply in their country of origin. The purpose of this paper is to examine some of the mental health and wellbeing issues some South Sudanese-Australians experience as a result of settlement difficulties and their earlier experience of conflict. The study looks at experiences of resettlement and settlement difficulties, and, more importantly, mental health and wellbeing issues in the wake of the aforesaid challenges. The data was collected from a qualitative method which comprised a series of semi-structured, one-on-one interviews with a total of 20 South Sudanese-Australians living in Melbourne. There were 11 males and nine females, with ages ranging from 18 to 64 years, who volunteered to participate in this study. Findings indicated that, as with many other people from refugee backgrounds, South Sudanese-Australians face a range of settlement-related challenges, and a host of post-resettlement adaptation experiences such as limited change of gender roles, language proficiency, unemployment, host society unacceptance or intolerance, constrained recreational opportunities, lack of community connectedness and overall mental health and general wellbeing issues. Experiencing conflict can be traumatic and refuge in neighbouring countries that are socio-culturally different can be challenging. In conclusion, these issues can not only be troublesome on a day-to-day basis, but also adversely affect the long-term mental health and wellbeing of refugees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the role of community, non-government organisations and universities in assisting secondary schools meet the needs of refugee students. On arrival in Australia, many African refugee communities experience high levels of stress particularly in adjusting to their new environment. The parents and students unfamiliarity with the Australian educational system creates not only cultural and social barriers for African refugee students but linguistic barriers as well. Given the difficulties experienced by refugee students in making the transition to mainstream classes and the lack of adequate teaching and learning resources for teachers in schools, this paper takes as its primary focus the complex needs of refugee students, the role of community organisations in meeting these needs, the implications for teacher preparation programs in tertiary institutions and the benefits of interventionist mechanisms like the Refugee Action Support program for refugee students. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

On 26 October 2009 Alex Ngong Akok Akol, a young man originally from Sudan, was murdered by a group of Australian youths. This paper will explore the responses of members of the Mading Aweil community of Dinka from Southern Sudan following Alex's murder. Through analysing conversations and experiences in the community in the days following Alex's death, I will consider how his murder impacted on senses of belonging for members of the Sudanese community living in Adelaide. I will argue that for members of the Sudanese community, Alex's murder and subsequent reports by the media, emphasised and exacerbated the lack of belonging many of them already felt in Australia. In addition, incidents in the community at this time called into question not only senses of belonging within the broader Australian community, but also within Sudanese subcommunity groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim The aim of the present study was to examine migration- and socioeconomic-related influences on obesity among African migrant adolescents in Melbourne, Australia. Methods Anthropometric data were collected from 99 parents and 100 adolescent offspring who also completed questionnaires eliciting demographic, socioeconomic and migration data. Multiple linear regressions were used to assess the relationship between migration- and socioeconomic-related factors and adolescent body mass index ( BMI). Results Only gender and parental BMI were associated with adolescent BMI after adjusting for adolescent age, adolescent gender, religion, parental BMI, parental education level and annual income. Boys (β = −1.45; P < 0.05) had lower BMI than girls. Parental and adolescent BMI were positively associated (β = 0.11; P < 0.05). In examining migration-related factors and adolescent BMI, after adjusting for gender and parental BMI, parental acculturation patterns and pre-migration life environment were associated with adolescent BMI, explaining, respectively, 6.5 and 4.0% of the variance in BMI. An integrated parental acculturation pattern was negatively associated with adolescent BMI (β = −0.17; P < 0.05) while adolescents whose parents came from rural areas had a higher BMI (β = 1.48; P < 0.05) than those whose parents came from urban areas. Adolescent acculturation patterns and length of stay in Australia were non-significantly associated with their BMI. Conclusions Gender, pre-migration life environment and parental acculturation patterns seem to influence the prevalence of overweight and obesity among African migrant adolescents. Culturally competent obesity prevention programmes targeted towards African adolescents should consider these aspects in their design and delivery; however, further research is required to determine their relative contributions to African adolescent obesity in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]