Australian Human Rights Commission Annual Report 2021–22 1. About the Commission Our Purpose As Australia’s national human rights institution, we work to promote and protect the human rights of everyone in Australia: • through advising all arms of government and a range of public and private institutions • contributing to stronger law, policy and practice; delivering an accessible and effective investigation and conciliation service • engaging inclusively with civil society, communities and the private sector • raising human rights awareness and providing human rights education; and working with partners to build a stronger culture of respect for human rights. Strategic Plan 2022 Our purpose is to ensure that Australians have access to effective, independent complaints handling and public inquiry processes on human rights and discrimination matters, and benefit from our human rights education, advocacy, monitoring and compliance activities. Portfolio Budget Statement The Australian Human Rights Commission (Commission) is Australia’s national human rights institution. We are established and operate under the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986 (Cth), as well as under federal laws to ensure freedom from discrimination on the basis of age, disability, race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or intersex status. The Commission also has specific responsibilities under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) and the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). We operate as a Corporate Commonwealth Entity under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (Cth). Our operations are determined independently of the government through our President and Commissioners. 4