Date: March 20th

As we all struggle with the continuing upheaval wrought by the global pandemic, our neighbourhoods have become more important than ever. Once again, we are being reminded that social cohesion grounded in compassion and mutual respect is the key to creating healthy, sustainable neighbourhoods. The pandemic has required us to engage – or re-engage – with neighbourhoods and local communities in a way we might not have done for years; to be more aware of the needs of those in our street, and to reach out to those who are most at risk of feeling socially isolated.

What you can do

Ask yourself - How willing am I, to commit to helping my local neighbourhood flourish?  

And then join esteemed social psychologist and author Hugh Mackay in helping to create a society where:

• People respect each other, especially when they disagree;
• Kindness and compassion are regarded as normal, commonplace responses to the needs of others (especially the needs of strangers);
• People make time to listen and attend to each other as a gift, not always wanting to ‘cut to the chase’;
• The health of the economy is judged by how well it underpins and promotes a healthy society;
• We treat other people as we ourselves would want to be treated. Yes it’s the old golden rule as relevant today as it ever was, and perhaps even more relevant tomorrow when we will be so dazzled and disorientated by change that we’ll be in danger of assuming the old rules don’t apply.

From Australia Reimagined: Towards a more compassionate, less anxious society Hugh Mackay (2018)