More young volunteers are needed in our communities, leaders say
A leadership workshop held by Regional Development Australia has bought together emerging community leaders to amplify their local impact.
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Participants in a regional leadership workshop have discussed what the Murraylands and Riverland can achieve together.
The day, organised by Regional Development Australia Murraylands and Riverland (RDAMR), brought together emerging leaders with the knowledge, skills, and practices necessary to build resilient communities and foster lasting connections.
RDAMR project manager Mandy Tennant said it was great to see the participants – “genuine people that have compassion and empathy and just want to do good for the community” – sharing ideas discussed throughout both the Murraylands and Riverland communities.
During the day they divided into four groups and discussed topics of their own choice that had an impact on their communities:
- Support for farmers: camaraderie, building community connections and self resilience
- More access and visibility to health care
- Volunteerism: building on and incorporating more people
- Tackling the social isolation of homelessness people: social activity within the town and future prospects of employment
The forum was inspired by the Our Town Berri group, which worked with high school students who logged 1000 hours of volunteer work and achieved strong employment outcomes.
How could that be replicated at Murraylands schools such as Murray Bridge High School, which was already proactive in that area?
Community-owned projects funded by community, rather than government, had shown better outcomes, Ms Tennant said.
“Volunteering seems to increase if it's something to do with the heart,” she said.
There was definitely a need for more younger volunteers, she said.
“Younger leadership are emerging through the community, they’re embracing each other,” she said.
“To bring in these new faces and new perspectives, they've just made some great connections … to tackle small projects, not big projects.”
They slowly picked out things that really mattered to the Murraylands community, she said.
There were eight participants representing the Murraylands, including representatives from the Murray Bridge, Karoonda, Coorong and Mid Murray council districts.
The Regional Collective Leadership Action Workshop took place at Loxton last Wednesday, and was funded by the government of South Australia through its Department of Primary Industries and Regions.
