Australia Unites: 9 Leaders Share How to Bridge Divides

When division threatens to pull a country apart, sometimes the answer isn't grand gestures but simple human connection.

After a series of events fractured Australia's social fabric, including a terror attack targeting Jewish Australians in Bondi last December, nine community leaders came together for a special forum called The Social Schism. Their mission: find real ways to rebuild what's been broken.

Lynda Ben-Menashe, President of the National Council of Jewish Women Australia, pointed to her father's experience working on the Snowy Mountains Scheme alongside immigrants and longtime Australians from every background. They became Australians together by building something bigger than themselves.

"I think that it is time in this country for us to build a lot more things together," Lynda said. Following the Bondi attack, her community launched the "One Mitzvah for Bondi" campaign, encouraging acts of kindness to promote healing and unity against hatred.

Writer and comedian Sami Shah, who moved from Pakistan to Australia in 2012, offered different advice: get comfortable with disagreement. He grew up in a family where everyone had wildly different views, even extreme ones, but they still shared dinner together.

"I know it's a bit naive, but it is an important part of this society to be able to have conversations," Sami explained.

Hannah Ferguson, who runs Cheek Media Co, agreed that face-to-face talks matter more than online battles. She challenged people posting harsh views on social media to actually sit down with someone they love who disagrees with them.

Social activist Hana Assafiri, who has spent years running events like Speed Date a Muslim and Conversation Salons, offered the simplest advice of all. Put your phone down and get curious about people different from you.

The Ripple Effect

These aren't just feel-good suggestions. Recent surveys show a sharp drop in Australians' sense of belonging, especially among young people and multicultural communities. The pandemic, divisive political campaigns, housing pressures, and rising anti-immigration sentiment have all eroded trust.

But the solutions these leaders propose are accessible to everyone. Working on community projects together creates shared ownership of the future. Having curious conversations with family members who see the world differently builds understanding one relationship at a time.

Hannah also called for structural changes, including a digital duty of care requiring social media platforms to remove extremist content and stricter laws against political misinformation. "Right now the public square is a very unsafe place," she said.

The forum's message cuts through the noise: healing a divided nation starts with each person choosing curiosity over assumptions, conversation over confrontation, and building together instead of tearing apart.