Keeping communities connected in COVID-19
As public purpose institutions, universities have obligations to the people and communities of which they are a part.
UTS is neighbour to one of the most diverse local communities in Sydney. While Glebe contains pockets of extreme wealth, it is also home to people living in situations of significant economic and social disadvantage.
GlebeConnected is a community coalition with a place-based mission. It brings together government agencies, local businesses, social services and individuals active in the community, forming a framework to work together towards achieving a socially sustainable Glebe.
UTS has acted as a convenor and facilitator for GlebeConnected, identifying community needs and challenges and helping to surface the community voice.
From local to hyper-local
How does community facilitation work in an environment where social distancing measures prohibit community gatherings and where a city shutdown means many vulnerable members of the community are isolated?
The local community reacted rapidly to community needs and to support vulnerable members, and the UTS Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion in turn worked with the GlebeConnected collective to pivot the style of crisis support offered.
Working with both community members and student volunteers from UTS, the UTS CSJI facilitated the development of a customised website for local support services for the Glebe community. Delivery services, food access and volunteer services were highlighted, specifically targeting vulnerable members of the Glebe precinct. The website is a communal effort between local services.
‘We want this to function as a real community hub – for people to know how to access hyper-local services, and for groups to share what they’re doing in the community. We want to listen to feedback from the community about what will work for them,’ says Dianne Moy, Social Impact Lab Lead at the Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion.
What next?
As we come slowly out of a state of obvious crisis, there are still many vulnerable groups that continue to need support.
The aim of UTS as part of GlebeConnected is to progress this to support vulnerable groups that will remain isolated even as life goes back to normal for most other people.
Lessons learnt helping to support isolated members of the community will influence the support given to those who will need to stay isolated, and for whom isolation had always been a problem – connecting them with the community, with local services, and support networks. We will continue to resource the website with additional information and to use it as a way of keeping the community informed about the progress of the GlebeConnected initiative.
The switch to online resources in education means UTS is well equipped to assist with even more virtual activities within the community environment.
Of course, the online solution is not a one-sized-fits-all remedy.
The Centre for Social Justice and Inclusion intends to keep working with GlebeConnected on connecting those in the community this includes supporting older people in Glebe through a digital mentoring program that connects students to older people who need assistance to better use their digital devices.
The centre also intends to return to the streets of Glebe by partnering with Glebe Youth Service on a space in the heart of Glebe where community members can drop in to share their ideas and get involved on in making a strong and resilient community in Glebe.
Watch this space (and the website!) for more.
