How a network of neighbourhoods in southeast Melbourne is learning, collaborating and working towards social cohesion

In this story for Australian Baha’i Horizons, we explore how a network of neighbourhoods in southeast Melbourne is discovering how consultation, mutual support, and collaboration can give rise to stronger and more vibrant communities. 

Over the past year, teams of friends in the neighbourhoods of Dandenong, Noble Park, Hampton Park, and Narre Warren have been working closely together, sharing experiences, insights and learning, and strengthening capacities to contribute to social and spiritual transformation from the grassroots. This collective approach has led to evolving systems for education and support, enabling each neighbourhood to benefit from the progress of others. 

All the while, the network has been guided by the Ruhi Institute – a global curriculum unfolding in cities, towns and villages that focuses on building the talents, skills and abilities in everyone to contribute to the material, spiritual and social development of their surrounds – whether through the spiritual education of children, the empowerment of young people, or the promotion of gender equality or racial unity in the neighbourhood. 

As the teams learn to “read the reality” of their own neighbourhoods, they are also developing the ability to understand their collective reality. This process allows them to identify needs and address issues within their neighbourhood, share resources, and take unified steps forward. The individuals work together across neighbourhoods, and bonds of solidarity are forged, offering a channel for the swift exchange of learning for for accompaniment to occur.  

Camps and school holiday programs nurture growth and provide spaces where hearts are transformed, mutual support is offered, and habits of service are reinforced. Young people have emerged as protagonists of change, contributing actively to the advancement of their surroundings. Importantly, the process has been marked by a spirit of open and respectful dialogue—where everyone’s insights are valued, and contributions are offered free from attachment. 

The network is now expanding, with neighbourhoods such as Berwick, Clyde North, and Cranbourne joining the circle of collaboration. With many of these neighbourhoods belonging to the same municipality, insights generated at the grassroots can be readily applied across the region, enriching the collective understanding of the locality. This shared learning is also beginning to open doors for collaboration with local organisations and agencies. What began as a set of local initiatives is gradually becoming a unified expression of growing capacity to contribute to the spiritual and material advancement of society at a broader level.

This local story of transformation connects with a broader national and global process that looks at social cohesion at the neighbourhood level. Later this month, the Australian Social Cohesion Summit, hosted by the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute, will bring together leaders from government, research, business, faith and community sectors to explore how youth, women, and neighbourhoods can foster resilience and inclusion in society. 

The Universal House of Justice, the international governing body of the Baha’i community, has described this movement as part of a much wider phenomenon. In its 2023 Ridvan message, it wrote:

What’s unfolding in the suburbs across southeast Melbourne is a glimpse of this global enterprise taking shape at the local level—ordinary people, drawing on spiritual principles, working together to build more inclusive, united, and resilient communities.