Claudette Lloyd’s Post

Social cohesion is crucial as it fosters positive social relations, a sense of belonging, and collective orientation towards the common good. It helps address societal challenges, reduces conflicts, and promotes stability and economic growth. Enhanced social cohesion leads to more inclusive and resilient communities.

🐳 Do we still have “shared values,” or are we ignoring the contradictions beneath them, glossing over them, and hoping it all will be okay? 🐝 After nine months of my PhD, I realise that what we often label “shared values” might be more fragmented and contradictory than we’d like to admit. 🐢 In my latest Substack article, I unpack how New Zealand’s understanding of social cohesion is rooted in outdated frameworks and why it’s time to rethink what holds us together as a society—especially in a more diverse and divided world. 🔍 If you’re curious about the intersection of policy, identity, and social cohesion, I’d love for you to read it and share your thoughts! #SocialCohesion #PolicyResearch #PhDJourney #SharedValues #Diversity

Today's reflections on social cohesion after a great chat with my PhD supervisor Wonhyuk Cho Social cohesion is the link(s) between groups. Groups vary, and understanding what groups exist, who defines them, and what attributes and values are considered when defining them is crucial when talking about social cohesion. Social cohesion is variable. It’s not a zero-sum idea or a binary thought, and it’s not always positive. You can go from low social cohesion (weak or broken links) to high levels (strong and healthy links). The measurement and variables involved are determined by whoever drives the thing that strengthens or weakens the links.

The 2024 IoD Convention aims to highlight the concept of social capital and its role in fostering economic growth and enhancing the social wellbeing of our community. But first, we need to understand the importance of social capital. Social capital is important because it represents the productive benefits of sociability. It's the shared values, norms, trust, and belonging that make social exchange possible. Our society, economy, institutions, and political system could not exist without social capital. Mr Claridge's research into Guernsey's social capital will help us probe change for the better of our local community, enabling collaboration and cooperation. You can read more about the importance of social capital from Tristan Claridge, the headline speaker of the 2024 convention, here: https://lnkd.in/gNS9QQAc #IoDGuernsey #IoDConvention

"If policy makers fail to consider who needs to be resilient, they overlook that individuals and families who are most exposed to risks, have the least capacity to respond" Tomorrow Rense Nieuwenhuis from Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) brings our findings to a workshop on "Global Ideas on Resilient Social Policies" hosted at Bielefeld University. We look forward to hearing the insights that will follow.

Social cohesion, inclusion and community resilience and its intersection with urban planning occupies a large proportion of my brain space and worklife - so its lucky I am joyously curious about the topic. So i get excited when the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute annual Mapping Social Cohesion report is released. If you don't know about this work let me get you up to speed.... every year, the Mapping Social Cohesion study measures and tracks Australia’s social cohesion. This measurement and tracking is multidimensional and multifaceted, combining survey and interview data from across the last 17 years and resulting in this annual report. The Scanlon Index of Social Cohesion is one important component, combining people’s responses to multiple survey questions into single measures of social cohesion and each of its five domains, allowing us to monitor social cohesion over time at a high level. [You're now excited huh! 🙌 ] A couple of bits from the report that I am reflecting on right now: 🧠 Australians are less trusting and more pessimistic in 2024  🧠 All domains of social cohesion – except political participation – have recorded modest declines over the last year [FYI - the 5 domains are 'Sense of belonging', 'Sense of worth', 'Social inclusion and justice', 'Acceptance and rejection' and 'Political participation'] 🧠 A little less than half of the population (47%) say they ‘have a sense of belonging in Australia’ 🧠 One of the important ways in which national and international issues may strain social cohesion is by adding to polarised or divided attitudes and debates on major issues. 🧠 Most people think that the economy and housing affordability are the most important problems facing Australia today 🧠 People from non-English speaking backgrounds, are particularly likely to experience mistreatment at work, and treatment that makes them feel different and as if they do not belong - also 63% of adults said that racism is a very big or a fairly big problem in Australia in 2024.  🧠 Younger and disadvantaged Australians have the least favourable perception of Australia’s social fabric (our collective strength and resilience) and people with a weaker sense of Australia’s social fabric are more likely to feel socially isolated, less likely to feel a sense of belonging in Australia.  🧠 Trust, optimism and perceptions of the social fabric are important markers of how people feel about the social connections and relationships around them. Active participation - such as volunteering, being involved in a local community social, civic group - is an important way in which these feelings translate into actions and lived behaviours that create, maintain and strengthen societal bonds. So many data points to ponder and threads of ideas about how planners can positively contribute to (or negatively impact) social cohesion. Happy reading 📖 🤓 🤓 📚

Too much similarly can be a bad thing: Homogenous groups are associated with subjective well-being (due to perceived social cohesion) but too much similarity is linked to lower social cohesion & lower well-being. Adding diversity is linked to greater social cohesion & well-being (N=24,726) https://lnkd.in/e9GaRe9S

It is interesting to see current discussions of social cohesion. Obviously the popular approach is to focus on the “bad” because that is what is visible and ugly and in people’s faces through the media. It is a trend of concern which should be taken seriously. The “good” element however - which is millions of citizens peaceably getting along and living their lives tolerantly of their neighbours - is not highlighted. The irony is that leaders focus so much on wringing their hands over “the bad” (whilst helpless to take strong action against the worst offenders) they forget to nourish and amplify the “good”. A good approach lifts the discourse to look at what it means to be a citizen of a country and what binds citizens together. In the case of Australia, what binds people together is effectively the realisation that (in almost all cases) they are better off in Australia than they would be in any other country. In order to preserve these benefits of being part of a peaceful, open and secure society, citizens agree to put their differences aside and to channel any arguments through democratic process. Everyone wins! Of course in order to promote loyalty to nation and what I call inclusive patriotism, you actually have to believe in your country in your heart. Many leaders say vaguely plausible things and use grand words - but it is clear they are muddled about their own deepest beliefs on duty, citizenship and country. If you do not even know your own personal beliefs and “red lines” on such serious topics, it is unlikely you will be unable to inspire anyone else to positive action.

In Canada, it is becoming more evident that the issue of social cohesion affects all manner of organizations. If any country, community or company is unable to cohere its various stakeholders, it will struggle to move forward. We conducted this research with the goal of identifying a critical but less-than-obvious piece of the social cohesion puzzle, to help organizations and leaders better galvanize their stakeholders in common purpose.   

What if we harnessed the power of relationships to transform lives, communities, and cities worldwide? 🌍 💰 Did you know that we currently spend over $20 trillion annually to address the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, with progress varying across different regions? While investing in infrastructure projects is crucial, the true essence of societies lies in the relationships among people. 🫶 Human connectedness is the linchpin for global change. By prioritizing relational connectedness through cost-effective solutions like mentoring, youth development, and community programs, we have the potential to make a substantial impact on a large scale. Let's leverage both financial resources and technology to foster these vital connections and create a brighter future for all. #RelationshipBuilding #GlobalImpact #CommunityDevelopment 🤝✨ #loveyourcity #youmatter