Article by the Australian Resilient Democracy Network: “…The civic life journey concept views the progression of an individual’s relationship with society through different stages of civic life. Whilst key stages of the journey are defined by age, they can also be differentiated across other factors and life experiences – such as where people live, experiences of disability or different cultural backgrounds.
The civic life course approach includes analysis of transition points in individual’s life course, such as from school into workforce or out of workforce. It also seeks to disaggregate preferences for when, how and where to engage. It seeks to use this analysis and framing to target programs and support to increase access to opportunities across each of the life course stages.
This Figure above presents a simplified model of the civic life course. It outlines three interacting elements of the civic life journey: civic literacy (knowledge and skills for democratic participation), civic participation (actions and behaviours that contribute to public life), and civic connection (belonging, agency, cohesion and responsibility developed through engagement).
We know from national surveys that meaningful civic engagement and education are protective factors against the declining trust in institutions and growing polarisation that liberal democracies including Australia are experiencing (see APSC Civic Education and Democratic Perceptions). While young people report sharply lower senses of belonging and Australia’s national standardised NAPLAN Civics and Citizenship exams show declining understanding of how our government works, more than half of Australians report feeling their voices are not heard in key public decisions.
But we don’t monitor these patterns or disentangle practical insights on when and where people prefer to engage, what access they have to opportunities, what barriers they face, and when civic engagement is most meaningful. Surveys suggest those who are active in their communities report higher trust and satisfaction with our democratic systems…(More)”
