Next week
in Victoria we have Monday as a public holiday to celebrate the Queens Birthday.
A
generation after defeat at the 1999 referendum, republicans have targeted a plebiscite by 2020
followed by a referendum proposing a specific republican model by 2025.
Opposition
Leader Bill Shorten and Greens leader Richard Di Natale both support, like Mr
Turnbull, an Australian republic with the Labor leader promising to make it
happen within a decade.
The South Australian Government has also proclaimed a special day in volunteers
honour. Volunteers Day is now celebrated on the Queen's Birthday public holiday
every year.
The matter of whether Australia should become a Republic
is a matter for the Australian people to decide. The point of this blog is not
to argue for either side but to look at some possibilities.
For example I think what the south Australian government
has done is to be commended. And I believe other states and territories should
consider the same approach.
Volunteering is vital to our country with over six
million people volunteering. But why have a public holiday to mark
volunteering?
Labor
Day is a day set aside to pay tribute to working men and women. For many
countries, "Labor Day" is synonymous with, or linked with, International Workers' Day, which occurs
on 1 May.
International Volunteer Day (December 5) is an international observance
designated by the United Nations since 1985. It offers an opportunity for
volunteer organizations and individual volunteers to make visible their
contributions - at local, national and international levels - to the
achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs).
We also celebrate National Volunteer Week during the
month of May in Australia.
But consider if IVD and National Volunteer Week, as
worthy as the days are, are in our public psyche. Do they cause a surge in
volunteering? Do they raise the profile of volunteering to the many people who
never consider volunteering as an option in their busy lives?
Imagine what a national public holiday called “Volunteer
Day” could achieve? Here are a few things that could happen.
What do most people do on the Queens birthday? They have
the day off and it’s a long weekend to look forward to. We have barbeques and
get together with families.
Imagine a campaign where we ask everyone to volunteer on
that day. Especially people who may never have volunteered before. It could
just be for a few hours or a day. It would not bind people to commit but rather
give people an experience of volunteering. And if they love it, which I am sure
many would, they could come back to volunteering. Imagine the impact this could
have on the volunteering sector. Imagine the water cooler conversation on the
Friday with people asking “So where are you volunteering on Monday?”
The day could also be marked with Volunteer parades in city’s
and towns around the country. As a nation we love our marching bands and we
could line the streets to celebrate those true hero’s in our communities.
Each year we could have The Volunteers speech on ABC. A
volunteer addressing the nation on how their volunteering impacts the community
and makes a difference in their own lives. A speech delivered by different and
diverse volunteers each year.
A public holiday on volunteering will be a day that truly
impacts every Australian. It has the opportunity to galvanize the public into
action and its innovation will be recognized around the globe and hopefully
copied.
Some day Australia may become a Republic. If that day
comes can we consider the Volunteer Day public holiday? The potential is there
and the upshot for our sector could be huge!
Enjoy your long weekend!
