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The Centre for Civil Society is a public
policy and social innovation think tank. We are committed to strengthening civil
society and empowering people in families, communities, associations and small
enterprises. We are the only think tank in Australia committed to a wide-ranging
agenda of empowerment of ordinary people.
We run events, publish resources and organise
change-makers to empower the following key groups of people:
-
families
(the foundation of society but unrepresented by any broad, mainstream movement)
-
consumers
(our two political parties represent em ployers and employees, but not consumers)
-
people with disabilities, chronic and mental illnesses and their families/carers
(the most invisible and vulnerable Australians)
-
the aged
(regarded as not glamorous, important or productive in our culture)
-
volunteers in communities
(who are the glue in society but are unrepresented in any of our halls
of power)
-
small
businesses and independent owners
(the
backbone of our economy and employment but overlooked by governments)
-
individuals and communities who practice self-help
(whose voices are rarely heard )
These people are the forgotten people in Australian
decision-making, ignored by the Two Establishments in our country - the Establishment of the Right (the big end of town, corporate
power) and the Establishment of the Left (public sector managers, bureaucrats, union
officials).
Australians have disengaged from public decision-making on a massive scale.
Our politicians are drawn almost entirely from the ranks of lawyers, trade union
officials, and staffers for other politicians. Public policy is decided by
vested interest pressure groups, media giants, provider and business interests, and career politicians.
These groups have filled the vacuum in public citizenship.
Where are the mechanics, the
nurses, the social
entrepreneurs, the community workers, the home makers, the
families, and consumers in these processes? The powerful have their think tanks
to help them - we need our think tank to help us.
The term 'civil society' refers to the relationships and
associations that make up our life at grass-roots levels of society, independent
of government (in families, neighbourhoods and voluntary associations).
The Centre for Civil Society is dedicated to empowering ordinary Australians in their roles as citizens, consumers,
parents and carers, owners of assets, small business proprietors, and members of
communities.
We use the term 'people power' to signify this agenda of
empowerment.* We welcome people from all political parties, and people who are
members of none.
We want to strengthen civil society and curtail the power of elites, media moguls, bureaucrats, the big end of town,
service providers and vested interest lobby groups.
Click
here to read our Parents and Schools - A Call to Action.
Click
here to see our Small Business Manifesto.
Click
here to read our Charter for National Action.
Our core values are:
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self-help |
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empowerment |
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community |
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smaller government |
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inclusion |
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relationships and social capital |
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ethical conduct |
We invite Australians from all walks of life to exercise people
power to renew our social traditions of working together, looking out for
neighbours and strangers, offering a hand up rather than a hand out for those
who need it, unpretentiousness, and
inclusive, convivial community.
*
The term 'people power' is not to be confused with People Power
Inc, a small political party in Victoria with which we are not associated).
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