The Intersection Urban Learning in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | Community organisation

The Intersection Urban Learning

Locality: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Phone: +61 3 9663 0699

Address: 116 Little Bourke St 3000 Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Website: https://theintersection.org.au

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• Non-profit organisation
• Education
• Community organisation

25.01.2022 Learning from here today #mabo #NRW2020 #amplifymelanatedvoices

24.01.2022 Its hard to say much about this book by Claire G. Coleman without spoilers, but suffice it to say, it is thought provoking and disturbing, but well worth the read. #clairecoleman #terranullius #indigenousbooks #empathy

23.01.2022 State of Disaster . . #lockdown2020 #maskup #melbourne #covid19 #melbournelockdown

23.01.2022 Its important to say what hope is not: it is not the belief that everything was, is, or will be fine. The evidence is all around us of tremendous suffering and tremendous destruction. The hope Im interested in is about broad perspectives with specific possibilities, ones that invite or demand that we act. Its also not a sunny everything-is-getting-better narrative, though it may be a counter to the everything-is-getting-worse narrative. You could call it an account of complexities and uncertainties, with openings. Excerpt from Hope In The Dark by Rebecca Solnit . . . #rebeccasolnit #hopeinthedark #hope

23.01.2022 This classic TED talk The danger of a single story by Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was a catalyst for a lot of our teaching and education. For years this phrase has allowed us to hold discussions with thousands of high school students in Melbourne about the dangers of stereotypes, prejudice and assumptions. It also opens up a conversation about the value of different voices and diversity. We believe that this is the work of empathy. To hear a different story. T...o try another life. To listen. What single stories have you heard? How do you hear a different story? . . . . #chimanandangoziadichie #dangerofasinglestory #stereotypes #assumptions #prejudice #TheIntersection

23.01.2022 COVID-19 has brought to light many fractures and fault-lines within our society. Right now, in Melbourne we are witnessing the housing crisis, with the lockdown of 3000 residents in 9 public housing towers. . With upwards of 116,000 homeless people in Australia and close to 25,000 of them in Victoria housing has long been an issue. There is simply not enough housing for all these people. In Victoria there are 6,000 people a night needing a bed but only 127 refuge beds availa...ble. It has been reported that 40% of people needing housing are turned away. . Social and public housing are a pathway out of homelessness. But it was predicted that this year the public housing wait list would reach 100,000. In 2018 the number of public housing in Victoria was 80,501. The numbers dont add up and we have personally known people waiting 20 years for public housing. . Right now we are witnessing the issues associated with public housing and high density living, as 3000 of Melbournes vulnerable, poor and marginalised are held in detention to stop the spread of COVID-19. . As an organisation we have pondered over the years, on whether housing is a right or an asset in Australian society. And why in Australia, are we ok with health care being a universal basic human right but not housing. Housing is seen as something you work for and earn. . And yet The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that as humans we have the Right to Housing. Meaning economic, social and cultural rights to adequate housing and shelter. COVID has laid bare the structural issues our society has with housing. The system is broken. We need a home for everybody. . All that remains is the same challenge 2020 has issued us over and over again. Each time slapping us in the face a little harder. What are we going to do about it? What kind society do we want to emerge from the rubble? . . #publichousing #housingrightorassest #housingisahumanright #housingcrisis #housing #melbournelockdown #everybodyshome #TheIntersection #melbourne

22.01.2022 What are the stories we hear? What are the stories we don’t hear? Yesterday after all of Victoria’s hard work we were moving from ‘stay at home’ orders to ‘stay safe’ orders. After over 100 days of lockdown we were finally allowed out. It was an emotional day. ... Yesterday a 700 year old sacred ancestor tree of the Djab Wurrung people was cut down to make way for a road. It was a devastating day. Whilst we celebrated our freedoms. Others grieved the the loss of culture. There is a danger in a single story. What are you doing today to make sure you hear other stories - especially ones that have been made hard to hear?

20.01.2022 Zero cases today in Melbourne. Well done on a hard slog everyone.

20.01.2022 Repost @guardianaustralia Three residents of the public housing estates in quarantine in Melbourne have written for @guardianaustralia on their views on the sudden and immediate 'hard lockdown' that went into effect last Saturday afternoon. "What we need is more testing, lots of testing, but not lockdowns. Yesterday they sent 500 police. Why? I want to ask Daniel Andrews why he sent us the police, but no medical help. This is not a police issue. Why didnt they send us 500 n...urses?" writes Elhadi Abass, manager of the Multicultural Sudanese Centre on the locked-down Flemington estate. "There are two sides to how we are feeling right now. Mixed with the sense of outrage is a bit of relief that the government is paying attention. And we do believe that we should be locked down, that this is an important health issue," writes Hiba Shanino, a law student under lockdown. "But Daniel Andrews should understand that he cant just put immediate lockdown on a community, when other suburbs got hours or days notice. For us it was immediate." "I think the government is doing the best they can, and working really hard. They are spending a lot of money. But they cant do anything by themselves, they need the community to work with them. And they should work with our community leaders," says resident and community worker Awatif Taha, who is happy that attention is being paid to the units but critical of the government's lack of communication. Read more on the hard lockdown in Melbourne at the link in bio. Photos: Speed Media/Rex/Shutterstock, Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images, AAP Image/Daniel Pockett, James Ross #melbourne #victoria #covid19 #melbournelockdown #victorialockdown #hardlockdown

20.01.2022 Another great read by Stan Grant. As stated on the blurb: Why does identity demand a choice between black and white. Tribalism, nationalism, sectarianism are dividing the world into us and them. Are we hard wired for hate? Stan Grant argues that is is time to leave identity behind us and to embrace cosmopolitanism. On Identity is a meditation on hope and community. . The scientific truth is 99.9% of DNA is similar to everyone else. Think about that, all of our difference, ...all of the things we hold true-or at least we think they are-contained in that fraction of a percent. . . . #stangrant #identity #indigenousreads #decolonizeyourmind #decolonizeyourbookshelf #usandthem

20.01.2022 It was world localisation day over the weekend and we participated in some of the online events run by @economics_of_happiness Some of these have been recorded and you can find them on YouTube for the next day or so. Highly recommend a watch. Lots of food for thought as we witness our old systems of climate, racial and income injustice fall apart and begin to imagine a more connected, less consuming, diverse society. #worldlocalizationday #localisation #local #connected #strongdiverse #regnerative #localization #TheIntersection

19.01.2022 Adding to our library. What else should we read? . #indigenousbooks #decoloniseyourmind #TheIntetsection #education #melbourne #reading #kirlisaunders #anitaheiss #alisonwhittaker #tysonyunkaporta #kindred #blakwork #sandtalk #growingupaboriginalinaustralia

19.01.2022 For the past 10 years we have been researching and teaching about Empathy. Empathy is often viewed as a passive act. But we believe empathy has the power to bring about radical transformation. Whilst empathy is an innate part of being human it is also something we can cultivate, practice and be better at. Empathy is active. Empathy is work. It seems that collectively the world is being called to this task. To face white privilege and unlearn systemic racism. This is the ...work of empathy. To be curious about strangers. To challenge our assumptions and prejudices. To try another persons life and change our perspective. Some may prefer to call this compassion. Or Radical Compassion. #empathy #empathyday #radicalempathy #radicalcompassion #compassion #TheIntersection

18.01.2022 Its been a tough slog here in Melbourne over the last couple of months with the end not quite in sight, but lets not lose sight of each. . . Reposted @brandi_kincaid Heard these words yesterday and have been carrying them around, rolling them over, thinking about how Im practicing what they ask already, and how I can do better. Theyre always true, and yet, and yet...right now feels like an important time to make sure the reminder is close in both head and heart every day. (Scroll left for a version without all my scribbled notes ) #brandidrawsanddraws

17.01.2022 What is empathy? What happens when we empathise with people different to us? How does it change us and society? . . This year we have been unable to run the 100s of face to face sessions we do in the city. Its been hard. But we have adapted our sessions for online and we love doing them. ... . . Today we are running our Empathy workshop. . . #onlinelearning #teachersofinstagram #remotelearning #theintersection #melbourne #empathy See more

16.01.2022 What a huge turn out today for a peaceful and passionate protest in Melbourne. #aboriginallivesmatter #indigenouslivesmatter #blacklivesmatter #deathincustody #protest #melbourne #parliament @ Naarm

13.01.2022 Repost @tiddas4tiddas June 3rd is Mabo Day, an annual event where we reflect on the achievements and life of one of our greatest ever leaders. In 1981, Uncle Eddie Koiki Mabo of Mer Island in the Torres Strait, launched a case that would challenge terra nullius, the legal doctrine which claimed that Australia was unoccupied at the time of invasion. This ignited a decade-long saga that would ultimately change the nation. In 1991, soon after final arguments were delivered be...fore the high court, he was diagnosed with cancer. He died in January 1992, just five months before the court handed down its decision. The Mabo decision fundamentally altered land ownership in Australia. For the first time in 200 years, legal recognition was afforded to traditional owners. The court found that Australia had not been legally unoccupied in 1788 when Governor Arthur Phillip landed and claimed the country on behalf of the British Crown. This achievement can not be understated and in this frightening and uncertain time, the lessons of resilience and strength he gives us, need to be remembered more than ever - happy Mabo day to you all but especially our Torres Strait Islander brothers and sisters Portrait for TIME Magazine, by Olaf Hajek . . . #tiddas4tiddas #eddiemabo #maboday #torresstraitislander #culture #pride #leader #rolemodel #positive #achievement #inspiring

13.01.2022 #blacklivesmatter

12.01.2022 Loving this from @projectre.store it's amazing how a creative idea for connection can bring back the pre-covid community buzz. . . Project Re-Store is an action research project dedicated to working with struggling communities & organisations to find ways to re-inspire, revive, reimagine, reinvent and rebuild.... . . #carlton #melbourne #local #connection #community #covid_19 #projectrestorecarlton #automaticmainstreet #shoplocal #payitforward #placemaking #localvendingmachine See more

11.01.2022 This @quotesbychristie . . #judge #connection #assumptions #singlestory #melbourne #teachersofinstagram

11.01.2022 This Saturday 1pm, Melbourne CBD: If you are interested in empathy, diversity and connection, or are curious about how COVID has affected some of our most vulnerable people, join us for a (covid-safe) Walk in the Melbourne CBD this Saturday, sharing stories of the city that are rarely heard. We call the walk "A Most Liveable City" and ask the question: liveable for whom? We normally only provide these sessions to groups such as schools and corporate social responsibility team...s - so this is a unique opportunity, and a great way to support a small non-profit organisation in tough times! Booking is by (tax deductible) donation and the group is limited to just 10 participants. The walk goes for about 90 minutes. Secondary teachers, chaplains, welfare coordinators, Year 9 city experience coordinators, if you haven't come across us before, your kids are missing out! Come and check out what we offer your school community. Please pass this on to others you know who might be interested. Bookings/more info: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/a-most-liveable-city-walk-o Our website: https://theintersection.org.au PS if you are keen but can't make this Saturday, please comment or inbox us to help us gauge demand.

11.01.2022 Mask up Melbourne. . Todays the day that Melbournians by law must wear a face mask. . How is everyone feeling about this?... Anyone finding it confronting? . Dont forget those vulnerable who may not have access to masks. And those with mental health issues who may struggle wearing one. How can we support them in these strange times? . . #lockdown2020 #lockdown2 #melbourne #maskup #covid19 See more

10.01.2022 Although this is a short volume, able to be read in one sitting it sure does pack a punch and provide many things to think upon. We will be re-reading this many times. . . #ambelinkwaymullina #livingonstolenland #indigenousbooks #decolonizeyourbookshelf #alwayswasalwayswillbe

10.01.2022 Its Homeless Week this week. Covid has highlighted just how broken our housing system is here in Australia. . Everybodys Home is a campaign about fixing our broken housing system. .... Building social housing will help end homelessness. Investing in 30,000 housing properties will create 18,000 jobs a year in local communities. . Head over to everybodyshome.com.au to find out what you can do to help. . . #homelessweek #socialhousing #everybodyshome #affordablehousing #melbourne #ecconomicstimulus #resecession #jobkeeper #jobseeker See more

09.01.2022 Finding hope in Jenny Odells book How to do Nothing Render: to cause to become; make Attention: observant care; consideration... #jennyodell #howtodonothing #render #attention #melbourne #teachersofinstagram #covid19 #lockdown #stage4

08.01.2022 Congratulations to @tara_june_winch for winning the Miles Franklin award. This is such a powerful fictional story that captures so much Australian History that is usually glossed over. . . #tarajunewinch #milesfranklin #indigenousbooks #decolonizeyourbookshelf

07.01.2022 At The Intersection we challenge you to meet the other, because empathy, diversity and connection are vital to creating a liveable city. . . Because diversity is strength. Difference is a teacher. Fear difference, you learn nothing. Hannah Gadsby ... #meetheother #TheIntersection #davidwhyte #stranger #melbourne

07.01.2022 Wildflower by @kirli.saunders I picked these to remind you ... That there is a place for your struggles. These, the most sacred of flowers grow only from dust and dirt. . . . #kirlisaunders #poetry #decolonizeyourbookshelf #decolonizeyourmind #indigenousbooks

07.01.2022 @hannah_gadsby in her powerful show Nanette said: Ironically, I believe Picasso was right. I believe we could paint a better world if we learned to see it from all perspectives, as many perspectives as we possibly could. Because diversity is strength. Difference is a teacher. Fear difference, you learn nothing. . . .... #hannahgadsby #nanette #diversityisstrength #differenceisateacher #perspective #empathy #TheIntersection See more

06.01.2022 Thinking of our fellow Melbournians today as we head back into lockdown for 6 weeks. #lockdown2020 #melbourne #melbournelockdown2020 #TheIntersection #covid19

06.01.2022 Last week we did a zoom session of A Most Liveable City? with Sacred Heart College Geelong. Here is some student feedback from our session: . . Its important for anyone to learn about this issue and I will implement it in my day to day life. Simply walking down the street, at school etc. its important to learn to not judge others. .... . To be more conscious of my actions and the hardships that others around me might face. Be aware of the stereotypes and groups that we loop into and look past that. . . I learnt not to judge who someone is without getting to know them. . . #amostliveablecity #TheIntersection #remotelearning #onlineeducation #year9 #melbourne #stereotypes #peoplearehardtohatecloseup #dangerofasinglestory #zoom See more

06.01.2022 Was reminded of this lyric Got to kick at the darkness 'til it bleeds daylight from a 1983 song by Bruce Cockburn called Lovers in a Dangerous time recently. This song was written in the time of the Cold War and Nuclear threat. . . Bono from U2 quotes this line in his song God, Part II off the Rattle and Hum album. A song that is all about love. .... . According to Cockburn the song was about school yard children being bold enough to hold hands and love in the face of a future that might not be. . . It seems that now is a time again in history when we are faced with the prospect of no future. This song is a reminder and call to be a lover in a broader sense also. . . Stan Grant invokes love in On Identity ...what happens when we banish love, when we no longer see ourselves in each other, but instead an enemy... Love is kept alive in the darkest corners and against the greatest odds. You can put people in chains, you can herd them on boats, you can banish them to faraway lands and love does not die. You can crush people under the boot of oppression...and love does not die...but love endures when even hope has died. . . Let us love with a love that kicks at the dark til it bleeds daylight. . . . #stangrant #love #loversinadangeroustime #TheIntersection See more

05.01.2022 Just finished reading this. Towards the end Grant says I have never been one much for protests - necessary as some may be I have always been wary of the voice of the mob. Slogans always sound too harsh - too simplistic - for me. When the placards and the flags have been put away, when the streets have been cleared, how do we go forward? How do we build a country for all. Who are we? And this is challenge we are facing now. #stangrant #listenwatchlearn #amplifymelanatedvoices #australiaday

04.01.2022 Rebecca Solnit in her book Hope in the Dark talks about how the unknown gives her hope. . So much is unknown at the moment. . In the unknown lies possibilities. ... . In between the unknown and what is possible lies hope. . . . #rebeccasolnit #hope #lockdown #stage4 #theintersection #melbourne #covid19 See more

04.01.2022 Difference is strength. Diversity matters. Connection is key. . . .... #diversity #connection #empathy #theintersection #differenceisstrength #melbourne #jennyodell See more

03.01.2022 A few years back a street count of Melbournes homeless saw an increase of 74% and since the last census Australia has seen an increase of close to 15% . Repost @wearemobilise Every year, the number of people sleeping rough in Australia is rising not falling. The number of homeless in Australia has increased by nearly 15% in the past 4 years*... There is a housing crisis happening in Australia. Are you going to help end it? #mobilise *2016 ABS Census . . #theintersection #melbourne #homelessness #sleepingrough #housingcrisis

03.01.2022 Back into the city today after months of being away. It was great to catch up with our friend Tony. Tony spends his days on Bourke Street outside @paperback_bookshop doing the cross word and chatting to passerby’s. Lockdown has been hard for him - like us all - as he lost his community due to businesses working from home. . . Melbourne has grieved the loss of its public spaces during lockdown. And along with it we lost spaces that allowed us chance encounters with strangers a...nd acquaintances. Covid has reminded us that it is these incidental interactions that create community and bring us together. . . #theintersection #covid_19 #lockdown #publicspace #meettheother #strangersarefiction #melbourne #diversity #empathy #connection See more

03.01.2022 We love our Empathy Toy. And cant wait till we can use it face to face with students again. Repost @21toys Empathy is not a feeling, its an action. We have been working to show that empathy is a critical skill, but sometimes we forget to highlight that its also an action. Empathy requires you to take on the perspective of another person, actively listen to them, recognize their feelings, and make a choice to connect with them. Empathy is active work, and it requires u...s to do more than just observe. So much of the work we do around empathy carries the assumption that empathy means being nice to everybody and not calling negative things out. The Empathy Toy and our team are at our best when we can create spaces where people are willing to have their perspective challenged, willing to be uncomfortable. #empathy #empathytoy #TheIntersection #remotelearning #year9 See more

03.01.2022 A beautiful self published book by author and illustrator Trace Balla. This book is a tonic for the current times we are living in. #teachersofinstagram #traceballa #heartofthebubble #covid19 #aussieteachers #selfpublished #melbourne

03.01.2022 The Burke and Wills statue in Melbourne is one that over the years we have liked exploring in our sessions with school groups visiting the city. Currently in storage whilst the metro tunnel is being built, it is Melbournes first commissioned statue. Built in 1865 it has moved 5 times around Melbourne till making its home on the corner of Swanston and Collins street in 1993. . . Statues and memorials tell stories and mark history. And in this case as the inscription reads:... ROBERT O`HARA BURKE / AND / WILLIAM JOHN WILLS / LEADERS / OF / THE VICTORIAN EXPLORING EXPEDITION. THE FIRST TO CROSS THE CONTINENT / FROM SOUTH TO NORTH. / THEY PERISHED ON THE RETURN JOURNEY / AT COOPERS CREEK, CENTRAL AUSTRALIA JUNE 1861 . . This is a story we have been telling ourselves for some 155 years. Its a story about bravery and heroes conquering a harsh landscape. And yet this is only one story. A white story. A google search will tell you there is more to this story and often conflicting information is found. What this statue doesnt tell us about is King, the only survivor of the expedition, and a footnote (see relief at bottom of statue) is left to Indigenous peoples involvement in the journey. However, there is no acknowledgement that this land didnt need to be discovered and explored in the first place. . . One thing we have loved about this statue, and this may seem odd, but instead of this being a monument to white heroics, we see this statue as a reminder to us all about the dangers of a single story. . . Australias past and our inability to reckon with it, is a prime example of just how dangerous single stories can be. First and foremost to our First Nations people whose lives and culture have been decimated by our inability to tell more than one story. It is also dangerous to us and society as a whole. As disease spreads we must learn from different stories and as Maya Angelou said The truth is none of us can be free until everybody is free . . . #burkeandwills #monuments #statue #dangerofasinglestory #melbourne #history #TheIntersection #hearadifferentstory

03.01.2022 Another great Stream the Neighbour the session this morning. Students from Rosehill Secondary College got to meet some neighbours and they asked some great questions: . Do you regret anything? . What gave you the confidence to come out? . Do you feel connected to your ethnicity?... #meettheneighbours #streamtheneighbour #strangersarefiction #meettheother #diversity #empathy #connection #secondaryeducation #secondaryteacher #aussiesofinstagram #teachersofinstagram #melbourne

01.01.2022 Diversity is not about tolerating difference or treating others equally without prejudice. The diversification principle compels you to maintain your individual differences, particularly from other agents who are similar to you. This prevents you from clustering into narcissistic flash mobs. You must also seek out and interact with a wide variety of agents who are completely dissimilar to you. Finally, you must interact with other systems beyond your own, keeping your system open and therefore sustainable. - From Sand Talk by Tyson Yunkaporta- . . #tysonyunkaporta #diversity #indigenousbooks #decoloniseyourmind #melbourne #theintersection #empathy #connection