Obama, Rudd and the Politics of Cool

This just in: Barack Obama is cool. During a recent televised NBA game, President Obama flashed on screen during a commercial break to encourage young people to get involved in community activities like sport and volunteering. “Respect is something won by what you do, not what you’re born with” the President told millions of viewers.  “You can talk a good game all you want, but when it matters you better back it up.” In trying to convince young people to prepare care packages for soldiers fighting overseas, read to children, or fix up a basketball court in their community Obama showed he has understood the power of his image. 

Political leaders in Australia, and around the world, have a lot to learn from Obama and should take the opportunity of the global financial crisis to shift the debate to ways to bring about a renewed interest in and commitment to community. While he isn't as cool as Obama, Kevin Rudd has got some game himself. Rudd came to power with strong support from young people who as a group they felt like they were far out of sight from John Howard and his policies. The approach of the Coalition, many of the issues they took on suggested it was not listening to the needs of young people. University campuses protests against Voluntary Student Unionism, inaction on climate change, and the involvement of Australian troops in war in Iraq all showed the alienation of the young. Rudd made symbolic movements on these issues, and although student unionism is back on the political agenda there has so far been little reaction – except from the Young Liberal movement. Rudd and Kate Ellis, Minister for Youth Affairs - a ministry relegated to parliamentary secretary level by Howard – invited young people to their own 2020 Summit in Canberra and a number of young people were involved in the 'grown ups' summit. It is now time for the Government to cash in on this younger voter political capital. 

Contributing to the community through volunteering and interaction is powerful means of connection and social utility and young people look to their role models and celebrities for how they should spend their spare time. Currently there is a certain excitement about leadership that has been missing for years. When young people are excited about politics, or at least not completely apathetic, it is time for a debate about how to bring young people into not-for-profit groups and political parties to reengage them with our government and our community. Some Australians would be very surprised to learn that University students who spend time volunteering on political campaigns in the United States are rewarded with credits and other methods of recognition. These programs are a practical and effective way for young people in study to get experiences and contacts that will give their degrees depth and boost their resumes.

Australian Universities are starting to be more creative about how they encourage their students to engage with the world around them. Already institutions including Australian Catholic University and Macquarie University have launched programs to select future students through a combination of school performance criteria and community involvement. Ideas like these send a clear signal about community standards: rewarding those who care enough to contribute. It's hardly rocket science that students employers are looking for show signs of initiative, drive and commitment to issues that are important to them. It's time we realized that secondary school results alone do not give an accurate indication of the kind of person an applicant is.

The ABS Social Trends statistics are compelling reading: Australia's volunteers contribute 645 million hours a year, worth an easy $10 billion dollars, and broken down shows that one in five Australians volunteer at least once a fortnight, and young people specifically contribute three hours a week on average. It is easy to think of ways to increase these numbers. Young people often juggle University or TAFE study with part-time work, and struggle to afford the average $600 volunteers usually spend and are not reimbursed to complete their volunteering.

The suggestion of a HELP reward for volunteering plan adds a lot to the debate. Following the 2020 summit, the formation of some kind of Australia wide volunteering scheme has been discussed. Peter Garret first launched this idea as far back as 2006, when Kim Beazley was Opposition Leader. The scheme would allow students a discount on their HELP fees if they complete prescribed levels of volunteering. Volunteering Australia, the peak body in the field, has problems with the HELP idea, as well as the Macquarie University plan, on the grounds that it falls outside the traditional definition of volunteering. The average University student couldn't care less about this distinction – and could only be encouraged by the idea. Problems in administering the scheme and packaging it in an attractive way to young people can be overcome. Think Facebook and online solutions that creative not-for-profit groups like The Ampersand Network or the Oaktree Foundation, are already utilizing. Online database, creative packaging and social events which mean volunteering contributes and builds social networks at the same time.

There is no need to reinvent the wheel, but in an age where organizations have less money, we have a lot to gain from encouraging young people to be active in the communities they will one day lead. The Rudd Government can add to its social agenda with creative thinking about community connection and providing an appealing ideas for young Australians.