By exploring the theme together as a community, we will be better equipped to guide and support our guests throughout the week. In doing so, we can create richer conversations, deeper connections, and a more meaningful experience for all involved.

My hope is that, by the conclusion of the Conference, every participant, whether from Barker or from across the world will leave with a deeper and more informed appreciation of the theme, carrying new insights and perspectives that can help shape their own visions for the future within their communities and contexts.

This blog is a collection of my thoughts to provoke yours, I hope you find it helpful.

We Sing with One Voice

We have a dream,
We sing with one voice,
I am, you are,
We are Australians.

These words, from Bruce Woodley's 1987’s song I Am Australian, have long held a special place in our national story. Popularised through its use in events that have brought Australia together, such as supporting our athletes at the Beijing Olympics in 1998, the lyrics express a shared identity, one that transcends background, culture, and history. They remind us that while Australia is home to the world’s oldest continuous Indigenous culture, it is also a nation shaped by people from many lands, each contributing to the country we know today.

I still remember, as a schoolboy, the moment Sydney was announced as the host city of the 2000 Olympic Games. When the announcement came “the winner is… Sydney!” the nation erupted. It was more than an announcement; it was an invitation to step onto the global stage together.

What followed was extraordinary. The Sydney Olympics became known as one of the greatest Games ever hosted, not simply because of organisational success, but because of the spirit of the people. Australians volunteered in droves. We welcomed the world with generosity and pride. We showed up, not just as individuals, but as a collective.

We rallied behind our athletes because they represented all of us. When Cathy Freeman ran the 400-metre final, the country paused. Together, we watched, we hoped, we believed and when she crossed the line, we stood united in celebration. Ian Thorpe’s brilliance in the pool captured the imagination of a nation. These were not just sporting achievements; they were shared moments of identity. For a time, we truly sang with one voice.

Fast forward to today, and the landscape feels different. To many, it appears that we are more conscious of our differences than of what binds us together. The unity we experienced in moments like the Sydney Olympics can seem distant.

We are living in a time shaped by significant challenges, emerging from a global pandemic and carrying the weight of recent national and global tensions. In such a context, can we still say, with confidence, “I am, you are, we are Australians”?

I believe we can, and that we must.

We have the opportunity to tell a renewed national story, one that does not ignore our complexities, but draws strength from them. A story that looks forward while honouring the past, a vision of the future from an ancient land. This vision calls us to recognise the threads that form the Australian tapestry, the weaves representing moments of celebration, as much as those drawn through adversity, reminders not of what divides us, but what we have overcome, and still strive for, together.

It asks us to draw from the wisdom of Indigenous Australians, their deep connection to land, enduring kinship, and remarkable resilience. It invites us to reflect on the contributions of our colonial foundations, including ideals of fairness, perseverance, and service that have helped shape our institutions and civic life. It celebrates the migrants who have enriched our nation, from Chinese communities in the 19th century, to European migrants after World War II, to Vietnamese families seeking refuge after conflict, and countless others since. Each has brought not only skills and enterprise, but gratitude, cultural depth, and new perspectives.

A hopeful future depends on our ability to hold these stories together, not in competition, but in conversation; not in denial of where we have fallen short, but in honest reckoning with it.

What is required to build a shared and hopeful Australian future?

A way forward is not simply a question of national identity, it is also a question of character. Cultivating citizens who are committed to the common good of our communities, people who recognise that our shared future rests on how we treat one another.

Writer David Brooks, in his book ‘The Road to Character’, expresses this powerfully when he says, “we don’t become better people just because we know more. We become better people because we love better, because we care about better things.”

At its heart, this is what character is about. It is also what sustains a strong and vibrant democracy and a shared commitment to what unites us, even as we honour the diversity of cultures, histories, and perspectives that shape our nation. From our First Nations heritage, colonial inheritance to our multicultural present we are called to something higher. As author, speaker and public commentator Stephen McAlpine says, it asks us to:

These are not just personal attributes; they are civic ones too. They are the habits that strengthen trust, enable respectful debate, and uphold the democratic egalitarian values Australians depend on.

Or perhaps as Professor Richard Scolyer, Australian of the Year and renowned oncologist in his open letter printed in the SMH after his death said ‘I’d be delighted to be remembered as a proud everyday Aussie who gave it a crack’. Just there I think he nailed the Australian character and our vision for the future. We all see ourselves as proud of being Aussies, knock about, equal among our peers, prepared to have a go with our mates and to be humble. Perhaps the phrase ‘give it a crack’ is our Aussie way of expressing a hopeful future?

Maybe this is where we should look to find the deep sense of belonging, where every person feels seen and valued. Where we embrace our diversity not as division, but as strength. Where we can clarify the values we hold in common, the values of respect, fairness, courage, humility and service. Furthermore, we must feel connected to something greater than ourselves, recognising that we inherit a rich legacy that calls us to contribute to something better for those who follow.

Why does this matter?

Because Australia doesn’t just need informed and capable people. It needs good people, people of Australian character, a people who know our people and our place in the world. People willing to listen, love and contribute. These are the people who over time have built strong communities, our democracy until now, and can do so again. In doing so a shared future worth believing in can be shaped.

At its best, Australia has shown an extraordinary capacity for unity and solidarity. The challenge before us is not to return to a single moment in time, but to rediscover that spirit in ways that is deeper, more inclusive, and more enduring.

What does this mean in light of the challenges facing our world today, and as Barker prepares to welcome students and teachers from across the globe? My hope is that, through understanding the Australian context and the opportunities and challenges we face, our delegates will also be prompted to reflect on their own communities and nations. They may discover similarities, recognise differences, and gain fresh perspectives on the issues that matter most where they live. Most importantly, I hope they will come to see themselves not simply as observers of these challenges, but as part of the solution.

This conference provides an opportunity to begin that journey. It is a place where young people can engage seriously with ideas, listen thoughtfully to one another, and consider what responsibility, leadership, and service might look like in their own futures.

Perhaps the question is not whether we can sing with one voice, but whether we are willing to listen carefully enough to hear one another and find that voice together. When we do, when we truly listen, include, and strive alongside one another, we build relationships across difference. As Australians, and as people from many nations and cultures, we discover that our diversity need not divide us. Instead, it can become a source of understanding, strength, and hope for the future.