Now that COVID-19 restrictions are easing, people are starting to return to workplaces, and businesses are beginning to open again, the question is - what next?
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Do we simply resume our previous way of living? Or can we use this opportunity to reimagine what it would take for our communities to thrive?
Thanks to the regional leadership of the City of Newcastle, a City Taskforce has been meeting regularly for several months to harness the collective knowledge of regional corporate, not-for-profit and government sectors.
The City Taskforce draws on the experience of 17 leaders from diverse sectors, including manufacturing, small business, tourism, transport, arts, education and the community sector, brought together by COVID-19 and a desire to see our region thrive.
This taskforce has been working on The Newcastle Response, a series of letters to state and federal governments, highlighting local challenges and advocating for solutions that will help our communities to thrive.
The first of The Newcastle Response letters focused on the community sector and the crucial role it has played in responding to the COVID-19 crisis. It was developed with the feedback from recipients of the City of Newcastle Community Sector Grants as well as respondents to a sector pulse survey.
The community sector outlined some of the unique challenges faced by their services and the wide range of experiences of the vulnerable communities they support.
This crisis has taught us that not only can people who have lived financially and mentally stable lives become vulnerable overnight, but that people who were already marginalised before the pandemic now face a deeper impact.
Financial disadvantage, digital exclusion and social isolation are common experiences throughout our region, and the crisis has highlighted how we are all vulnerable to unforeseen social and economic disruption.
The crisis has highlighted how we are all vulnerable to unforeseen social and economic disruption.
The region has witnessed a substantial increase in the number of people seeking help for emergency relief and food services, particularly in the last month as the impacts of job layoffs are being felt and people's savings are drying up.
For many people who were already financially disadvantaged, there have been challenges with home schooling due to unreliable access to technology or internet. Similar digital exclusion has been felt by older community members as our new world rapidly turned online.
People with a disability have faced additional challenges in relation to social isolation and the accessibility of information and equipment.
One issue highlighted in this month's The Newcastle Response is the pressing matter of income adequacy.
Without enough money coming into a household, people face impossible decisions such as whether to pay rent or to put food on the table. Parents must decide whether to eat with their children or save as much money as they can for the electricity bill. These are decisions no person should have to make.
Vishal's story, covered by the Newcastle Herald (Coronavirus: No JobKeeper but plenty of generosity for Burwood Inn chef, NH 26/05), highlights how critical an income safety net is to otherwise typical people in our community.
The City Taskforce was unanimous in its agreement that income adequacy is fundamental for our communities to prosper. Income adequacy provides people with enough money to cover life's essentials and allows them to build a foundation for the lives of themselves and their family.
The City Taskforce is calling for the federal government to address this as a priority by implementing a permanent and sustainable increase in payment rates for people who are unemployed and disadvantaged, and ensuring that income support rates are independently reviewed and monitored.
As author and activist Arundhati Roy said: 'historically pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different'.
We can reimagine a society where our neighbours can all afford to keep a roof over their heads. Where people are given adequate income support to see them through tough times. Where no person must sacrifice basic essentials.
As we navigate our way out of this crisis, we can demand that government leaders prioritise a permanent and sustainable increase to payments including JobSeeker and Youth Allowance.
Communities are at their best when everyone is given an equal opportunity to thrive.
