The State of the Nation Starts Right Here

Delivered by Mr Hugh Mackay

Burgmann College was honoured to have Mr Hugh Mackay as guest speaker at this year’s EH Burgmann Lecture 2018.  Please click on the following link to watch the video recording of the lecture:  Hugh Mackay Lecture

Hugh Mackay argued that social fragmentation is the greatest challenge our society now faces, because fragmentation leads to isolation and, since we are essentially social beings, isolation leads to a heightened risk of anxiety and depression.

He suggested we can rebuild trust and cohesion in our local communities – including the Burgmann community – by making a renewed commitment to the exercise of kindness and respect, especially towards those we don’t agree with.

He described compassion as the only rational response to an understanding of what it means to be human, and argued that a college like Burgmann can be a perfect ‘test-bed’ for a more compassionate society.