Mum seldom comes to the footy (“I can’t read the stupid scoreboard!”) but when she does, her love of being a part of something is palpable. She feels connected and included.

I recently supported Christopher Brown and Faith Halliday of the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue, in the delivery of their five-day ‘Collaborative Leadership Program (CLP) 2022’. This extraordinary program immersed 35 existing and emerging leaders from organisations with an interest in Greater Western Sydney (GWS), embracing a once-in-a-century, city-shaping experience in Sydney’s West. Having now been immersed in it myself, I know that one of the key attributes of GWS is the richness of the various cultures, combining and collaborating to produce a brighter future. There is obvious trust and respect between them all largely, I believe, because diversity is so naturally strong, but it is the inclusivity that is really significant. I recently heard Carolyne French (Head of Leadership Excellence at Thinka) on a Gallup CliftonStrengths© podcast describe diversity as ‘having a seat at the table’ but inclusivity as ‘having a voice at the table’. I like this very much and it sums up exactly what’s going on in GWS. Most importantly, it is the combination of this with a powerfully aligned vision and sense of purpose that is creating so much energy in the West.