Susan Rennie would love to yarn about a new project at Jika Jika Community Centre. Jika is engaged in a new project called De-Fence Against Loneliness which launches this week.
Jika JIka Community Centre is a small neighbourhood house in Northcote with big ambitions for addressing loneliness. They are starting with a project to remove a fence and replace it with a work of art. Susan Renee former Mayor of Darebin City Council will yarn with me about the role of public spaces in connecting people and addressing loneliness. Susan joins me around 8.30 this morning.
Jika runs free programs for selected groups within their community. These programs are run through an underlying ethos of social inclusion, in line with Jika’s purpose and values. Jika are a Neighbourhood House nestled in beautiful and leafy Northcote, run by a small team of dedicated staff and supported by the wonderful people of the community.
Jika is a space for local residents like you: to empower you in what you’re trying to achieve, to learn something new and fun, and to help you access whatever community support is useful to you.
Together they build a community and a sense of belonging.
To do this, Jika have partnered with an amazing artist, Rosa Mar Tato Ortega, who will work with the local community to develop a work of art in place of the fence. Fences keep people out, art connects people. Jika Jika Community Centre are inviting people to the launch at 5.30pm on Tuesday 9th May.
It will be centered around a smoking ceremony with Uncle Colin Hunter
