EDITOR’S LETTER: from the desk of The Weekly’s Nicole Byers
It seems every time we turn on the TV or open a newspaper there’s a new and more upsetting tale of bullying or bad behaviour – it’s happening in our schools, on lm sets and in the halls of parliament. It’s been uncovered on a grand scale in our nancial institutions and, as shown in the recent investigation by
The Weekly and the stories emerging around the Royal Commission into
Aged Care, it’s even in the way we treat our most vulnerable citizens.
Which is why we spend so much time at The Weekly celebrating those doing truly exceptional things for their community or beyond. But you don’t have to devote your life to charity or try to change the world in order to make a difference. Kindness can be just as powerfully displayed in little acts of thoughtfulness – a compliment to a stranger, a helping hand for a neighbour in need or a delivery of chicken soup to a sick friend.
That’s why we’re launching
The Weekly’s Kindness Project, where we make it our mission to encourage, promote and celebrate all those acts of kindness that can have a profound knock-on effect. De ned as the “quality of being friendly, generous and considerate”, these days kindness too often comes with the stigma of softness or weakness. But as someone wise once told me, to be truly kind takes great courage.
We start our campaign this month with an investigation into the pursuit of happiness (see page 90), where we’re reminded that recognising the simple pleasures in life – a hot cup of tea after a long day, or a shared laugh with a dear friend – may be the real key to contentment. It might seem a slightly sel sh place to start our journey, but it’s very hard to spread happiness to others without rst nding it in ourselves.
Kindness and support were on full show at our recent Women Of The Future luncheon, where we announced the winners of our annual campaign to nd and reward young women achieveing extraordinary things. From the generous time donated by our in uential judges to the continued support of our patron, The Honourable Dame Quentin Bryce (below, with WOTF Entrepreneur and Business winner Sarah Moran), this was a humbling display of the power of giving back. As Quentin explained to the room, having been lifted up on the shoulders of great women who mentored and inspired her, she recognises the importance of doing the same for new generations of ambitious and inspiring young ladies.
It can seem overwhelming when we see so much in the world that is broken and that we can’t possibly x, but we don’t realise how much change we can create with the ittle things we do every day, those little acts of kindness. If laughing can be contagious, then why can’t kindness?