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On Tuesday 9 December 2025, the Faith Communities Council of Victoria convened Victoria’s peak faith bodies for a roundtable discussion on Creating an Inclusive Narrative. The event was held in partnership with the Australian Baha’i Community, which is currently undertaking a national initiative to foster social cohesion by exploring Australia’s shared identity, values and future through a series of nationwide roundtables.

These roundtables also aim to directly contribute to social cohesion in Australia by bringing together diverse perspectives, lived experience and belief systems into one space to build shared understanding, and constructively dialogue with each other about this important topic - a practice the Faith Communities Council of Victoria embodies.

The Hindu Council of Australia (Vic) hosted the event, the first interfaith event held at their new office in Port Melbourne.

Present at the event were:
• Makarand Bhagwat, Gurpreet Verma and Rev Bhakta Dasa (Hindu Council of Australia - Vic)
• Rev Deacon Sandy Boyce, Major Mal Davies, Rev. Prashant Bhonsle, Geoff Boyce, Father Phillip Papagiannopoulos (Victorian Council of Churches)
• Frank Greenstein (Jewish Community Council of Victoria)
• Yusuf Zarani (Islamic Council of Victoria)
• Lewa Kamali, Shantini Iyngkaran (Australian Baha’i Community - VIC)
• Prue Lamont (Buddhist Council of Victoria)
• Sandy Kouroupidis (Faith Communities Council of Victoria)

Lead Facilitator of the workshop was Dr Penny Taylor from the Australian Baha'i Community.

The outcome of this roundtable — along with hundreds of others around the country — will contribute to the second edition of the Creating an Inclusive Narrative document. This publication hopes to synthesise the insights and experiences distilled from hundreds of participants representing communities of all kinds, conveying a shared vision of a socially cohesive Australia.

The document is offered as a “gift … to Australian society,” by the Baha’i community and is intended as a resource and framework to foster social cohesion, inclusion, and a sense of belonging — one that neighbourhoods, communities, organisations, institutions and government alike can use.

Further roundtables will be held in Victoria and across the country over the coming months, and representatives from all backgrounds, perspectives, and sections of society are invited to attend. Details of upcoming roundtables can be found on Humanitix, and are updated regularly.