OZtogether

Team Name

OZtogether

Team Members

Project Description

Project Title: OZtogether

The Problem – A Hidden Crisis in Civic Life

The journey to Australian citizenship is a proud milestone, but it is often the beginning of a difficult road. After the ceremony, many new Australians face a critical "belonging gap" that can leave them isolated and disengaged.

Data from the Australian Public Service Commission's Trust and Satisfaction in Australian Democracy report highlights a direct link between civic knowledge and satisfaction with democracy. Similarly, the Scanlon Foundation's Mapping Social Cohesion 2024 report points to a persistent need to strengthen community bonds.

This project addresses three core challenges:

• The Struggle for Belonging – feeling disconnected from Australian society.
• The Civic Knowledge Deficit – a lack of practical understanding of democracy and individual rights beyond the citizenship test.
• The Isolation Factor – difficulty in building social networks and engaging with local communities.

The Solution – OZtogether App

OZtogether is an innovative mobile app designed to strengthen belonging, civic knowledge, and active participation for new Australians. Our mission is to ensure that citizenship is not just a ceremony, but an ongoing journey of connection, confidence, and contribution.

By blending cultural learning, practical civic education, and community engagement, OZtogether directly addresses the core gaps identified in this challenge.

• Hands-on Civic Education: Interactive cultural spotlights, tips of the week, and event-based learning show how democracy works in practice. Reminders about AEC voter registration or explanations of civic rights turn abstract responsibilities into lived experiences.
• Confidence in Navigating Services: Citizens are connected with practical resources – from understanding workplace rights to learning how to engage with local representatives.
• Participation in Local Events and Volunteering: The Events tab highlights local workshops, cultural festivals, and volunteering opportunities, ensuring citizens can engage and contribute meaningfully.
• Belonging Through Cultural Connection: Weekly cultural tips and Australian slang explanations help new citizens understand everyday culture, while “Community Spotlight” stories showcase real people and build empathy.
• Celebrating Contribution: A rewards system encourages sustained participation, offering museum passes, transport credits, and other meaningful incentives.

By meeting these goals – building belonging, strengthening civic knowledge, enabling volunteering, and improving trust in democratic institutions – OZtogether provides a practical, scalable, and human-centred approach.

How It Works – Methodology & Technical Details

Data Sources – A Foundation of Credibility
The project is grounded in robust, peer-reviewed data to ensure its relevance and impact. Key insights are informed by:

• Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) reports: providing critical data on public trust and satisfaction with democratic institutions.
• Scanlon Foundation's Mapping Social Cohesion reports: the leading source for understanding social bonds and belonging in Australia.

Technology – Powering the Experience
OZtogether is built with secure, modern tools to deliver an engaging experience:

• Swift: native programming language, ensuring a fast and fluid interface.
• Generative AI (ChatGPT and Gemini): used to transform dense data and reports into digestible, personalised insights and content.
• CapCut: used for creating dynamic video content, turning cultural tips and event highlights into engaging, shareable stories.

By combining evidence-based insights with modern digital tools, OZtogether makes civic knowledge and cultural connection approachable, helping citizens move confidently from ceremony into active community life.

Participation in the Better Questions for Brighter Futures Challenge

As part of GovHack 2025, we have extended our OZtogether solution to also address the Better Questions for Brighter Futures challenge. In this context, we demonstrate how OZtogether aligns with the AXiLe® Constructive Modelling Paradigm, using premortem analysis to anticipate risks and strengthen evidence-driven decision making.

We have prepared and submitted three formal reports as required by the challenge:

1. Premortem A – Analysis of the Mosaic Web Initiative
2. Premortem B – Analysis of our OZtogether project
3. Summary Report – Shared themes, differentiating factors, and broader improvements

These reports incorporate insights from Royal Commission datasets and ANAO audit findings, ensuring our risk assessments are grounded in real-world evidence.

👉 Download the Premortem Report Package (PDF):
Click here to view the report

Participation in the Bridging Social Divides Challenge

As part of GovHack 2025, we are also submitting OZtogether under the Bridging Social Divides challenge. This challenge calls for solutions that strengthen social cohesion, enable respectful dialogue, and build trust in government and community services.

OZtogether contributes by creating clear pathways for connection and understanding:

• Respectful Dialogue: Through the Community Spotlight and cultural events, the app highlights diverse perspectives and fosters safe, respectful interactions across different backgrounds.
• Measuring Cohesion: Privacy-first analytics, combined with insights from the Scanlon Foundation’s Mapping Social Cohesion reports, allow us to track trends in belonging, diversity, and trust without collecting unnecessary personal data.
• Trust in Institutions: Practical features such as service navigation tools, AEC voter reminders, and civic rights education build confidence in engaging with government and democratic processes.
• Community Connection: By promoting volunteering, cultural festivals, and local council events, the app creates opportunities for Australians of all backgrounds to connect and participate together.

In this way, OZtogether addresses the core goals of the challenge – helping people “disagree better,” building stronger bonds across cultures, and reinforcing trust in government and community life. The app is inclusive, practical, and scalable, making it well-suited to strengthen social cohesion across Australia.

Data Story

Story Telling

After the citizenship ceremony, the applause fades and the next step isn’t obvious. Public reports on trust, cohesion and civic life show the same pattern: people want to contribute, but everyday entry points are hard to find and easy to miss. Our motivation is human and simple — when a new Australian finds one clear action to take this week, then another next week, belonging and confidence start to grow.

OZtogether turns evidence into action. It curates an AU-wide feed of things you can do now! Hands-on civic education moments, public consultations and council meetings from official portals, volunteering and community events, plus quick rights & responsibilities learn-and-do tasks. With one tap Add to Calendar, Community Sections, and Rewards System, the path from intent to action becomes effortless. Behind the scenes, privacy-first analytics show uplift without collecting unnecessary data, while also helping to measure social cohesion, belonging, and trust across diverse groups.

What gaps this closes:

• Makes democracy tangible: learn by doing, not just reading.
• Builds confidence: navigating services and contacting elected representatives.
• Expands participation: through events and volunteering.
• Deepens understanding: of civic rights and responsibilities to benefit community.
• Connects people: to each other, across cultures, and to decision making, online and in person.
• Encourages respectful dialogue: by highlighting diverse voices and creating safe spaces for people to “disagree better.”

Inclusive, practical and scalable, OZtogether uses government and public data to help new Australians belong, learn, participate, connect and trust — strengthening the social cohesion Australia needs for the future.