Living on her own while studying in her first year at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Inge Clinnick was feeling isolated when she stumbled across Preston’s Good Karma Network (GKN) on Facebook.
“It was amazing to see a nice online space for people to help each other out, ask for advice and share good stories,” Inge said.
She’s since moved back to Echuca after COVID-19 restrictions forced university online and thought her hometown would be a good fit for a GKN.
“Since everyone’s so isolated and mental health is a big issue at the moment, it gives the opportunity for people to connect online and facilitate a sense of community,” Inge said.
“If the GKN is successful it gives us opportunity for us to say we’re a really welcoming and strong community.”
Inge said a GKN was different to other community Facebook pages because of the guidelines which maintained an altruistic and welcoming culture.
“The guidelines minimise the type of engagement that traditionally alienates people from each other,” she said.
“One of the big things is not allowing advertisements on there, and not allowing the type of posts where people get personal gain or profit.
“It is also a place for people to start their own initiatives and find like-minded people,” Inge said.
The first GKN was established in 2016 for the Kensington community and one of the examples of its success was a mental health support group that was set up as a result of the page.
There are now more than 20 GKN’s in metropolitan Melbourne and various others across the state and nationwide.
Inge posted about her idea on the Echuca Moama Community Facebook page and said she had a lot of people saying they would love to be involved.
She hopes to set up the page in the next few weeks but needs one more person to be a page moderator before she can get it up and running.
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