Maybe social cohesion starts at the dinner table

TO the editor,

The phrase “social cohesion” has been everywhere lately. It comes up in political discussions, news headlines and community conversations almost daily.

Everyone agrees that it matters, but often the conversation feels distant from everyday life.

Most discussions around division focus on politics, ideology and conflict. But I think some of the more meaningful shifts in how communities understand each other happen much more quietly.

Usually around the dinner table.

Food is often the first way people experience a culture they don’t fully understand. Not through a debate or a policy discussion, but through curiosity, generosity and familiarity.

For many Australians, the Middle East is often viewed through the lens of conflict and headlines. But when someone cooks a Middle Eastern dish at home, enjoys it and starts adding those flavours into their regular meals, something subtle changes.

That culture becomes less unfamiliar. Less distant. More human.

As an Iranian Australian and running Exotic Bazaar, a Ballarat-based business, I think about this often. Over the years, I’ve watched people who had never cooked Middle Eastern food before slowly become curious and connected through food experiences they previously knew very little about.

Sometimes it begins with a recipe.

Sometimes with a spice blend.

Sometimes, with a simple conversation around the table.

But these small experiences matter more than we often realise.

One of Australia’s strengths has always been that people are generally open to exploring and participating in each other’s cultures when given the opportunity in an approachable and positive way.

That doesn’t mean food solves every problem. It doesn’t erase prejudice or replace important conversations that also need to happen. But it can create familiarity. And familiarity is often where empathy begins.

At a time when division feels amplified online and in public debate, I think there is value in paying more attention to the quieter everyday experiences that slowly bring people together.

Sometimes social cohesion doesn’t begin in parliament or on television.

Sometimes it begins when neighbours share a meal, cook something unfamiliar, or discover they have more in common than they first realised.

Gilava Pour, Ballarat

Founder of Exotic Bazaar