Sense of belonging and inclusion

Identity and belonging

Sense of belonging/inclusion

Our sense of belonging in our community, how inclusive we find our local area, and whether people experience discrimination in our city impacts our wellbeing.

Belonging

This measure shows Canberrans’ sense of belonging to their local community. Sense of belonging can help us to:

Canberrans’ sense of belonging has declined slightly in recent years, with 67.4% reporting feeling a high sense of belonging in 2024, compared to 72.1% in 2023.

At the same time, the proportion of Canberrans feeling low sense of belonging has also decreased in recent years. In 2024 it was 5.5%, slightly up from 3.3% in 2023.

The University of Canberra 2024 Living Well in the ACT Region survey found people who had a lower sense of belonging in 2024 included:

Data for this indicator are sourced from the University of Canberra Living well in the ACT Region survey. Detailed survey data, survey user guide and published reports from the survey can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Line graph of percentage of respondents who reported high, moderate, or low levels of sense of belonging in the ACT, between 2019 and 2024.

In 2024:

  • 67.4% reported a high sense of belonging compared to 72.1% in 2023
  • 27.1% reported a moderate sense of belonging compared to 24.6% in 2023
  • 5.5% reported a low sense of belonging compared to 3.3% in 2023.

The Living Well in the ACT Region survey, conducted by the University of Canberra, aims to measure, track and understand the wellbeing and resilience of adult residents living in the Australian Capital Territory region of Australia. It examines factors known to affect wellbeing and resilience at the individual, household, community and regional level.

When generating data for the ACT, statistical weighting is used to address differences between the sample of people who respond to the survey, and the characteristics of the ACT adult population.

Data are produced from this survey for different groups of people in the ACT. The ‘overall response’ category represents responses at the ACT population level. Where reliable estimates can be produced, data are also presented for Canberrans by: gender, age, cultural background, gender identity and sexuality, carer role and experience of disability. Not all differences over time or between groups are statistically significant: information on confidence intervals for the data presented here is available in data tables that can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Care is needed when interpreting the differences in findings between groups as the descriptive statistics published here show where there are differences in wellbeing, but not what has caused those differences in wellbeing.

Further information about the survey can be found at Living Well in the ACT Region or by contacting regionalwellbeing@canberra.edu.au.

Inclusion

This measure shows the proportion of Canberrans who self-report a high, moderate or low level of inclusion in their local community. It is based on how inclusive a person feels their local community is of different people and groups.

This is important because socially inclusive communities support people from all backgrounds and experiences to participate with dignity, security and acceptance.

As of February 2026, there was no new data for this measure. This question was not asked in the University of Canberra’s 2024 Living Well in the ACT Region survey but was asked in the December 2025 survey.

In 2023, 34.9% of Canberrans reported a high level of inclusion in their local community, which was down from 43.7% in 2020 and 46.1% in 2019.

Data for this indicator are sourced from the University of Canberra Living well in the ACT Region survey. Detailed survey data, survey user guide and published reports from the survey can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Line graph of percentage of respondents who reported high, moderate, or low levels of inclusion in their local community in the ACT, between 2019 and 2023.

In 2023:

  • 46.7% reported moderate sense of inclusion compared to 47.8% in 2020
  • 34.9% reported high sense of inclusion compared to 43.7% in 2020
  • 18.5% reported low sense of inclusion compared to 8.5% in 2020.

The Living Well in the ACT Region survey, conducted by the University of Canberra, aims to measure, track and understand the wellbeing of adult residents living in the Australian Capital Territory region of Australia. It examines factors known to affect wellbeing at the individual, household, community and regional level.

When generating data for the ACT, statistical weighting is used to address differences between the sample of people who respond to the survey, and the characteristics of the ACT adult population. Differences between groups are reported when there is a statistically significant difference based on 95% confidence intervals or other tests of significance.

Data are produced from this survey for different groups of people in the ACT. The ‘overall response’ category represents responses at the ACT population level. Where reliable estimates can be produced, data are also presented for Canberrans by: gender, age, cultural background, gender identity and sexuality, carer role and experience of disability.

Care is needed when interpreting the differences in findings between groups as the descriptive statistics published here show where there are differences in wellbeing, but not what has caused those differences in wellbeing.

The University of Canberra has been conducting the survey since 2019. As of mid-2023, the survey had been conducted 6 times. Not all questions have been measured each time the survey has been conducted.

There have been no changes in measure design, analysis or reporting of this measure since it was first included in the survey.

Data for people with disability are only available for 2023 due to a change in the way disability was defined and measured in the survey, to better reflect international best practice.

Further information about the survey can be found at Living Well in the ACT Region or by contacting regionalwellbeing@canberra.edu.au.

Discrimination

This measure shows the proportion of Canberrans who reported experiencing discrimination in the past 12 months.

Experiencing discrimination can impact our health, social and economic participation. It can also influence our physical health outcomes.

There has been an increase in the proportion of Canberrans who reported experiencing discrimination in the past 12 months. In 2024, 28.2% reported having experienced discrimination, compared to 22.7% in 2023.

The University of Canberra 2024 Living Well in the ACT Region survey found that increases were greatest amongst carers and people living alone.

Rates of discrimination have also increased amongst those with a disability, the unemployed, people aged 30-49, 65 and older, and renters.

People who identify as LGBTIQA+ continue to report high rates of discrimination (38.7%); however, the percentage has generally stayed steady over the years.

Overall, the highest rates of discrimination in 2024 were reported by:

Data for this indicator are sourced from the University of Canberra Living well in the ACT Region survey. Detailed survey data, survey user guide and published reports from the survey can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Line graph of percentage of respondents who reported discrimination in the past 12 months in the ACT, between 2019 and 2024.

In 2024:

  • 71.8% did not experience discrimination compared to 77.3% in 2023
  • 28.2% experienced discrimination compared to 22.7% in 2023.

The Living Well in the ACT Region survey, conducted by the University of Canberra, aims to measure, track and understand the wellbeing and resilience of adult residents living in the Australian Capital Territory region of Australia. It examines factors known to affect wellbeing and resilience at the individual, household, community and regional level.

When generating data for the ACT, statistical weighting is used to address differences between the sample of people who respond to the survey, and the characteristics of the ACT adult population.

Data are produced from this survey for different groups of people in the ACT. The ‘overall response’ category represents responses at the ACT population level. Where reliable estimates can be produced, data are also presented for Canberrans by: gender, age, cultural background, gender identity and sexuality, carer role and experience of disability. Not all differences over time or between groups are statistically significant: information on confidence intervals for the data presented here is available in data tables that can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Care is needed when interpreting the differences in findings between groups as the descriptive statistics published here show where there are differences in wellbeing, but not what has caused those differences in wellbeing.

Further information about the survey can be found at Living Well in the ACT Region or by contacting regionalwellbeing@canberra.edu.au.