Communities and social capital

In this article, I am concerned with how social capital circulates within and across communities. Social capital entails an accumulation of social and moral resources within groups or social collectivities which include norms of reciprocity, social trust, co-operation, and networks of civic engagement. Ethnic communities in Australia are frequently accused of indulging in identity politics that leads to a form of ethnic closure. In order to address this issue more clearly, two main questions are posed: first, does identity formation contribute to a form of separation and ethnic closure or can communities, based on identity formations and identity politics, enhance their levels of civic virtue and collective action; secondly, are ethnic communities in Australia rallying together through various forms of collective action to achieve social justice goals within their own ethnic groups and across the broader community?