Celebrating a National Day: the Meaning and Impact of Australia Day Events

National days are generally intended to kindle pride amongst citizens. However, the celebration of national days can be surrounded by controversy; equally, such a day can be met with apathy or antagonism. Australia Day is no different. Whilst this day has sparked a greater sense of community, issues such as the return on the funds spent on the numerous events staged around the nation, the reasons for the celebrations and the general levels of participation in Australia Day events require constant monitoring. This paper provides the findings from a study of the meaning of Australia Day, commissioned by the National Australia Day Council (NADC) and based on previous research findings from numerous studies into the social impacts of events. The study involved the conduct of focus groups and a national self-complete survey sent to 10,000 Australians, although only 840 completed questionnaires were returned. The findings suggest that Australia Day is, overall, viewed very positively by the respondents and the level of participation in the activities is quite high. More importantly, the study found that those who attended organized Australia Day events were more positively disposed towards the concepts of the national day and the celebration of the Australian way of life. Such findings support the focus of the National Australia Day Council in providing a variety of organized events that are spread to all parts of Australi