Social enterprise moves to a Tribal beat

Humans are tribal creatures so, for Ryan Elson, bringing them together to overcome isolation was a no-brainer. The result is a tribe of social belonging.

Tribe Social Belonging founder Ryan Elson. Picture: Dominika Lis

DEALING with the curve balls life throws at you is hard for those who have people around them to offer support, but for those who have no one it can be unbearable.

Scarborough’s Ryan Elson has faced his share of tough times in the past few years — losing his son to cancer and a divorce pushing him to the emotional limit.

“I always had someone to talk to on the phone. I thought, what if you don’t have this,” Ryan says.

That realisation planted a seed in Ryan’s mind to help people who felt alone and disengaged from their community — those without a tribe.

In August 2018, he used his community connections to do something about it and the non-profit organisation Tribe Social Belonging was born.

It started with an initial gathering of 76 people, mostly Ryan’s friends who had been there to support him.

Since then, the number of Ryan’s mates has dropped off and the pendulum has swung in the right direction, with more “tribespeople” attending. Ryan says more than 2200 people have come along to events since the organisation was launched.

These have ranged from coffee mornings to beach socials, trivia nights and lively gatherings at local bars.

“People have formed connections they didn’t have. That’s what Tribe is all about,” Ryan says. “A lot of people have found friends, some have found partners, predominantly they’ve found the strength to come back out in the community.”

Tribe Social Belonging founder Ryan Elson with fellow 'triber' Maddie Quarrell. Picture: Dominika Lis.

The organisation has had a profound effect on many — even convincing some that life is worth living. Ryan says people feel better because they like to connect in the way we used to, and they enjoy being part of a tribe.

“Everyone’s got a story. It makes you feel good. If you don’t need help, give some,” he says. “There’s no agenda. It’s what you want it to be. Just show up.”

Ryan is taking the model a step further to also bring employers and job seekers together, in a bid to forge better personal connections and job opportunities.

The project is called Employmeet and it aims to make it easier for employers to find staff and job seekers to be selected for the person they are, not by a resume.

It does this through face-to-face gatherings and an online portal which gives employers access to candidate profiles and videos. The service is free to job seekers, but employers pay a yearly registration fee to use it.

In Ryan’s view, people should be employed based on their personality, enthusiasm and initiative. “You can’t read these on a resume, you have to meet somebody,” he says.

He’s held three events, averaging 90 people, and 40 people have been employed so far as a result.

Ryan says being part of a tribe can help people in many aspects of their lives — overcoming loneliness and the barriers to finding the job of their dreams.

Visit tribebelonging.com.au