By Brian Quigley
This Sunday 24 April is census day 2016. Like all previous census days, it is a chance for individuals and families in our country and across the country to contribute to both the evolving history of their nation and to the shaping of future policies in a wide range of areas.
Filling out a census form might seem like a hassle. There are 24 pages to get through. We are all busy and our time is valuable. But duty and obligation are important to remember too, and sometimes in the modern world we focus too much on what we are entitled to rather than what we can give back. Filling out your census is giving something back.
I always make an occasion of census day in my house. My children are made aware of what it is all about. It helps the young visualize and relate to the chain of history that they are the latest link in, helps them connect the past, present and future. History is a living thing, and an ongoing census system is a key part of the history of any nation.
Over the course of our lives as lived through the census forms we fill in or have filled in on our behalf we progress from being infants to children at school to students at college to workers in employment to being parents and eventually custodians of an empty house as our offspring fly the nest. The cycle of life.
The power of the individual can never be understated. Each household produces an individual census form, but they sum up to a collective whole that is a valuable source of social, educational, industrial and lifestyle information that, if used wisely by the policy makers and people in power, can help steer us in the right direction in all of these areas going forward.
(Left to right): Pictured at the launch of Census 2016 were An Taoiseach Enda Kenny with Mike Taaffe, one year old who will be counted on a census form for the first time on 24 April with Teresa Moran, Raheny, who is aged 100 and has been counted in 17 censuses and Dorothea Findlater, Blackrock, who is 106
Is there a big increase in young people in a certain part of the country? Maybe a new third-level institution should be earmarked for that region going forward. Has useful information been gathered from the census on families who have been made homeless and have filled out their forms from emergency or otherwise provided accommodation? Then please use it, politicians, to formulate proper policies to help these families. Is there a continuing increase in the numbers walking, cycling or running to work? Then provide them with safe pedestrian and cycling lanes so that they can be encouraged in their healthy choice. It will even save you money in the form of reduced health-service spend.
Filling out a census form must be a bittersweet thing as you get older and have seen family pass away or leave. In terms of the form the empty spaces are the missing faces. It’s a fate that awaits all of us with families but it is reassuring to know that in these technological times it is much easier to keep up with family abroad via phone and computer.
I’m always struck by how enthusiastic the census enumerators are when they call to leave in or collect the form. It must be very rewarding to be contributing in this way, engaging with the public and helping capture a snapshot of history for the good of all. It must be an equally fascinating and rewarding task for those who get to crunch the numbers, sift through the trends and present the findings.
Enjoy filling in your form this Sunday. Take time out from your normal routine for this special occasion. Be proud to do your duty. Make an occasion of the evening. It’s 2016 after all, 100 years on from The Rising. The next chapter of our history is being written, and by filling in your form you are helping to write it.
