Racism burns Australia like pox and plague. We're not all in this together | Kim Scott

Aboriginal heritage and the natural environment need to be at the centre of national reconstruction

• This is part of a series of essays by Australian writers responding to the challenges of 2020

Fire, flood and plague. Toilet rolls and mental health. Injections of bleach and sunlight.

For a studied introvert with a writer's routines, the duty of social isolation is reassuring. In such a tumultuous year I realise I'm extremely lucky to be a homeowner, securely employed and gifted with - as well as the baby boomer years - certain contraband privileges of whiteness.