A history of the Gugu Badhun people. The aim of this one year project is to reconstruct relations between the Gugu Badhun people and settler families from the time of first encounters with Europeans to the restructuring of the pastoral industry in the late 1960s. There is an urgency to this research in that it aims to record and analyse the experiences and knowledge of Elders and non-indigenous members of pastoral families who are elderly and in frail health. Preliminary interviews suggest that ....A history of the Gugu Badhun people. The aim of this one year project is to reconstruct relations between the Gugu Badhun people and settler families from the time of first encounters with Europeans to the restructuring of the pastoral industry in the late 1960s. There is an urgency to this research in that it aims to record and analyse the experiences and knowledge of Elders and non-indigenous members of pastoral families who are elderly and in frail health. Preliminary interviews suggest that if this research is not undertaken very soon we risk being unable to understand events that give new and remarkable insights into unique and intimate relations relations that characterized life in the Kennedy District.Read moreRead less
Indigenous Entrepreneurship in Victoria, Australia: Reconciling Mainstream Business Practice and Indigenous Community Values. Indigenous entrepreneurship is a mechanism for addressing 'reconciliation' one the Nation's major issues. This study recognises the interrelations between Indigenous Australians as individuals and members of wider community groups and organisations and addresses key strategic documents including 'A Fairer Victoria' which is concerned about the disadvantaged in a developed ....Indigenous Entrepreneurship in Victoria, Australia: Reconciling Mainstream Business Practice and Indigenous Community Values. Indigenous entrepreneurship is a mechanism for addressing 'reconciliation' one the Nation's major issues. This study recognises the interrelations between Indigenous Australians as individuals and members of wider community groups and organisations and addresses key strategic documents including 'A Fairer Victoria' which is concerned about the disadvantaged in a developed society. Identifying Indigenous cultural values and the exigencies and pressures (including mainstream cultural pressure) impacting on Indigenous entrepreneurs assists with removing those impediments and will strengthen key strategic Indigenous Policies and programs in the interests of national economic prosperity and national reconciliation.Read moreRead less
Indigenous Knowledge and Resource Management in Northern Australia. The project responds to increasing demands of Indigenous communities across northern Australia for the digital archiving of threatened Indigenous Knowledge (IK) to facilitate conservation and intergenerational transmission. The project aims to develop a series of databases of IK satisfying the requirements of varied stakeholders, including Indigenous communities, resource management agencies and researchers. The project is inn ....Indigenous Knowledge and Resource Management in Northern Australia. The project responds to increasing demands of Indigenous communities across northern Australia for the digital archiving of threatened Indigenous Knowledge (IK) to facilitate conservation and intergenerational transmission. The project aims to develop a series of databases of IK satisfying the requirements of varied stakeholders, including Indigenous communities, resource management agencies and researchers. The project is innovative in giving a dominant voice to Indigenous researchers and consultants in the development of protocols for database structures, protection of intellectual property rights, intergenerational transmission and negotiation of dissemination of information to resource management agencies and academic researchers.Read moreRead less
Co-research supporting the development of Aboriginal plant knowledges. Successful commercial development of products manufactured from Australian plant extracts based on shared Aboriginal Knowledges and Western scientific evidence is limited. This research project partnering with an Aboriginal Corporation and a skincare company aims to understand the processes that would be needed for Aboriginal-led product development from a traditionally-used plant. This includes examining how plant materials ....Co-research supporting the development of Aboriginal plant knowledges. Successful commercial development of products manufactured from Australian plant extracts based on shared Aboriginal Knowledges and Western scientific evidence is limited. This research project partnering with an Aboriginal Corporation and a skincare company aims to understand the processes that would be needed for Aboriginal-led product development from a traditionally-used plant. This includes examining how plant materials could be sustainably managed and harvested on Aboriginal homelands, the quantities of plant materials needed for product development and the feasibility of a homelands business. The learnings from this project are expected to inform other First Nations groups seeking to develop their plant knowledges.Read moreRead less
Lifespan learning and literacy for young adults in remote Indigenous communities. Engagement with learning across the lifespan and increased literacy skills among early school leavers and other young adults will have direct benefits to remote Indigenous communities and to the nation. These include the increased ability of this next generation of Indigenous adults to develop the skills and confidence required to actively build stable and self-reliant institutions, improve social and economic circ ....Lifespan learning and literacy for young adults in remote Indigenous communities. Engagement with learning across the lifespan and increased literacy skills among early school leavers and other young adults will have direct benefits to remote Indigenous communities and to the nation. These include the increased ability of this next generation of Indigenous adults to develop the skills and confidence required to actively build stable and self-reliant institutions, improve social and economic circumstances and enhance the health of their families and communities. Additional benefits will flow from the enhanced capacity of individuals to participate effectively in the national economy and from more positive spending of public funds on evidence-based programs that work rather than ongoing problem alleviation.Read moreRead less
From the Desert to the Sea: Managing Rock Art, Country and Culture. This Project will expand our understanding of Aboriginal settlement and land-use in north-west Australia by investigating how the mythological narratives of Australia’s deserts enable the transmission of knowledge in water-limited environments. Combining traditional ecological knowledge and novel scientific approaches (e.g. anthracology, remote sensing, oxygen-isotopes) will provide new insights into human behaviours at rock art ....From the Desert to the Sea: Managing Rock Art, Country and Culture. This Project will expand our understanding of Aboriginal settlement and land-use in north-west Australia by investigating how the mythological narratives of Australia’s deserts enable the transmission of knowledge in water-limited environments. Combining traditional ecological knowledge and novel scientific approaches (e.g. anthracology, remote sensing, oxygen-isotopes) will provide new insights into human behaviours at rock art site complexes. It will develop management regimes and formal certification for Indigenous rangers while building heritage capacity in these partner communities: enabling intergenerational, culturally appropriate knowledge transfer protocols are in place to ensure sustainable economic heritage futures.Read moreRead less
Establishing the provenance of Torres Strait Islander remains: genetics, craniometrics and isotopes. The repatriation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander remains has been a focus of Commonwealth and State Governments for over two decades. It remains as a significant social and cultural issue for many Indigenous Australians. One of the main hurdles to repatriation is the fact that hundreds, and possibly thousands of human remains have very little contextual detail associated with them. A num ....Establishing the provenance of Torres Strait Islander remains: genetics, craniometrics and isotopes. The repatriation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander remains has been a focus of Commonwealth and State Governments for over two decades. It remains as a significant social and cultural issue for many Indigenous Australians. One of the main hurdles to repatriation is the fact that hundreds, and possibly thousands of human remains have very little contextual detail associated with them. A number of techniques have been developed in the field of biological anthropology to reconstruct the history of individual skeletal remains. This innovative project aims to use advances in the fields of ancient DNA, isotope analysis and craniometrics to resolve the provenance of 113 trophy skulls from the Torres Strait Islands.Read moreRead less
Re-integrating Central Australian community cultural collections. This project aims to apply current research on archiving and community access to find practical solutions to managing the large amounts of recorded cultural material of interest to the Central Land Council, the peak Indigenous representative body covering the southern half of the Northern Territory. The project aims to identify and integrate information in a common database, work with community members to create a prioritised list ....Re-integrating Central Australian community cultural collections. This project aims to apply current research on archiving and community access to find practical solutions to managing the large amounts of recorded cultural material of interest to the Central Land Council, the peak Indigenous representative body covering the southern half of the Northern Territory. The project aims to identify and integrate information in a common database, work with community members to create a prioritised list of any at-risk materials and apply locally meaningful categories for managing the archival materials relevant to their community, and deliver appropriate documentation of process, permissions and reports to support ongoing sustainability of the collections.Read moreRead less
The role of Queensland Museum collections in producing knowledge of Aboriginal people from Federation to the present day. The project will investigate the production of knowledge about Aboriginal peoples by the Queensland Museum since the late nineteenth century. The focus will be on the changing role of material culture collections in the construal of Aboriginality. The APAI will analyse material culture collection in the context of nation building and will investigate both the changing meaning ....The role of Queensland Museum collections in producing knowledge of Aboriginal people from Federation to the present day. The project will investigate the production of knowledge about Aboriginal peoples by the Queensland Museum since the late nineteenth century. The focus will be on the changing role of material culture collections in the construal of Aboriginality. The APAI will analyse material culture collection in the context of nation building and will investigate both the changing meanings and the contemporary relevance of such collections to Aboriginal communities. The project will produce a body of research that can be used in the design of new exhibitions that will reveal the true complexity of cross-cultural interactions in the development of the Museum's collections.Read moreRead less
Investigation of factors that render Indigenous communities in NSW less prone to crime. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are over-represented at all stages of the criminal justice system, with significant negative ramifications for the health and well-being of Indigenous families and communities. This study seeks to better understand the dynamics of communities experiencing higher and lower crime rates, and factors that might assist in not only lowering crime rates in Indigenous com ....Investigation of factors that render Indigenous communities in NSW less prone to crime. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are over-represented at all stages of the criminal justice system, with significant negative ramifications for the health and well-being of Indigenous families and communities. This study seeks to better understand the dynamics of communities experiencing higher and lower crime rates, and factors that might assist in not only lowering crime rates in Indigenous communities, but in improving health and well-being more generally. Enabling Indigenous individuals, families and communities to be able to participate and make choices that lead to healthy, productive and fulfilling lives will undoubtedly also contribute to Australian society as a whole.Read moreRead less