Fueling large group dominance: A critique of the Northern Territory local government electoral system
Activity
This seminar will reflect on some results of the inaugural Shire elections held in the Northern Territory in October 2008. It will observe that, in a number of large multi-member wards in various Shires, those elected to second and subsequent positions often: came from the same locations as…
Ethical governance for Benefit Sharing Trusts
Activity
Benefit sharing is a technical term, which was popularised by the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) adopted at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. The CBD was the first international treaty to recognise that the conservation of biodiversity is a "common concern of humankind". The…
The significance of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Activity
This seminar will provide a historical overview of the the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN DRIP); explain its most contentious aspects and its legal and political significance for Indigenous Australia. The seminar is based on a paper published by Megan Davis in…
Caring For Country: Building from the Bottom-Up
Activity
Jack Green and Jack Hogan (TBC), Senior Garawa and Waanyi traditional owners The Waanyi/Garawa Aboriginal Land Trust is situated in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria along the Northern Territory/Queensland border. It covers some 12,000 sq. km of land and contains bio-regions of national…
Land as 'third space': Towards an educational and social re-engagement of Indigenous youth in remote Australia
Activity
The educational and social disengagement of Indigenous youth in many remote communities in Northern Australia is well documented. A cursory reading of media reports and opinion pieces uncovers many who can be blamed: schools, parents, teachers, government, socialists, anthropologists, linguists and…
The benefits of Caring for Country in NSW
Activity
There exists a growing body of literature about the benefits to Indigenous people, as well as to the environment, of living on and caring for land and sea country. However, most of these findings emanate from Northern Australia, where Aboriginal people are usually working on their own Aboriginal-…
From 'Close The Gap' to the Rudd Government's 'closing the gap': What gap are we closing?
Activity
The success of the Close The Gap Campaign for Indigenous Health Equality, an Indigenous-led initiative involving a coalition of 40 or so concerned organisations, is reflected in the commitment by the Rudd Government in 2008 to the campaign's Statement of Intent and its adoption of 'closing the gap…