Indigenous heritage: working ancient wetlands for social benefit and cultural understanding. This research will answer important theoretical and practical questions about Aboriginal community engagement with Heritage research. It will generate significant archaeological outcomes on the nature of Indigenous occupation in ancient eastern Australian landscapes, and this research will also improve the employability of young Aboriginal people.
Policy for self-determination: the case study of ATSIC. This project aims to provide a focused study of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (1990-2005) to inform Indigenous policy-making and governance in Australia. Utilising interdisciplinary approaches and a national perspective it will analyse how, and in what context, the Commission functioned and document the stories of those involved. Expected outcomes of the project include detailed data on the successes and challenges of ....Policy for self-determination: the case study of ATSIC. This project aims to provide a focused study of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (1990-2005) to inform Indigenous policy-making and governance in Australia. Utilising interdisciplinary approaches and a national perspective it will analyse how, and in what context, the Commission functioned and document the stories of those involved. Expected outcomes of the project include detailed data on the successes and challenges of the organisation and a set of Indigenous oral histories/biographies that will inform public and political debate. This history will benefit and change the way Indigenous governance is understood, discussed, remembered and formulated in contemporary Australian society. Read moreRead less
A reliable absolute chronology for the Aboriginal rock art in the Kimberley, Western Australia. The Aboriginal rock art in the Kimberley region of Western Australia is an internationally significant record of human occupation and cultural evolution. This project will determine the antiquity of human expression in one of the richest (and possibly the oldest) rock art regions in the world using advanced analytical techniques.
The role of song in Kaytetye and Warlpiri biocultural knowledge. This project aims to integrate Indigenous Ecological Knowledge with Indigenous ceremonial knowledge in two central Australian Aboriginal languages: Kaytetye and Warlpiri. With a multidisciplinary team and by building on existing lexical and musical corpora, the project expects to produce the first biocultural monographs. Identification of biota and human uses of them will be expanded with their song, site of origin and kinship affi ....The role of song in Kaytetye and Warlpiri biocultural knowledge. This project aims to integrate Indigenous Ecological Knowledge with Indigenous ceremonial knowledge in two central Australian Aboriginal languages: Kaytetye and Warlpiri. With a multidisciplinary team and by building on existing lexical and musical corpora, the project expects to produce the first biocultural monographs. Identification of biota and human uses of them will be expanded with their song, site of origin and kinship affiliation; thus advancing knowledge of how societies interact with the natural world and the role of music in retaining knowledge. Expected benefits of this project are greater intergenerational transfer of Indigenous biocultural knowledge through working on country and enhanced Indigenous capacity. Read moreRead less
The NSW Aborigines Protection/Welfare Board 1883-1969: A History. Between 1883 and 1967 the lives of Aboriginal people in New South Wales (NSW) were in the hands of the NSW Aborigines Protection/Welfare Board. The impact of the Board's systematic control over Aboriginal communities through policies of segregation, assimilation, child removal and wage withholding would endure for decades, and the negative results of those government directives are still being seen today. To date, however, no subs ....The NSW Aborigines Protection/Welfare Board 1883-1969: A History. Between 1883 and 1967 the lives of Aboriginal people in New South Wales (NSW) were in the hands of the NSW Aborigines Protection/Welfare Board. The impact of the Board's systematic control over Aboriginal communities through policies of segregation, assimilation, child removal and wage withholding would endure for decades, and the negative results of those government directives are still being seen today. To date, however, no substantive history of the NSW Aborigines Protection/Welfare Board exists. This project aims to provide such a history, based on extensive archival and oral history research. Holding critical importance to NSW Aboriginal communities, the project expects to encourage the development of Indigenous historians in the process.Read moreRead less
Rethinking the Victim: Gendered Violence in Australian Women's Writing. This project, the first to examine gendered violence in Australian literature, argues that literary texts by Australian women writers offer unique ways of understanding the social problem of gendered violence, bringing this often private and suppressed issue into the public sphere. It draws on the international field of violence studies to investigate how these writers challenge the victim paradigm and figure women's agencie ....Rethinking the Victim: Gendered Violence in Australian Women's Writing. This project, the first to examine gendered violence in Australian literature, argues that literary texts by Australian women writers offer unique ways of understanding the social problem of gendered violence, bringing this often private and suppressed issue into the public sphere. It draws on the international field of violence studies to investigate how these writers challenge the victim paradigm and figure women's agencies. By including white, Indigenous and minority women writers in its case studies, and by interviewing selected writers, it will shed new light on the role of gendered violence in the diverse and interconnected cultural histories of the nation, and will significantly extend the parameters of the Australian literary canon.Read moreRead less
An ecological study of school transition and the early years of school for Aboriginal children in an urban community. Reducing the gap in educational outcomes between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians is critical. Information is lacking on early education experiences of urban Aboriginal children. This research will explore urban Aboriginal children’s early school experiences and provide information on the early life factors that support positive outcomes.
Goolarabooloo Culture of the Western Kimberley. With the prospect of new industries, starting with a major gas plant, the Indigenous population of Broome finds itself under pressure and internally divided. The group to be studied here, Goolarabooloo, is opposed to mining on their Dreaming. Their struggle has had the effect of reviving forms of culture, that take contemporary shape, but are always strongly linked to the traditional culture. With national and international attention focussed on Go ....Goolarabooloo Culture of the Western Kimberley. With the prospect of new industries, starting with a major gas plant, the Indigenous population of Broome finds itself under pressure and internally divided. The group to be studied here, Goolarabooloo, is opposed to mining on their Dreaming. Their struggle has had the effect of reviving forms of culture, that take contemporary shape, but are always strongly linked to the traditional culture. With national and international attention focussed on Goolarabooloo, this study will analyse the transformation of this confederacy of language groups in the context of industrialisation and tourism. The output will be a first in ethnographic documentation of this culture, first recorded by Daisy Bates in 1901.Read moreRead less
Prerequisite conditions for Indigenous nation self-government. This project aims to produce new knowledge about Indigenous nation building (INB) processes. Based on research that self-governance increases Indigenous socioeconomic and community capacity, this project will collaborate with two Aboriginal communities to investigate factors that impact the transition from 'identifying' to 'organising' as political collectives to enable self-governance. Such knowledge has the potential to directly co ....Prerequisite conditions for Indigenous nation self-government. This project aims to produce new knowledge about Indigenous nation building (INB) processes. Based on research that self-governance increases Indigenous socioeconomic and community capacity, this project will collaborate with two Aboriginal communities to investigate factors that impact the transition from 'identifying' to 'organising' as political collectives to enable self-governance. Such knowledge has the potential to directly contribute to increased wellbeing for Indigenous communities as they define it. It aims to contribute to Australian and international Indigenous governance, political science and Indigenous methodologies literatures. The project could significantly benefit Indigenous peoples, the broader Australian community, Australian governments, and Australian and international INB researchers.Read moreRead less
Violence on the Australian Colonial Frontier, 1788-1960. How many Aborigines and settlers were killed on the Australian frontier? Were they mostly killed in ones and twos or in mass killings? How can we know? These questions are of first national importance in understanding the past. This project takes a fresh approach to frontier violence by employing new analytical methods to investigate the complex array of sources to produce new estimates of casualties 1788 to 1960. The findings will be made ....Violence on the Australian Colonial Frontier, 1788-1960. How many Aborigines and settlers were killed on the Australian frontier? Were they mostly killed in ones and twos or in mass killings? How can we know? These questions are of first national importance in understanding the past. This project takes a fresh approach to frontier violence by employing new analytical methods to investigate the complex array of sources to produce new estimates of casualties 1788 to 1960. The findings will be made available in online maps and transform our understanding of the ongoing trauma of frontier violence that persists in Australian society today. Read moreRead less