Speaker Series from the Australian Indigenous Governance Institute
In the lead up to the International Indigenous Governance Conference convened by the Australian Indigenous Governance Institute (AIGI) and Reconciliation Australia (RA) in December 2020, the AIGI will present a monthly webinar exploring key Indigenous governance themes.
On 13 May 2020, the first webinar Governing Through Crisis presented a conversation about community response to COVID19.
The conversation was facilitated by Michelle Deshong, CEO, AIGI and featured panellists Sarah Brown, CEO, Purple House; Peter Murray, Deputy Chair, 10 Deserts Project and CEO, Yanunijarra Aboriginal Corporation; Aunty Pat Turner, CEO, National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.
Key themes that emerged throughout the webinar included:
- Indigenous communities reacted fast and quickly in response to the COVID19 pandemic and implemented measures early on to protect and keep safe Indigenous communities.
- This situation has fostered improved communication from community, local, regional, State, and national networks, through the adoption of various mediums of communication – telephone, video, electronic, social media, and print.
- Technology has been a major factor in the effectiveness in responding to the COVID19 challenges, such as broadening the access to health services through telehealth and the increase reach through language apps and translations of information into Indigenous language.
- For those who have isolated on community, this period has seen a return to country and cultural practices, such as hunting, gathering, knowledge sharing, engagement between generations and cultural transmission – seeing returning to the “family”.
A full length recording of the webinar can be accessed in the video gallery on the AIGI website: https://www.aigi.com.au/gallery/webinar-governing-through-crisis/.
Information about the International Indigenous Governance Conference
The International Indigenous Governance Conference will bring together 200 delegates from various regions Australia wide, along with international delegates. The event will see a combination of guest speakers, presentations and interactive workshops on areas of Indigenous Governance.
Conference activities include:
- Collectively bring together a broad network from the Indigenous Governance Awards
- Share a range of case studies and examples of Governance Excellence
- Participate in Roundtable discussions about emerging themes and innovation in Governance
- Collaborate on future networks and partnership development
- Undertake site visits to local Indigenous Organisations / Nations
The Conference is located in Brisbane, Australia and scheduled from Monday 7th December to Thursday 10th December 2020. A registration link will be shared on the Network shortly.
