Considerations regarding Getting On Board Do we understand our - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Considerations regarding ‘Getting On Board’

Do we understand our passengers and our impacts on them?

Tania Major Tania Major Consulting Pty Ltd For the “Onboarding Elected Members Forum” 4 March 2020

https://www.reddit.com/r/HeavySeas/comments/8s1f9y/massive_wave_just_covered_the_ship/

Acknowledgement of Turrbal Country

Artist: Tania Major “Mixed Emotions”

Shutterstock.com - 41819422

1) To assist participants to better understand the personal diversity and history of elected Councillors and Mayors and gain insights on the issues that impact on their lives outside

• f Council;

2) To get participants thinking about how they treat and work with Councillors and elected

• fficers. Do they provide good, complete and balanced information for Councillors to

make their own decisions in a context understood by them?

Purpose of My Presence at this Forum

(as requested by LGAQ)

https://www.aim.com.au/blog/how-embed-purpose-your-organisation

My Approach to Today’s Presentation

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities: language, education and health. Part 2: Considering the impact of colonialism, government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities: trust, jurisdiction, leadership and identity.

Colonialism is the policy of a country seeking to extend or retain its authority over other people

• r territories, generally with the aim of economic dominance.

Source: Wikipedia .

https://medium.com/@goswami.piyush/neo-colonialism-our-elusive-search-for- freedom-in-21st-century-1810cb826847

Colonialism is defined as “control by one power over a dependent area or people.” It occurs when one nation subjugates another, conquering its population and exploiting it, often while forcing its own language and cultural values upon its people.

Source: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/ culture/topics/reference/colonialism/

What is colonialism?

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.hopevale.qld.gov.au/council/your-council

Language

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.moovaz.com/australia-moving-guide/living-in-australia/

Australia is a nation rich in languages. It is a great strength.

• It makes us a nation that has access to tools that

allow us to think and speak outside our own box.

• Knowing multiple languages allow us to understand

the world around us better.

• In Australia, we use one language institutionally, but

we understand and respect many more.

Language: Speaking Multiple Languages Develops Intelligence

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://newyorkbehavioralhealth.com/Brain%20Development-Bilingual-Intelligence-Attention-Deficit%20Hyperactivity%20Disorder-ADHD Research References Bialystok, E. (2011). Reshaping the mind: The benefits of bilingualism. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology, 65, 229-235. Bhattacharjee, Y. (2012). Why bilinguals are smarter. New York Times: Sunday Review. Obtained from: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/opinion/sunday/the-benefits-of-bilingualism.htm

The Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology published an article that stressed the benefits of bilingualism. Apart from the evident advantages of being able to communicate in more than one language, the article presents substantial data regarding the positive effects that being bilingual offers. The article suggests that:

• Just as any other experience in life impacts our cognitive development,

the intense and sustained experience of learning a new language and being bilingual will reshape our minds.

• Speaking more than one language increases the executive functioning and

the executive control system involved in these functions, across the lifespan.

• Increasing the executive control system impacts on the ability to engage

in a wide array of cognitive activities, specifically those requiring effortful attention and selection. Applying executive functioning is normally involved in situations where selection and conflict resolution are required.

http://acadjuliavictoria.edu.ph/14-key-principles-brain-based-learning/

Language

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Image credit: David Foster https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/history-culture/2016/04/speaking-up- australian-aboriginal-languages/

Many Aboriginal communities consist of clans that speak languages that are very different from one another. As a result, many Aboriginal people speak multiple languages:

• The clan language spoken at home.
• The languages of other clans in their community.
• The language of Australian institutions, English.
• A language called Creole or Pijin that takes

vocabulary from English and uses that vocabulary in their clan’s language’s grammatical

• structure. Creoles/Pidgins are recognised by

linguists as sophisticated and unique languages.

• Sign language.

Aboriginal languages have traditionally been oral languages. The cultures, therefore, are oral cultures.

Language

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Have you familiarised yourself with the clans and languages in the community you serve?

http://collaboratensw.org/

This is perhaps the single most important endeavour you can undertake to understand the community and its dynamics.

Language: the Importance of Listening in Communication

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

A central characteristic and value of Aboriginal communication is listening. We are taught:

• to listen in the language and the culture of the speaker;
• to consider the speaker’s whole person and experience;
• to consider the context of the dialogue;
• to not respond immediately or to interrupt, but to allow the speaker to complete

his/her thoughts;

• to take time to reflect on the speaker’s words before answering or speaking.
• to answer with respect and calmness.

https://thelivingcircle21.com.au/deep-listening-in-practice/

In Aboriginal communities, the skill of deep listening is essential to serving the community effectively.

Language

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Elected Aboriginal Local Government Councillors/Mayors must be able to represent and work with the languages of all the clans in their communities, as well as the language of Australian policy, educational, health, legal and political institutions.

http://collaboratensw.org/

They are expected to be expert communicators across families, clans, cultures, languages and nation.

Language: Working with Aboriginal Communication

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Do you consider, in the communications you have or materials you create for Aboriginal Councillors, that English is most likely our second or third or fourth language?

Providing opportunities to allow participants to discuss with one another the ideas being shared during communications, in meetings, meeting papers, and in workshops or presentations gives participants time to use their own language, contexts, and learning styles to discuss and clarify their understanding of the material. It engages them in the content.

https://mkstudy.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Thursday-Island-workshop-participants-1.jpg

Language: Working with Aboriginal Communication

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities. Reflection point: when you speak to or are in dialogue with Aboriginal people, do you consider our approach to communication? Do you consider that the most respectful thing we Aboriginal people can give to you is to pause and reflect before replying to statements or questions? Do you consider that to us, you show us respect or not in the way you choose to respond to us?

Photo: Otto Sims is a proud Warlpiri Man, who wants to see the date of Australia Day

• change. (ABC News: Emily Butcher). https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-01-26/what-

do-remote-aboriginal-communities-think-of-australia-day/9363470

When engaging with Aboriginal people, listen with your whole self, consider the speaker’s context as s/he shares thoughts, reflect on the words spoken, and respond with respect.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Education

As Aboriginal people, we traditionally live a life of

• learning. We are taught by our elders, our environment,
• ur culture, and our languages.

We learn in our natural environment and from stories which serve as multi-dimensional metaphors…ones where a child derives one understanding and, as we mature, from which we gain more complex, multi-dimensional insights. We learn multiple languages, cultures, laws and perspectives of how this incredible earth works. In the often harsh conditions of this beautiful continent, we are intelligent survivors and carers of country. We, the Aboriginal people of Australia, have been and continue to be sophisticated and passionate learners.

https://www.supportingcarers.snaicc.org.au/connecting-to-culture/connection-to-elders/ Photo by Penny Tweedle. Aboriginal elder Billy Nalakandi with his children Rayhab Romeo and Susannah cool-off and play in Kubumi billabong Arnhem land. https://www.alamy.com/aboriginal-elder-billy- nalakandi-with-his-children-rayhab-romeo-and-image123565.html

Education: Unfortunately, the education system has often not acknowledged Aboriginal learning pathways and approaches.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities. The curriculum is defined by government and taught in schools in a way that is sensitive to non-Aboriginal people and insensitive to Aboriginal people:

• Learning is mostly classroom based.
• Activities are often paper based.
• Real life learning and experimental approaches are minimal. Rather, ‘experimentation’ is highly

regulated and it is expected students must follow a predefined process. Students are measured by how closely they follow that process. The process is often quite foreign to Aboriginal approaches.

• Creative problem solving that uncovers unique approaches and outcomes is not encouraged.
• Children are taught there are right and wrong answers and they are punished if they come up with an

answer of anything other than what has been predetermined as “correct”.

https://royallifesavingwa.com.au/programs/remote-pools

Education: the resources available in Aboriginal communities are not understood or used by schools except in token ways.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

• Teachers are given very limited preparation and information about the students they are

about to teach so they do not know how to tap into family knowledge and resources.

• Teachers come expecting they have what students need to know. They do not understand

that students also have what teachers need to know.

• English is used as the primary language and teachers rarely attempt to learn or use local

languages or Creole in the classroom. To this day, Creole is often considered “incorrect”.

https://www.abcfoundation.org.au/connect/galleries/kowanyama-gallery

Aboriginal communities are rich with resources to use for education:

• Government services: clinic, store, emergency, store.
• Local government: Council, childcare, aged care,

disability care, water, power, communications, environment, roads, community education.

• Local: elders, language, culture, family life, leaders,

country/environment, etc.

Education

Most importantly, Aboriginal knowledge and history is not integrated into the normal school

• curriculum. Instead, it is relegated to a token period (e.g., NAIDOC week) in the school year
• r an hour during the week.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

• This further encourages the viewpoint both inside and
• utside of Aboriginal communities that Aboriginal

people are separate and different from other Australians and not as relevant.

• Aboriginal children grow up believing their knowledge

is inferior and not applicable to school and the broader society.

• Not acknowledging and including Aboriginal

knowledge in daily science, history, literature, writing and maths classes suggests that it is irrelevant or wrong.

Barkandji Elder Uncle Badger Bates explaining traditional plant use. Indigenous Australians have unrivalled knowledge of their Countries. Zena Cumpston, https://theconversation.com/to- address-the-ecological-crisis-aboriginal-peoples-must-be-restored-as-custodians-of-country- 108594

Aboriginal knowledge and learning systems could provide important insights to the education of all children and to the care of country.

Education

Finally, most schools in Aboriginal communities are funded only through year 6. Parents have no choice but to send their children to boarding schools hundreds of kilometres from home.

• This separates them from their children and the life their children know.
• It is very difficult for parents to place their children in the care of people who do not understand

them.

• It feels like another generation stolen to be assimilated into another culture.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/dec/14/skin- in-the-game-how-boarding-school-can-fail-aboriginal-kids https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/voices/culture/article/2016/12/07/heres- truth-about-free-ride-some-australians-think-indigenous-peoples-get From In My Blood It Runs http://miff.com.au/blog/view/5228/in-my-blood-it-runs-four-ways

Education

Most communities do not have years 7-9 in their schools. Many of those that have them, do not have the resources to provide the education required by youth. These children are highly susceptible to a lifetime of trouble and depression.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://isnblog.ethz.ch/tag/incarceration https://lordrakim.wordpress.com/2017/08/10/refugees-in-their-

• wn-land-how-indigenous-people-are-still-homeless-in-modern-

australia/ https://www.thebigsmoke.com.au/2018/07/12/they-are-still- abusing-modern-australias-continuation-the-stolen-generation/

Education: test results reveal reality

The education outcomes experienced in the majority of Aboriginal communities reflect that the education system does not meet the needs of Aboriginal children.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.nap.edu.au/results-and-reports

200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 360 380 400 420 440 460 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Axis Title

Year 3 NAPLAN Reading Scores

All Schools Year 3 Hopevale Kowanyama Lockhart River Pormpuraaw Reading Min Std Yr3

The black dashed line gives the average of Year 3 students in All Schools across Australia.

• 480 -
• 430 -
• 375 -
• 280 -

Source: NAPLAN.edu.au The blue number is the NAPLAN score that must be achieved to say a student has achieved the minimum standard.

The blue number is the minimum score required to achieve the national minimum standard. Students’ scores are categorised by bands. The higher the band, the higher the student’s score. Note that, according to the minimum standard, a year 3 student who has achieved a high score in Band 5 has already met the minimum standard for year 9. Would you want your child who had Band 5-6 year 3 scores to say their scores proved they had the skills required of a year 9 education?

The average All School reading score was 434,

• ver 100 points higher

than the Aboriginal schools.

• 434
• -

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

380 400 420 440 460 480 500 520 540 560 580 600 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 NAPLAN Score

Year 7 NAPLAN Reading Scores

Hopevale Lockhart River Kowanyama Pormpuraaw Aurukun All Schools Year 9 All Schools Year 7 All Schools Year 5 All Schools Year 3

Year 7 All Schools Year 5 All School

Year 3 All Schools

Year 7 Aboriginal Schools

Year 9 All Schools

Education: test results show Aboriginal year 7 school scores are equivalent to All Schools scores for year 3 students.

Education consequences

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

What happens when children, entering year 7 with year 3 skills, must attend a boarding school where students have at least a year 7 entry level for year 7 classes?

Generations of Aboriginal people have suffered through an education system that strips them of their self-confidence, their culture, their language, and their loved ones. This is why many parents actually want to protect their children from the pain of going to school and a life of feeling like a failure due to circumstances outside their control. Rather than understand that parents are protecting their children from pain and stigma, however, the colonialist system judges them and their children as being lazy and undisciplined for not attending school.

https://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article/aboriginal-students--school-shock#

25

Under-skilled Youth Become Under-skilled Adults

An average 5-year gap was found to exist between the year of schooling completed and literacy levels. Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Education: What happens when youth leave school? The Counterfeit Currency of some Training Programs

The federal government provides funding to training groups to help close the gap for employment of Aboriginal people. What happens to that money? Training Providers are only paid for awarding certificates and jobs, thus that is their focus.

Training Provider – receives funding for

• ffering

training courses. To cope with the failure of education, training providers create low level Cert 1 and 2 courses that can be completed in 2-3 weeks and do not require much literacy or numeracy.* Training providers are paid for each participant that takes a course and sign up each participant for multiple courses. Courses are considered by community members as counterfeit currency because they do not give skills that get jobs. Training providers place job seekers in jobs they are not qualified for because they get paid for each person who gets a job. Individuals quit out

• f shame or are

sacked from jobs, and within weeks

• r months, training

providers are happy to place another unqualified person in the position

*In cities and towns, certificate 2 courses require at least 3 months of study to complete and require students have completed a year 10 education to enter.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Education: The provision of poor education is the principal cause of poverty in Aboriginal communities.

Family in poverty

https://indigenousaustralianfoodinequity.weebly.com/poverty-cycle.html

Fail to escape the poverty cycle Struggles to get a job Is significantly disadvantaged in education & skills Child grows up in poverty

Education considerations for you

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities. The education system effectively shakes the self- confidence of many Aboriginal individuals. They expect failure from themselves in the society outside their own, and are shamed by it. When you work with Aboriginal elected officers and you see their maths or English skills are not at a tertiary level, keep in mind that this is not a reflection of a lack

• f intelligence.

Rather, it is a symptom of an education system based on outdated colonisation attitudes that has failed an entire people over many generations.

https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/506232814342396731/

What can you do?

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities. Remember:

• Importantly, always provide objective information and

trust decision making to the elected officials.

• You need to help individuals to succeed through

continuous, active support.

• You are working with people who learn from an oral
• culture. Encourage discussion and enquiries on issues

and allow it in Creole or local Aboriginal languages.

• People learn from life itself more than from pieces of
• paper. Where possible, let people experience the

concern being presented. They will then understand the issues behind the concern and make better, more informed decisions.

• Prepare papers with terminology that is familiar and

used by the people themselves. Provide photos and graphs where possible. Explore graphs verbally and encourage the group to exchange ideas about them and how the information impacts upon them and their community.

https://www.8ways.online/8-ways-creative-and-productive-pedagogy-activities

Health

Part 1: Considering the li fe experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Every year the “Close the Gap” report discloses the lack of progress in the health status of Aboriginal people.

https://ctgreport.niaa.gov.au/life-expectancy

Health

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Traditionally, the Aboriginal people treated health from a whole-of-community perspective. They had a healthy diet and lifestyle rich with a wide range of natural foods, plenty of exercise, strong family and clan identity, and social justice systems that were understood to protect individuals and the community.

http://www.realaustraliatravel.com/australian-aboriginal-food.html

“This holistic understanding of health and wellbeing involves the whole community throughout the entire life-course. It includes broad issues like social justice, equity, and rights, as well as traditional knowledge, traditional healing, and connection to country. Thus, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander concept of health “encompass[es] mental health and physical, cultural and spiritual health. Land is central to well being.”

https://healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au/learn/cultural-ways/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-concept-of-health/

Health

The arrival of colonialists impacted Aboriginal lives drastically and traumatically.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Indigenous_Australi ans as quoted from the academic journal, Aboriginal History. The Australian Museum also has population data..

Colonialists arrived in 1788 and with them, brought diseases that Aboriginal people had no immune system for. Starvation occurred because Aborigines lost access to their natural food and water sources. At the time of colonialization in 1788 until 1860, the estimated Aboriginal population was between 315,000 and 770,000. By 1930, the population was estimated to be 50,000.

http://nationalunitygovernment.org/content/letters-henry-howard-meyrick

Between 1861 and 1930, 84% – 94% of all Aboriginal people died.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Indigenous_Australians as quoted from the academic journal, Aboriginal History.. Also, see Wikipedia, The Holocaust.

Horrific trauma visited every Aboriginal family in Australia due to colonisation. Health

http://returninghome.com.au/indigenous-funerals/

Comparing to the Holocaust In German-occupied Europe, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered about 66% of Europe's Jewish population.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Health Try to imagine the impact on your life if, of 100 people you know and love, fewer than 10 remained alive after an invading people introduced unknown diseases and stole your home and land.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/mass-funeral-held-20-haitians-died-dismal-prison-171114172.html

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Research has shown that trauma, including post traumatic stress, can effect the families of an individual for generations after an event. Health

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/descendants-of-holocaust-survivors-have-altered-stress-hormones/

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://theconversation.com/collective-trauma-is-real-and-could-hamper-australian-communities-bushfire-recovery-131555

Devastating natural disasters aren’t the only source of collective trauma. War, conflict and genocide have challenged established ways of living and fractured community bonds. What do we mean by collective trauma? The concept of collective trauma has risen to prominence in the wake of Australia’s bushfire crisis. Dean Lewins/AAP Collective trauma is real, and could hamper Australian communities’ bushfire recovery Cited from the Australian edition of The Conversation, 14 February 2020:

Are current health services for Aboriginal people helping them?

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.oxfam.org.au/what-we-do/indigenous-australia/close-the-gap/australias-indigenous-health- crisis-in-depth/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzby49PfN5wIVB7aWCh3ORQ1HEAAYBCAAEgKHfPD_BwE

A 2018 report by the Australian Medical Association found that Aboriginal health services reflected the lack of commitment to:

• equitable needs-based funding;
• gaps in primary health care coverage,

and

• the failure to address environmental

health and housing.

Health

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-17/10-year-anniversary-of-close-the-gap-campaign-tom- calma/7252774

Health: there are other contributing factors to poor health outcomes.

Part 1: Considering the life experience of Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

https://www.cis.org.au/commentary/articles/low-expectations-unhealthy/

• The majority of community members have a poverty level.
• Government run stores make groceries inexorably expensive.
• Service providers across departments do not understand the

reasons for the stresses and resulting poor health of individuals.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

We have suffered and continue suffering terrible losses and disadvantage. Yet, in Australia, we are told continuously, to “get over it”. Health

https://independentaustralia.net/australia/australia-display/australia- day-invasion-day,8612

Our trauma, as revealed through research and census data, continues as a result of colonialist attitudes which exist through to today.

Part 1: Considering the life experienceof Councillors from Aboriginal communities.

Health: What can you do?

It is important to keep in mind that the individuals living in an Aboriginal community do not have access to the health care services offered to those living in towns and cities.

Aboriginal people live with:

• Pain from injuries and chronic and acute

illnesses for much longer periods of time because the professional levels of care are not there for them.

• Loss at a level not experienced by

mainstream Australians.

• Untreated depression.

In your roles, you can make a difference in people’s lives by understanding their pain, and doing what you can to support them both personally and by reinforcing community support programs.

https://nacchocommunique.com/2016/07/23/naccho-aboriginal-health-news-alert-five- tips-to-get-the-government-started-on-real-health-reform/

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and

• ther agencies on Aboriginal communities.

1. Self and Community Identity 2. Trust 3. Jurisdiction 4. Leadership The impact of colonialism, past and current, on Aboriginal people will be considered from the perspectives of:

https://www.uq.edu.au/news/article/2017/09/remote-indigenous-communities-experience-dramatic-improvement-life-expectancy

Self and Community Identity

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities. The most tragic outcome of colonialism is that subjugation means individuals suffer a loss of personal, clan, cultural and community identity. With that comes a lack of self-confidence.

https://thesaurus.plus/antonyms/subjugation

What’s the

• pposite of

subjugation? Independence, freedom, accomplishment, achievement, success, win

Lack of self-confidence and self-identity leads to inability to act.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities. Lack of action causes lack of necessary change. Lack of change means ongoing poverty and more identity loss. Failure is experienced by individuals at their attempts to take control of their lives and/or environment. Ongoing failure to gain control of lives leads to a lack of self-confidence. Low self confidence causes people to be frightened to take action for fear of further failure and the pain that causes. Colonialist systems deny the development of personal identity

https://clivemaclean.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/forrester-survey-highlights-clients%E2%80%99-lack-confidence-in-both-traditional-and-digital-agencies-alike/

It is critical for you to help create an environment that gives Aboriginal Councillors confidence that they understand the decisions they are asked to make for their community and the impact of their actions.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

• Do not judge what elected officials should

know or do by telling them what is good or bad.

• Give them a full, objective set of information

so they have what they need to feel confident to make their own decisions and move ahead. They know their community better than you.

• Support the growth of knowledge in the

workplace.

• Be interested in the wellbeing of individuals.
• Be active in the community.

https://swiftkickhq.com/5-keys-to-effective-group-decision-making-for- student-leaders/

Trust

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

Building our trust will require dedicated effort on your part, as well as your patience. Trust will take time.

https://blog.darrensmith.com.au/trust-f1282c5f0ebf

Trust: in your roles, you will have to overcome the history of abuse from previous CEOs, HR officers, and other non-Indigenous managers.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

It is the repeated abuse over decades that the mistrust is based upon. This could be a disappointing challenge for you to have to face, but if you can face it, you will be rewarded with kindness, acceptance, and generosity that will last a lifetime.

https://www.industriallogic.com/blog/cycles-of-mistrust/

Trust: unfortunately, mistrust most often works two ways.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

CEO’s and non-Aboriginal staff learn to mistrust the skills, knowledge and motives of Aboriginal Councillors, and Aboriginal Councillors and community members distrust the motives of non-Aboriginal staff. This can lead to problematic hiring practices from both sides because everyone wants to employ individuals they feel they can trust. For Aboriginal decision makers, this often means they will employ someone they think they can trust over someone who might have better skills for a position.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/badecisionclub/photos/

Trust: Aboriginal decision makers have had few good role models to learn decision making from.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

The leadership models they have seen over the decades have been almost entirely top–down and often driven by self interest. This, then, has become the “normal” expectation of community leaders of themselves and others. Earning the trust of the community while modelling good management practices will take time, patience & effort. It takes nonstop commitment to provide the support individuals need to gain skills and feel confidence in their roles and in the services they provide to the community.

https://bobmcarthur.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/slave.jpg

Note:

Experience in the industry sector has shown that having policies that are sensitive to the culture of Aboriginal employees inevitably impacts in positive ways on all employees of a company.

http://www.newhopefountain.com/

Jurisdiction: The legal authority, powers and administration a group have.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

https://www.yourdictionary.com/jurisdiction

Jurisdiction: Indigenous and Non-Indigenous individuals step into leadership positions without clearly understanding their jurisdiction.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

This frequently results in managers stepping outside their jurisdiction or their areas of authority.

https://myprivacy.dpgmedia.be/?siteKey=6OfBU0sZ5RFXpOOK&callbackUrl=https://www.demorgen.be/ privacy-wall/accept?redirectUri=%2fnieuws%2fwitte-huis-sluit-nieuwe-shutdown-niet-uit-als-geen- akkoord-bereikt-wordt-over-grensmuur%7ebe4c019d%2f

Jurisdiction: in the case of local government councils, the temptation to step outside its jurisdiction is increased because of the expectations from the community that the Council will settle ALL problems in the community.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

That expectation, a result of colonialism, makes a tendency for management staff to extend their roles. Usually, this is not done as a power grab but rather as the desire to help the community. Nonetheless, it is a serious problem for management and for the community.

http://www.danielgoleman.info/how-to-coach-a-dictatorial-leader/

Jurisdiction: Native Title - an example of how the Council management sometimes does not understand its jurisdiction

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

https://www.social-licence.com.au/native-title/

• In one community, the Traditional Owners have gained exclusive native title to the former legal boundaries of the council.

The legal voice and monitor of Native Title is the PBC, an organisation consisting of Traditional Owners.

• The Local Government Council jurisdiction has been reduced to the town center.
• The continuous turnover of CEOs and non-Indigenous staff mean there is not a strong corporate memory. New staff,

therefore, refer back to activities of the past for guidance in decision making and then implement activities that were legal under the old jurisdiction, but not under the new. ₋ For example, new management sees that Council and its contractors have taken gravel freely from country in the past and never had to ask permission from anyone. This is because they had jurisdiction over the land before Native Title. ₋ Native Title now means that land is exclusively and privately owned by the Traditional Owners. Taking gravel without consultation is the equivalent of transpassing and stealing.

Leadership

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

CEOs and senior management staff of local government councils in Aboriginal communities face many complex challenges.

https://mylifemypa.com.au/services/overwhelmed-1/

Audits Staff Budgets Roads Water Trash Transport Child care Aged care Sewage Resources Environment

Leadership: the amount of work expected of CEOs and the senior management team can be overwhelming.

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

Often, the amount of work and the lack of supporting resources to get it done means long and exhausting days where your focus is simply trying to survive and get work done. As a result, the education & training required by community staff to learn and grow in their jobs get set aside. Your Aboriginal staff, however, see only that they themselves are struggling and not getting the support they need.

https://www.quora.com/Why-should-I-feel-guilty-for-not-helping-others

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

Leadership:

The single most important activity you can do to:

• determine the sustainable future of the

community,

• help many people improve their lives,
• and in the process, set a legacy of yourself

with the people,

is to give Aboriginal staff confidence that they can learn and can succeed and support them to do so.

https://www.visionhelpdesk.com/customer-support-software-tips-how-to-motivate-your-support-staff.html

Part 2: Considering the impact of government policies, decision makers, and other agencies on Aboriginal communities.

Conclusion

Just as your life is filled with too much work and not enough resources, so, too, are the lives of your Aboriginal staff and community.

When will the education system provide us with skilled employees? The bosses are changing again. Why isn’t the CEO listening to us? Why can’t I get the appropriate training I asked for? Why are we hiring so many community locals as casuals? There’s too much depression & suicide in our community.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-17/

The rules keep changing. Why is there no money for our priorities? Why doesn’t training address Councillor’s needs? Can Council help deter violence and alcohol?

“Social justice is what faces you in the morning.

• It is awakening in a house with adequate water supply,

cooking facilities and sanitation.

• It is the ability to nourish your children and send them to

school where their education not only equips them for employment but reinforces their knowledge and understanding of their cultural inheritance.

• It is the prospect of genuine employment and good

health: a life of choices and opportunity, free from

• discrimination. “

Mick Dodson, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Sydney Morning Herald, 25 January, 1997

Before you start your day at work, stop and reflect on this question:

Am I helping to establish the social justice that most Australians experience and take for granted? Or, am I continuing the history

• f colonisation?

https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2019/01/28/wa-elders-call-aboriginal-lore- be-recognised-alongside-white-law1

Thank you.

Impacts on Aboriginal people.

A remote Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory. ANU researchers say there is no prospect of reducing the life expectancy gap while Newstart remains so low. Picture: Janie Barrett https://www.katherinetimes.com.au/story/6428784/newstart-is-killing-indigenous-people-researchers/