Finding Common Ground: Narratives, Provocations and Reflections from the 40 Year Celebration of Batchelor Institute

FINDING COMMON GROUND: NARRATIVES, PROVOCATIONS AND REFLECTIONS FROM THE 40 YEAR CELEBRATION OF BATCHELOR INSTITUTE Editors: Henk Huijser, Robyn Ober, Sandy O’Sullivan, Eva McRae-Williams, Ruth Elvin This book is a series of chapters responding to the All chapters submitted to the editors of this book meet Batchelor Institute 40 Years Conference: Finding Common the Australian Government Research Council’s definition Ground with Indigenous and Western Knowledge Systems of research. Papers identified by * on the contents page (7-8 August 2014) held at Batchelor Campus, Batchelor indicate chapters refereed by two independent peers. Institute, Northern Territory, Australia. Papers without an * identifier indicate non-refereed papers. HOW TO REFERENCE THIS BOOK Huijser, H., Ober, R., O’Sullivan, S. McRae-Williams, E & Elvin, R. (Ed.) 2015. Finding the Common Ground: Narratives, Provocations and Reflections from the 40 Year Celebration of Batchelor Institute. Batchelor NT: Batchelor Press. eBook ISBN: 978-1-74131-310-9 Paperback book ISBN: 978-1-74131-309-3 Paperback printed in Batchelor, Northern Territory, Australia © Batchelor Institute 2015 Published by Batchelor Press Freecall: 1800 677 095 www.batchelorpress.com [email protected] +61 8 8939 7352 c/o Post Office, Batchelor NT 0845 This publication is licensed under the Attribution Non- Non-Commercial — You may not use the Commercial No Derivatives 3.0 Australia license. This material for commercial purposes. license is irrevocable and means you are free to share, NoDerivatives — If you remix, transform, copy and redistribute the material in any medium or or build upon the material, you may not format, as long as you follow the below license terms. distribute the modified material. Attribution — You must give appropriate No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal credit, provide a link to the license, and terms or technological measures that legally restrict indicate if changes were made. You may do others from doing anything the license permits. so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. A copy of this license is available from http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au Finding Common Ground: Narratives, Provocations and Reflections from the 40 Year Celebration of Batchelor Institute Editors: Henk Huijser, Robyn Ober, Sandy O’Sullivan, Eva McRae-Williams, Ruth Elvin iii Acknowledgements Putting together an edited collection that draws on the the manuscript, we have had the support of many of our common ground on which we meet as Batchelor Institute, staff across a range of areas. Special thanks to Noressa is both exciting and involves a lot of people. This collection Bulsey, Stephanie Barber, Elsie Carter, Sue Campbell, features 30 direct participants, so our first thanks go to Louisa Castle, Victoria Dawson, Sarah Martin, Leeanne the authors for their wonderful and stimulating ideas, and Mahaffey, Kevin Arthur, Peter Hillier, Mike Crowe, Jurg their determination to persist through the reviewing and Bronnimann, Adrian Mitchell, Kirsty Kelly, Brooke Ottley, editing process. However, the large amount of reviewers Bob Somerville, Peter Stephenson, Maree Klesch, and the have ensured the quality of the chapters in this book, so many other volunteers and contributors. many thanks to them. We hope you find this book stimulates and engages We want to acknowledge the traditional owners and discussion around the robust topics it covers. custodians of the land we work on. Much of this book Regards, was produced on Kungarakan and Warai country (at Henk Huijser, Robyn Ober, Sandy O’Sullivan, Eva Batchelor), as well as Larrakia country (Darwin), and McRae-Williams, & Ruth Elvin (The Editors) Arrernte country (Alice Springs), with many of the participants working across other communities. We acknowledge all of them as central to the production of a text that is, after all, about common ground. Batchelor Institute has been very supportive throughout the production of this book. From the organisation of the 40-year celebrations through to the submission of *All chapters submitted to the editors of this book meet **There are different preferences for the use of the the Australian Government Research Council’s definition collective terms Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, of research. Papers identified by * on the contents page Indigenous, and for the specific spelling and framing indicate chapters refereed by two independent peers. of individual language and country names. Individual Papers without an * identifier indicate non-refereed authors have chosen to use specific collective terms, some papers. framing that use in a way that supports the individual variation. The editorial team has chosen to support this variation in nomenclature as it reflects the difficulty in applying collective terms to varied communities and peoples. iv Foreword Batchelor Institute, in its many iterations over the last The next forty years will, in my view, see Batchelor forty years, remains an iconic Aboriginal and Torres Strait Institute become firmly bedded into the Australian Islander provider on the Australian educational landscape. university scene as its next university. The Institute is already a ‘Table A’ higher education provider, our From its humble beginnings in 1964 as an annex of research capability continues to be enhanced and our Kormilda College, Batchelor Institute has risen to become further education provision grounded in capacity building Australia’s only Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dual training. Batchelor now is well positioned, well-funded sector tertiary education and research provider. As such and capable of providing educational provision from it holds a unique place in the university and vocational foundation skills through to a Doctor of Philosophy. education and training space. More so, it holds a special Batchelor is already providing a planned learning place in the hearts and minds of many Aboriginal and pathway from training through to higher degrees. Torres Strait Islander people who have either studied or Batchelor has the expertise and the experience that will been connected to Batchelor. not only enhance Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander The Australian educational scene would not be complete opportunity but also that of other Australians working without a tertiary institution that is founded upon with our communities. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander beliefs and cultural Batchelor Institute is proudly Territorian, established in understandings and is able to interpret a western 1974 to provide training and upskilling to the Territory’s education system in a manner such that both are Aboriginal para-professional workforce. While Batchelor ultimately so intertwined that neither loses creditability. will remain grounded in the Territory and continue to Rather the strengths of both result in a unique learning provide quality training and learning to Territorians, its environment that is not only culturally safe but results future is to reach out across Australia and internationally. in real outcomes: this is what we at Batchelor define as Batchelor’s aim is to become Australia’s preferred dual ‘both-ways’. sector Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander tertiary The stories, personal commentary and scholarly writings provider. contained in this book provide a context for Batchelor’s The logo of Batchelor Institute represents a place of future by defining and describing our past and learning (central motive) where knowledge is gathered articulating the dreams for the future. They also provide a (coolamon) and culture and language protected (shield). challenge to the Institute as it moves into a future where It symbolises not only the foundations of this wonderful tertiary education can be accessed wherever you are able Institute but also its unique place in the educational to connect your laptop to the internet. Consequently, landscape of Australia. ensuring that language and culture are kept ‘front and center’ will be of paramount importance. I commend this book to you as it represents a comprehensive ‘glimpse’ into the history of Batchelor Batchelor Institute has provided training and education Institute. that has resulted in many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people gaining the skills, knowledge and Robert Somerville AM, Chief Executive Officer Batchelor understandings that have improved and enriched their Institute lives and livelihoods. The work Batchelor has undertaken over its forty years existence is nation building and changed the lives of people. v Contributors Jacqueline Amagula is a Warnindilyakwa woman in cross-cultural awareness workshops and both-ways from Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory. She seminars. She is also a mother and grandmother to six graduated from Batchelor College and has been grandchildren. a qualified Indigenous teacher since the 1980s. Margaret Carew has worked in the Northern Territory Education is her passion. She was the past Chairperson as a community linguist for 20 years. She undertook of The Ngakwurralangwa College Advisory Board. language research with the Gun-nartpa language group Ngakwurralangwa means ‘Our Way’: we own it and in north-central Arnhem Land in the 1990s and continues we lead it, we have our say. She is also a member of to work with a Gun-nartpa language team on language the Anindilyakwa Education and Training Board, NT documentation and publishing projects. She has also Indigenous Education Council and the

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