DOCSLIB.ORG

East Arneham Regional Development Board Update

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
East Arneham Regional Development Board Update Raymattja Marika Member East Arnhem Regional Development Board Speech Notes: East Arnhem Regional Development Board Update The Honourable John Ah Kit, distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen. 1. Chair Overview My name is Raymattja Marika and I am a member of the East Arnhem Regional Development Board and I have been asked to provide their report at the State of the Regions Conference. The East Arnhem Regional Development Board has been in operation from February this year. The Board has been charged with facilitating regional development including the preparation of a regional plan, which will be the vehicle for negotiating initiatives across the East Arnhem Region to improve economic and social outcomes for all residents in the region. Sadly our inaugural Chairman recently passed away, however the process for finding a new Chair is underway and hopefully will be finalised soon. 2. Membership of the Board The Board is made up of a cross section of people from around the region who bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and who give their time for the betterment of people black and white in the East Arnhem Region. The East Arnhem Regional Development Board Membership is as follows: • Mr Tony Wurramarrba, Chairman, Anindilyakwa Land Council • Mr Klaus Helms, General Manager Community Affairs, ALCAN Gove • Mr Samuel Numamurdirdi, Chairman, Numbulwar Numburindi Community Government Council • Mrs Denise Fincham, General Manager, GIS Industries • Mr Mike Hindle, Town Administrator, Nhulunbuy Corporation • Mr Oscar Datjarranga, General Manager, Marthakal Homeland Resource Centre • Mr David Suter, General Manager, Gove Pest Control • Mr Gallarrwuy Yunupingu, Chairman, Gumatj Association • And myself Raymattja Marika, Linguist, Yirrkala Community Education Centre 3. Regional Profile/Overview The East Arnhem Region is located in the far north of the Northern Territory, bounded by the Arafura Sea to the north and the Gulf of Carpentaria in the east and extends from the Blyth to the Rose River. The region covers the Arnhem Land Aboriginal Trust (excluding Bulman), an area of approximately 41,000 sq km. It encompasses the towns of Nhulunbuy (also the regional service centre of East Arnhem Land) on the Gove Peninsula, Alyangula on Groote Eylandt and the major Aboriginal communities of: Angurugu, Galiwin’ku, Gapuwiyak, Marngarr, Milingimbi, Milyakburra, Numbulwar, Ramingining, Umbakumba and Yirrkala. The East Arnhem Region is unique among the regions in the Northern Territory in that all the land is held in trust by the Aboriginal Land Trust, which is enacted under the Aboriginal Lands Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 Arnhem Land is a stronghold of traditional Aboriginal culture. There are a number of mining and special purpose leases. No development can occur without the approval and/or involvement of Indigenous people through the relevant Land Councils. Arnhem Land has a population of around 14,000 of which 56% is Indigenous with most of the Non-Indigenous population living in the two towns of Nhulunbuy and Alyangula. The communities and homelands generally have a poor economic base and limited capacity for growth, which contributes to high unemployment levels and unsatisfactory outcomes in education, health and social welfare. The people of the East Arnhem like other regions in the Northern Territory realise that our young people are our future. However young people in the East Arnhem region have poor educational outcomes, low levels of employment opportunities and also very high incidences of sexually transmitted diseases. We need to act now to give the next generation the opportunities to prosper and develop. Indigenous communities and homelands, like the townships, want solutions to their economic difficulties and are committed to finding practical applications for the betterment of all. This includes sustainable employment and managing substance abuse and enhancing opportunities for their youth. To this end the communities, homelands and townships must work in partnership for a sustainable future. Mining is currently the primary industry in the region, contributing most to the local economy and is the largest single industry sector employer in the region. Alcan alone exports bauxite and alumina to the value of over $500 million dollars per year and makes a significant contribution to the Northern Territory gross state product. A major expansion of the Alcan Gove alumina refinery is being proposed together with a Trans Territory gas pipeline. With both of these major projects there will be increased opportunities for indigenous employment and enterprise establishment. Gemco on Groote Eylandt have recently increased production of manganese and see a long-term future for mining operations on Groote Eylandt. Gemco are committed to working in partnership with traditional owners the Anindilyakwa people for sustainable environmental, economic development. Arnhem Land is the home of the yidaki (known to other Aborigines as the didgeridoo) and the Indigenous people are master players and craftsmen of this instrument. Whereas artists from other Arnhem Land regions have moved to painting with acrylic on canvas the artists of North East Arnhem continue to render their sacred designs in the natural media of ochre on bark. This not only reflects the sanctity of their connection with the land they paint but an artistic discipline that is recognised internationally. Tourist visits to the East Arnhem Region are controlled through the issuing of permits. The Northern and Anndilyakwa Land Councils issue permits for access to the region, and the Dhimurru Land Management Aboriginal Corporation issues permits for access to the designated recreation use areas around Nhulunbuy and the Gove Peninsula. The relevant organisations and Land Owners issue separate permits for access to other areas. Commercial fishing industry includes commercial pelagic species, barramundi and crab and prawn fishing. At Elizabeth Bay, north of Nhulunbuy there is a pearl farming operation. There is also recreational fishing, which compliments the majority of tourism operations in the region. 4. Vision of the Board “We will have the highest level of lifestyle, health, education and prosperity for all residents of the East Arnhem Region. Our youth will be given the opportunity to enable them to realise their full potential.” 5. Regional Plans/Status of Planning At the present time the East Arnhem Regional Development Board has completed the Regional Development Plan Discussion Paper. The plan will provide the strategic direction for the economic and social development of the region. The discussion paper is currently being distributed through the communities of the East Arnhem Region. Some possible objectives and strategies have been included in the discussion paper together with some possible projects such as a regional Youth Development Academy and Indigenous Industry Hubs. With the circulation of this discussion paper we are inviting the community to read the Discussion Paper and provide their views. They are encouraged to provide comment regarding the following: 1. Do the vision and goals reflect the direction we want to head? 2. Are there other significant objectives, strategies and projects that should be included? 3. What objectives, strategies and projects do you think should be actioned as a priority? It is anticipated that the consultation with the communities across the region will be completed by the end of this year so that the East Arnhem Regional Development Plan will be ready in early 2005. 6. Achievements/Activities of the Board The East Arnhem Regional Development Board in its limited time of operation has achieved 2 significant wins. The Substance Abuse Special Care Centre and an Indigenous Business Liaison Officer from the Department of Business, Industry and Resource Development. The Special Care Centre is currently under construction. The DBIRD position will work with indigenous people who would like start their own businesses and also seize upon any indigenous enterprise opportunities that may arise from the Alcan Gove expansion. 7. Community Consultations/Partnerships Achieved The Substance Abuse Special Care Centre is an example of what can be achieved when individuals, community organisations, industry and Governments work collaboratively. The Commonwealth and Territory Governments provided capital funding for the construction of the facility which is being project managed by the Nhulunbuy Corporation at no cost and being built on a cleared, serviced block of land provided at no cost by Alcan Gove. 8. Future Regional Priorities The board has identified two major priorities, first and foremost we will focus on our youth, secondly we will need to engage and improve collaboration and communication links with both the Australian and Northern Territory Governments. Other priorities for social and economic development of the region will be determined by the people of the region as a result of community engagement and consultation and will be identified in the Regional Development Plan. 9. Operational Challenges The East Arnhem Regional Development Board has one major operational challenge compared to other regional development boards. This is the logistical challenge of transporting members from across the region to meetings. Where other boards can drive to their meeting place we need to fly members into Gove. Around one third of our members live in remote communities which requires forward planning to get them to each meeting. To finish up I would like to say that the members of the East Arnhem Regional Development Board and it’s Departmental support staff are very focused and work well together as a team..
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Howard Morphy Cross-Cultural Categories Yolngu Science and Local Discourses Centre for Cross-Cultural Research, the Australian National University
    Howard Morphy Cross-cultural categories Yolngu science and local discourses Centre for Cross-Cultural Research, The Australian National University In Yolngu science we learn through observation. For example we observe the seasons and we see the changes in time. We watch the land and see changes in the weather patterns. In space we observe the sun and the morning star. The different stars and the moon tell us different things. Yolngu have been learning about how to read science though the moon. We've learnt to observe different cycles of the moon. It tells us when it's a good time for hunting. In different seasons different food items are ready to be eaten, like different plants. Yolngu don't just hunt for everything at once, but they go according to the different seasons. There are four seasons and Yolngu hunt according to these different seasons. Then each food source is found in abundance at the right time. We read the calendar to know for example when to go and get oysters, it also tells us when different fish is in season and when edible fruit and honey is available. Also Yolngu sing about these different seasons. They sing about the different stars. They observe and see and learn. For generations and generations people have passed on this knowledge orally. It has never been written down. It has been orally passed down to the next generation through oral history; songs, chants and stories. (Raymattja Marika, Yolngu teacher and linguist) The transformation of concepts such as science, law, or religion into cross-cultural categories has occurred in the context of discourse across cultural boundaries.
    [Show full text]
  • North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency Ltd ABN: 63 118017842 61 Smith St Darwin NT 0800 Ph: 0889825100 I Fax: 08 8982 5193 1800898251
    North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency Ltd ABN: 63 118017842 61 Smith St Darwin NT 0800 Ph: 0889825100 I Fax: 08 8982 5193 1800898251 27 October 2011 Committee Secretary House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Standing Committee of Attorneys General (SCAG) PO Box 6021 Parliament House CANBERRA ACT 2600 By Email: [email protected] Dear the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs Inquiry into Language Learning in Indigenous Communities The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) is the Aboriginal legal service in the Top End of the Northern Territory (NT). NAAJA travels to most remote communities north of Elliott, and provides advice and representation to Aboriginal clients in criminal, civil and family law matters. NAAJA also delivers legal education in remote communities, and prison support and throughcare services to Aboriginal people in custody. NAAJA directs this submission to the benefit of giving recognition and attention to Indigenous languages in the context of the legal system, in particular, the criminal justice system. It is our experience that many Aboriginal people do not understand the legal system, or the specific legal orders they are subject to. This is because English is used as the primary language and interpreters are either unavailable, or under utilised. The consequences of this failure to include Aboriginal language considerations into the legal system are adverse and far reaching. NAAJA strongly supports more funding for the Aboriginal Interpreter Service, and better use of Aboriginal language interpreters. We consider it essential that service providers receive cross­ cultural training in how to best work with Aboriginal interpreters.
    [Show full text]
  • Charles Perkins Oration 2005
    Ngiya:Talk the Law – Volume 2 COMMON OWNERSHIP AND COLONIAL MENTALITY: THE CONCEPTUAL BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF SEA COUNTRY MADELEINE HEYWARD For the coastal Aboriginal peoples of Australia, the dominant legal system’s recognition of pre-existing Indigenous rights to land has been undercut by its failure to fully recognise and protect the rights to sea which run with them. Despite some surface-level acknowledgement of rights attached to sea country, the non-Aboriginal vision of the sea and its resources remains largely unchanged. This vision centres on the notion that the sea and its contents are national common property. The concept of the sea as commons has been linked to colonial mechanisms of controlling country which continue to influence the extent to which Indigenous rights and management systems are recognised, both legally and socially, by non-Indigenous Australia. Through a case study of attempts by Yolngu clans in north-east Arnhem Land to engage the Northern Territory and Australian governments in a marine protection strategy for Manbuynga ga Rulyapa, the Arafura Sea, this article suggests that politically and ecologically effective management of sea country is unlikely to be achieved until non-Indigenous stakeholders are prepared to actively work towards understanding Indigenous management systems in a context of mutual respect and on the basis of a firm recognition of pre-existing rights. Sea as Common Property The Anglo-Australian conception of sea space is inherited from the dominant notion in modern European thought of ‘freedom of the seas’, handed down to the colony through its imperial founders as ‘somehow natural and certainly sacrosanct’.1 Central to this doctrine, popularised by Grotius’ Mare Liberum in the seventeenth century, is the idea that the sea and its resources are common property.
    [Show full text]
  • Aboriginal Perspectives on Gifted Children 190910.Doc Then Recorded Their Findings on Video
    Some Aboriginal Perspectives On Gifted And Talented Children And Their Schooling Michael Christie, Charles Darwin University Australian Aboriginal elders in very remote places seldom have the chance these days to collaborate with teachers and curriculum developers thinking through and planning for formal education for the new generation. Even more uncommon is collaborative work over how we should understand and provide for those children who are deemed gifted within the different worlds they inhabit. Over the many years I worked in remote Arnhemland Aboriginal schools as a teacher linguist, I became conscious of the ways in which young men and women were growing up to reveal themselves as leaders, and to be selected by their elders for particular responsibilities. It was often the case that the school attendance and participation of these emerging leaders had been at best spasmodic. Their participation in school was often watchful and stand-offish. They were not the bouncy students full of energy and questions. They carried themselves differently. I was often told that asking questions of an elder was unwise and impolite, and it concerned me that these young people were becoming leaders in spite of, rather than because of the pedagogical practices of the schools where I worked. I came to see this issue of the dislocation between Yolŋu and Balanda (western, white Australian) knowledge practices as an epistemological problem. The ways Balanda conduct schooling reveal particular commitments to understandings of knowledge and of truth which are quite different from the commitments of Yolŋu. I was keen to discover more about the theory of knowledge which produces such a different pedagogy, and such different indicators of a good education.
    [Show full text]
  • North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency NAAJA
    Freecall 1800 898 251 ABN 63 118 017 842 Email [email protected] Australian Law Reform Commission inquiry into the incarceration rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency submission October 2017 “An overwhelming request from both men and women during community consultations was for Aboriginal law to be respected, recognised, and incorporated with the wider Australian law where possible.” Rex Wild QC and Patricia Anderson, ‘Little Children are Sacred’, Report of the Northern Territory Board of Inquiry into the Protection of Aboriginal Children from Sexual Abuse, 2007, 54. “Rrambaŋi limurr dhu djäma guŋga’yunmirr ga räl-manapanmirr.” “Equally we will all work cooperatively and combine our energy.” When Balanda law does not respect Yolŋu law, young people learn not to respect Yolŋu law and start to disrespect each other. Any solution to a problem like this [violence] must involve Yolŋu and Balanda. We must work together. We must share authority and real decision-making power. We must be able to have both laws working together, which requires respect for and recognition of each other’s law. Dhäwu Mala Galiwin’ku Community-wuŋ Nhaltjan Dhu Gulmaram Bunhaminyawuy Rom ~ A Galiwin’ku Community Statement to Prevent Family Violence (ARDS), May 2016, 9, 7 We want to be champions for our future generations and children so we can create a caring place for them to walk free, to create a country, a culture and a life that they want to live for our children, their children and their children’s children. We have done enough searching and working - what more can we do to let the Napaki law see how we are trying to help our young people who are in trouble and are sick in body, for our young people who want to be well but they can’t find the right path.
    [Show full text]
  • Yolngu Studies: a Case Study of Aboriginal Community Engagement
    Yolngu Studies: A case study of Aboriginal community engagement MICHAEL CHRISTIE he forty or more different clan groups of Australian Aboriginal T people who live on or near the coast and islands of north-east Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory, are collectively known as Yolngu. Yolngu law dictates that all marriages must be outside the clan group, a principle which has given rise to complex ceremonial and economic exchange relationships among quite separate groups. Consequently, Yolngu have a strong tradition of negotiation across cultural boundaries, while sharing carefully and respectfully with non-Yolngu was already an established practice before the Europeans arrived, as Yolngu worked for, and traded with Macassans who came annually to their shores from the north-west, from what is now known as Indonesia. Yolngu have ancient and carefully articulated theories of knowledge, identity, land, exchange and communication, which have been offered to newcomers wishing to engage with Yolngu on Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement No 1 (2008): 31-47 © UTSePress and the author Gateways | Christie Yolngu land and terms. One such theory derives from the metaphor of ‘garma’, the open ceremonial ground where people are invited to gather together to perform their collective histories, their particular identities and allegiances, and an agreed statement of a way forward. The garma metaphor is particularly valuable for conceptualising bicultural (or ‘both-ways’) education, where Balanda (European) and Yolngu knowledge traditions come together, work together and agree together in the context of a particular place and a particular agenda, without compromise to either of the contributing traditions.
    [Show full text]
  • U Places and People: Taking Aboriginal Understandings Seriously in Land and Sea Management
    YolYol\\\\uu Places and People: Taking Aboriginal Understandings Seriously in Land and Sea Management Margaret Leanne Ayre B. For. Sc. (Hons), University of Melbourne Submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2002 Department of History and Philosophy of Science The University of Melbourne Abstract In this thesis I look at the work of managing Yol\u Aboriginal estates by the Dhimurru Land Management Aboriginal Corporation (Dhimurru) and Yol\u Aboriginal communities of NE Arnhem Land. I examine the practices of doing contemporary land and sea management at Dhimurru drawing on work I did at Dhimurru assisting in the development of a plan of management for the Yol\u place, }anydjaka (Cape Arnhem in English), and negotiating a curriculum/pedagogy for Dhimurru Yol\u Rangers. I examine the mobilisation strategies of the environmental sciences and Yol\u knowledges which together perform the ‘object of management’ in Dhimurru’s practice, ‘}anydjaka/Cape Arnhem’, as a multiplicity: a Yol\u-managed place. Showing ‘}anydjaka/Cape Arnhem’ as a multiplicity (multiple but partially connected objects) allows us to understand place as multiple materialities performed through sets of routine, but quite often very different, sets of practices. The work of managing ‘}anydjaka/Cape Arnhem’ is the work of managing multiple realities within which the object of management is continually performed as partial, messy, contingent and local. I contend that in order to take Yol\u understandings seriously in land and sea management we need to understand Dhimurru’s unique ontology as a knowledge landscape characterised by an emergent methodology I call ‘journeying-naming- tracing’.
    [Show full text]
  • National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005
    National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 Report submitted to the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in association with the Federation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Languages Front cover photo: Yipirinya School Choir, Northern Territory. Photo by Faith Baisden Disclaimer The Commonwealth, its employees, officers and agents are not responsible for the activities of organisations and agencies listed in this report and do not accept any liability for the results of any action taken in reliance upon, or based on or in connection with this report. To the extent legally possible, the Commonwealth, its employees, officers and agents, disclaim all liability arising by reason of any breach of any duty in tort (including negligence and negligent misstatement) or as a result of any errors and omissions contained in this document. The views expressed in this report and organisations and agencies listed do not have the endorsement of the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DCITA). ISBN 0 642753 229 © Commonwealth of Australia 2005 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission from the Commonwealth. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the: Commonwealth Copyright Administration Attorney-General’s Department Robert Garran Offices National Circuit CANBERRA ACT 2600 Or visit http://www.ag.gov.au/cca This report was commissioned by the former Broadcasting, Languages and Arts and Culture Branch of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services (ATSIS).
    [Show full text]
  • Communities of Practice in the Warlpiri Triangle: Four Decades of Crafting Ideological and Implementational Spaces for Teaching in and of Warlpiri Language
    languages Article Communities of Practice in the Warlpiri Triangle: Four Decades of Crafting Ideological and Implementational Spaces for Teaching in and of Warlpiri Language Emma Browne 1,* and Fiona Gibson Napaljarri 2 1 School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia 2 Warlpiri Education Training Trust (WETT), Nyirrpi, NT 0872, Australia; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: Warlpiri communities in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) have long advocated for the inclusion of Warlpiri language, values and knowledge in their government-run schools. After the first bilingual programs were established in the NT in the 1970s, educators and community members from four Warlpiri communities formed a professional network known as the Warlpiri Triangle, a platform for meetings and professional development focusing on teaching and learning in and of Warlpiri language in schools. On these platforms, educators have consistently articulated the goal of the Warlpiri programs as maintenance of Warlpiri pirrjirdi, ‘strong Warlpiri language’. In this paper we seek to explore the development, refinement and consolidation of a consensual Citation: Browne, Emma, and Fiona ideology around teaching and learning of and in Warlpiri pirrjirdi, ‘strong Warlpiri language’ that has Gibson Napaljarri. 2021. informed Warlpiri language-in-education management. We analyse interviews with five Warlpiri Communities of Practice in the educators at Yuendumu school in 2018/9 and a body of grey literature from four decades of Warlpiri Warlpiri Triangle: Four Decades of educator professional development activities that has been less widely acknowledged and visible Crafting Ideological and in local education policy discourse. We draw on the theoretical concept of communities of practice Implementational Spaces for Teaching in and of Warlpiri Language.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 the Languages of Australia in Linguistic Research: Context and Issues
    Harold Koch and Rachel Nordlinger 1 The languages of Australia in linguistic research: context and issues 1 Background on the Indigenous languages of Australia At the time of colonisation in the late 18th century, Australia was home to 700–800 language varieties, distributed across the continent (and including Tasmania and the Torres Strait Islands), which can be grouped into more than 250 distinct languages, some of which include a number of dialects.¹,² These language varieties were spoken across a population of around one million people (e.g. Butlin 1983), which indicates the enormous linguistic diversity of Indigenous Australia. In many cases small popu- lations (e.g. 40–50 people) maintained distinctive language varieties, and the largest populations speaking a single language variety were probably no bigger than 3000– 4000 people. Linguistic diversity was not necessarily an impediment to communica- tion, however, since Indigenous societies were frequently highly multilingual, with an individual oft en speaking up to 4–6 languages of the surrounding area. Linguistic diversity, in fact, was valued for its indexical relationship to identity and group mem- bership (Evans 2007). The relationship between language and identity is strong for all human societies, but is particularly so in Indigenous Australia, where language is oft en related directly to the land. As Rumsey (1993, 2005) explains, in Australia there is a direct relationship between a language and a tract of land; in creation myths it is very common for the ancestors to be described as passing across the land instilling diff erent languages into diff erent areas as they go (Evans 2007: 20).
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Cathy Robinson, Phd Candidate.1 Department of Geography & Environmental Science, Monash University, Clayton, Vic, 3168. Fa
    Cathy Robinson, PhD Candidate.1 Department of Geography & Environmental Science, Monash University, Clayton, Vic, 3168. Fax: +61 39905 2948. E-mail: [email protected] Local Indigenous Perspectives of Community and Co-Management Arrangements Stream: Aboriginal territory and management rights Discipline: Cultural-historical geography Abstract In recent years the Haida of Haida Gwaii, British Columbia and the Yolngu of north-east Arnhem Land, Australia have had to negotiate and interpret various co- management programs operating within their territories. In both areas, various community management organisations have been established to respond to government management regimes and resource allocation programs, and to ensure native law and responsibility provides the template for contemporary agreements. This paper focuses on one such indigenous initiative, the Dhimurru Aboriginal Land Management Organisation in north-east Arnhem Land, a Yolngu community management response to increased coastal degradation associated with the nearby Nabalco mine. Now that native title is recognised in Australia and Canada, indigenous and non-indigenous legal systems are bound to consider the issues and potential for co-management agreements that recognise indigenous management regimes. It is within the philosophy and practices of indigenous community institutions like Dhimurru that innovative management dialogue might be found. Introduction In Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) and Canada’s northern British Columbia (BC), past and present colonialism continues to focus upon what Edward Said (1993, 6) has termed the ‘struggle over geography’. In both regions, the legacy of frontier visions and interactions is imprinted on many components of contemporary human-environment and cultural interactions, a process which has attempted to convert indigenous people and place into an unexplored backdrop for the progression of the New World colonial achievement.
    [Show full text]
  • Nicola St John Thesis
    Ntaria Design: A Western Arrarnta Imagining of Digital Drawing and Communication Design Nicola St John Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Swinburne University of Technology Faculty of Health, Arts and Design Melbourne, Australia April 2020 ! ! i Abstract This thesis is about culture, representation, perception, and visual communication. It is set in the community of Ntaria, amongst the ranges of Western Arrarnta Country in the Central Desert of Australia. The research sets out to explore and reveal a Western Arrarnta imagining of communication design through the digital drawings of young adults at Ntaria School. Central to this research are 16 participants from Ntaria School and their digital drawings. This dissertation has three interrelated aims. Firstly, to explore how the introduction of digital drawing can reveal Western Arrarnta imaginings of communication design in relation to design principles, processes, and meanings. Secondly, to evaluate the teaching of communication design through design workshops according to Western Arrarnta ways of learning. Thirdly, to understand the value of digital drawing and communication design education according to Ntaria students’ perspectives and priorities. Communication design develops visual language to convey ideas, information, stories, and messages. Foundational to this study is approaching, situating, and teaching communication design in a way that prioritises the voices, perspectives, and narratives of Ntaria participants. The theoretical framework and methodological approach interweaves youth based participatory action research processes (YPAR), the 8-ways pedagogical framework, and the capability approach. Digital drawing was introduced at Ntaria School through a series of collaborative design workshops. The iterative and adaptive approach to data collection involved interviews, card sorting tools, observations, and a self-reflection survey.
    [Show full text]