Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Strategy Cultural Awareness Adelaide March 2011

1. Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander StrategyCultural AwarenessAdelaide March 2011

2. Agenda • Acknowledgement of Country • Welcome & introductions • Aims & objectives • Values & commitment • Day 1 - Cultural and historical perspectives • Cultural appreciation • Indigenous culture in the workplace • Historical perspectives • Future • Day 2 – Putting it into practice • Where have we come from • Case studies • Where to from here • Wrap up

3. Acknowledgement of Country • We acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, and their continuing connection to land and community. • We pay our respect to them and their culture, and to the Elders past, present and future.

4. An Opportunity To • Expand your knowledge base • Explore attitudes, beliefs, facts & • myths • Learn from each other • Experience the journey

5. Not About • Personal agendas • Bleeding hearts or bigots • Guilt tripping

6. Perceptions

7. Aims • To help build a culturally-competent and supportive workplace for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander staff • To better deliver programs under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sub-strategy • By… developing your understanding of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander cultures, peoples and communities • And… providing practical guidance and tools

8. Objectives The sessions offer a ‘preliminary level’ of understanding, providing: • Awareness and knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural issues and how they relate to your work. • A practical understanding of how culture shapes our values, attitudes and behaviour. • Practical back at work tools for staff who mentor, manage and work with Indigenous staff or potential talent. • Practical tools to engage and develop culturally appropriate long term respectful relationships and partnerships.

9. ‘Cultural Appreciation’

10. Identity Activity • Discuss “What is Identity” on your table, Jot down on butchers paper (5 min) • Each group report back (2 min each)

11. Identity “Being Aboriginal is not the colour of your skin, or how broad your nose is. It is a spiritual feeling, an identity you know in your heart. Linda Burney Minister of Parliament NSW

12. Commonwealth Definition of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Peoples • The Commonwealth working definition endorsed by Cabinet in • 1978, states that an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person is someone who: • is of Aboriginal &Torres Strait Islander descent, and identifies as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person, and is accepted as such by the community in which he or she lives.

13. Red Cross usage • Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander peoples • “Peoples” relates to the right of self-determination in international law • Indigenous peoples (only to avoid repetition, note capital “I”) • Not: A&TSI or ATSI

14. Acceptable Terminology: Aboriginal

15. Acceptable Terminology: Torres Strait

16. Map Of Aboriginal Australia Map can be purchased at http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/asp/map.html

17. Group Activity What do you know about the Aboriginal communities in your region? Go to first page in worksheets and fill out Cultural Self Reflection Template

18. Adelaide The traditional owners and language group of Adelaide and the Adelaide Plains were the Kaurna. When Adelaide was first established Kaurna was a vibrant language spoken by the original inhabitants of Adelaide – the Kaurna people. The colonists even made use of the language, and for at least a few years, knowledge of Kaurna was keenly sought. Two of the first colonists to arrive in South Australia, William Williams of the Colonial Store and James Cronk, went out of their way to learn Kaurna. Williams published his wordlist in the newspaper in 1840. It was the ‘Protector’ of Aborigines’ duty to familiarise himself with the local cultures, customs and languages and to engage interpreters in their dealings with the Indigenous population. So it was that when George Gawler, South Australia’s third governor, arrived in October 1838, the Protector William Wyatt acted as interpreter when he addressed the local Indigenous population within a few days of his arrival

19. Regional South Australia Port Augusta The Port Augusta region is a natural crossroads and Aboriginal people had been trading in the area for 40,000 year s.  Both the Bangarla and the Nukunu are known to inhabit this area. Before European contact, Indigenous people had defined territories and knew the boundaries of their traditional lands.  They knew its physical features, its geography, animals, birds, fish and plants. They looked after their lands and ritually cared for their country with ceremony, songs, stories and art. The Nukunu people are a tribe of Indigenous Australians who inhabited the coastal region of Port Augusta. They once widely spoke the Nukunu language. Today there is native title dispute between the Kokatha peoples and theNukunu and Bangarla peoples. Mt Gambier There are many different spellings of the name of the people of the Mount Gambier region. Booandik, Buandig, Buandik, Boandik are some popular ones while scholars use Bunganditj and Buanditj or similar variations. The name Bunganditj is derived from Bung-an-ditj "people of the reeds", reflecting the nature of the once lush environment, covered in winter flooding surface lakes, intermittent swamps and coastal freshwater soaks providing a rich economic and cultural resource for people.

20. Regional South Australia Port Lincoln The Traditional owners of Port Lincoln included the Bangarla and the Nawu. Life for Nawu ( Nauo)people was generally peaceful and fulfilling but with occasional disputes as with all cultures. Nawu people generally lived closer to the coast during the summer and further inland in winter. Soaks were dug near lakes and sand dunes in order to find fresh water in the summer. They lived chiefly on fish, were generally a strong race and often met in large groups. The males had a small ring or circle engraved on each shoulder. Ceduna

21. Regional South Australia APY Lands (Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands) There are two main language groups on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands; Pitjantjatjara, whose traditional lands are mainly in the centre and the west of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands and, Yankunytjatjara, whose country is traditionally in the central and eastern areas. Anangu maintain very close traditional connections to the land through ceremonies, visiting country, telling stories and dancing the Dreaming. Anangu no longer rely on the land to provide their essential food, but still harvest a significant amount of supplementary bush food. There are seven (7) major communities and over seventeen (17) homeland centres. Coober Pedy The aboriginal people living in Coober Pedy originated from the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunjatjara Lands (north-west of Coober Pedy), Alice Springs, Oodnadatta, Port Augusta and Ceduna. Their group is known as the Antakarinja people. For thousands of years Aboriginal people walked across this area. Because of the desert environment, these people were nomadic hunters and gatherers who travelled constantly in search of food and water supplies as well as to attend traditional ceremonies.

22. Regional South Australia Ceduna The traditional owners of the country around Ceduna were the Aboriginal people of the Wirangu, Kokatha and Mirning languages. Before white settlement, aborigines called this place ' chedoona', meaning resting place, which is apt for those who have just traversed the Nullarbor Desert. By 1920 the Kokatha people had become the most prominent group of Aboriginal people in the Ceduna area. Kokatha Mula Nation are the traditional owners in and around the Ceduna region, since time began, their homelands have included the pristine mallee country of outback Ceduna in South Australia. They are the caretakers & traditional owners, charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the lands and waters in the region — both in land and sea — are protected and maintained according to our traditional laws and customs handed down from their ancestors. We care for our precious country, rock holes & coastal areas, which are vital to both our unique fauna and flora, and our bush medicines and foods.

23. Language

24. Language

25. What is Culture? “Culture can be thought of as a community of individuals who see their world in a particular manner – who share particular interpretations as central to the meaning of their lives and actions.” (Howard, 1991) We all have our own culture and Red Cross has its own culture too!

26. White Board Activity Group Activity Construct Culture

27. Law & Lore • Lore: • Is the oral history and practices that Aboriginal people have passed down. • Law: • Are the rules that have been laid down in the Dreaming by the ancestral spirit beings for everyday living. • It defines the social order • It defines relationships

28. Land & Dreaming/ Sacred Stories • Each group has its own clearly defined territory recognised by all it’s members, held in sacred trust from generation to generation and respected by outsiders. • Traditional occupiers of the land knew intimately it’s physical features, animal, plant life, and water resources. They maintained them ritually, in accordance with age-old customs.

29. Family & Kinship • Immediate family • Relationships • Avoidance • Extended family • Financial • Obligations • Loyalties • Representations

30. Case Study: An Aboriginal girl, Kim, starts a traineeship in a new workplace with a manager who has limited experience with the Aboriginal community. Kim has started to notice that every time there is a news item regarding Aboriginals she is questioned about it by her colleagues and expected to know everything around the issues relating to Aboriginal affairs. She becomes less and less enthusiastic about work and has some time off. After some time Kim suffers the loss of her mother and finds it hard to communicate with her manager to request time off. She does however make the approach and is granted the leave. Two months later, under her Kinship system, Kim loses another mother (aunty) and now is challenged to request more time off from her manager. However, she works up the courage to do this but is denied further time off as this has already been granted to her two months prior. In another three months time Kim loses another mother and does not return to work!

31. Elders • Respect • Knowledge • Influence

32. Separation of knowledge & responsibilities

33. Ceremonies Art, dance, song and story • History, culture and geography was told through dance, song, stories and art. • They are all been passed down from generation to generation. ‘These are held in trust by the Elders’ Song lines • Are ancient invisible pathways, which tell the continuing stories of the ancestral spirit beings as they traverse the countryside creating specific geographical features as they crisscrossed the land.

34. Cultural Communication • Handshake – soft handshake denotes politeness for you. • Questioning – direct may be ‘blunt’ and person may prefer to defer. • Silence – is not disinterest. • Eye contact – traditionally lowering eye denotes respect for age or authority. • ‘Shame’ – singled out for criticism or praise. • Invitations – not given lightly. • Conversation – will try to establish a ‘relating’ link. • Role of supervisor / manager - related to traditional learning style

35. Traditional Learning Styles • Bestowal from older experienced to young • Correct relationship imperative • Learn through trial and error • Low verbal content • Mastery of whole skill, not isolated tasks • Learning from real life situations • Learn because want and need to, not due to external pressures • Less competition with others • Discovery Learning , Action Learning Kinaesthetic Learning vs Auditory & Visual !

36. Other cultural considerations • Men’s and women’s business • “Sorry business” • Staff being “humbugged” by family • Dress standards, especially in remote communities • Story telling/use of pictures

37. Cultural Differences Activity • Each Table to discuss key points of “cultural difference” for 5 mins • Each group 2 Minute feedback

38. Key Points of Cultural Differences • Broad kinship responsibilities to family and clan group • Personal respect & involvement of managers / supervisors • Time is a dance - many things may be accomplished at once • Personal relationships imperative

39. Break!!!Lunch 30 Minutes

40. Historical context To understand the present situation of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people is to understand past.

41. The Protection Policy 1901 • Aboriginal reserves By 1939 there were over 180 reserves in New South Wales. There were two kinds: • 'Managed Reserves', also called stations, were usually staffed by a teacher-manager and education of a sort, rations and housing were provided. • 'Unmanaged Reserves' provided rations but no housing or education and were under the control of the police. • Lives governed by Chief Protector

42. Powers of the Chief Protector • Confine any Aboriginal child to a reserve • Official guardian of ALL Aboriginal children under 21 years regardless of next of kin • Removal of Aborigines from their camps and away from townships • Curator of the property of any Aboriginal; i.e. take possession of, sell or dispose of and exercise any power on his /her behalf

43. The Aboriginal Protection and Restriction of the Sale of Opium Acts Amendment Act of 1934 Regulations 26 2). Providing for the control, financing and management of settlements and institutions; the establishment of industries thereon; the control, disposal, distribution of the produce of reserves, and of the labour of Aboriginals, half-castes, and all other persons living upon a reserve, and of all stock and other property thereon; and the control and supervision of all trading transactions of Aboriginal and half-castes, whether upon a reserve or not. (Public Acts of the Parliament of Queensland. Aboriginal Industries Board. KING GEORGE V.)

44. Missions

45. Assimilation Era: 1938-1972 At the 1961 Native Welfare Conference, assimilation was defined in the following terms. ‘The policy of assimilation means that all Aborigines and part Aborigines are expected to attain the same manner of living as members of a single Australian community, enjoying the same rights and privileges, accepting the same responsibilities, observing the same customs and influenced by the same beliefs, hopes and loyalties as other Australians’.

46. Assimilation Policy 1938-1972

47. Exemption Certificate Application

48. Exemption Certificate • The Assimilation Policy sought toabsorb Aboriginal people into the general Australian community by a conscious effort of social engineering through housing and schooling programs. • Assimilation concentrated on “mixed blood” Aborigines. • This directly links to the Great Chain of Being theory.

49. Integration Policy 1965 Australian Constitution

50. Integration Policy 1965 • This was the first policy by which Aborigines received an element of choice. There had been a slow recognition that Aborigines should have a choice in the retention of their traditional values and culture. • Integration put an emphasis on positive relations between Aboriginal; and non - Indigenous communities, whilst recognising that Aboriginal people may have different needs and aspirations in some aspects of their lives.