First Nations Department - Curtin Student Guild

Kaya, my name is Bonnie Walley and I am a Nyungar yoga with connections to the Wadjuk Balladong and Yued language groups. I’m in my third year Social Work at Curtin and I’m the 2026 first Nations representative with the Guild.
Throughout my studies at Curtin I have experienced cultural safety gaps and been present in classes where outdated or inaccurate information is used within curriculums to deliver content surrounding Aboriginal and Torres Stair Islander peoples. I plan to use my position with the Guild to influence and advocate for culturally safe classrooms and curriculums that are embedded in truth telling. I want to reduce the colonial load our students are experiencing, and encourage a two way learning system.

If you have any questions or suggestions, please reach out by messaging this account, emailing me at [email protected] or through this accounts ‘feedback’ highlight.

Additionally, if you are a current Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Curtin Uni student, I encourage you to join the First Nations Collective through the link in my bio. This collective gives us a voice in addressing issues affecting us, and also provides a safe space for us as mob to come together and connect 🖤💛❤️

Message from the First Nations officer Elicia

National Sorry Day, is a day to acknowledge the strength of the people impacted by the Stolen Generations and to remind us that we can all play a part in the healing process for our country. The first National Sorry Day was held on 26 May 1998. It was a response to the “Bringing Them Home Report” which resulted from a Government Inquiry into past policies which led to the removal of children from their families and communities.

Following this on 28 May 2000 about 250,000 people walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to show their support for reconciliation between Australia’s Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Soon after, similar events took place in other cities and towns around Australia. They were the biggest demonstrations of public support for a cause to have taken place in Australia.

People asked where was the apology to the stolen generation? It first came in the clear blue sky above Sydney Harbour Bridge where the word ‘sorry’ was written. Pia van de Zandt and her housemates fundraised and booked a pilot to spread this message. Today, 26 years after the Bringing Them Home report and 12 years since the National Apology, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children subject to child protection orders (removed) has increased since 2016 (from 5.7% to 7.7%) while the rate of non-Indigenous children who are the subject of child protection orders has stayed steady (at 0.7%).

We cannot fix the problems of the present without accepting the truth of our history. Sorry Day asks us to acknowledge the Stolen Generations and reminds us that historical injustice is still an ongoing source of intergenerational trauma for Aboriginal and Torres Islander families, communities, and peoples. Reconciliation Australia has announced the theme for National Reconciliation Week 2023 is Be A Voice For Generations.

If you are interested please fill out this form so the survey can be sent to you. https://form.jotform.com/231277803507052

Collective and I at the guild AGM today 🤭

First Nations Room!
Come on in and enjoy this beautiful room with comfy lounges. The equity kitchen is located directly outside this room! With free cereal! This room is for any Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander students to relax, study, or hang out with friends!

Location: Building 106F (Guild Courtyard sliding door access)
Hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm

Seeking nominations for Aboriginal members EOIs close 30 April 2023

Project Officer | Indigenous Employment Australia | Indigenous Jobs and Opportunities About AACHWA The Aboriginal Arts Hub Centre of Western Australia (AACHWA) is the peak body for Aboriginal art centres in WA. AACHWA advocates on behalf of its members, art centres located in regional and remote Western Australia. AACHWA delivers professional development programs for managers, boards...

Today we remember pioneering linguist Luise Hercus, who passed away on 15 April 2018.

She was a leader in the documentation of Australian Indigenous languages for more than 50 years, having worked closely with Aboriginal language groups/speakers in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland.

Her collection of language sound recordings at AIATSIS are considered so important that in 2012 they were included in the Sounds of Australia Register.

Hercus began working in Australian language documentation in the 1960s and was ahead of her time in forging a holistic approach to the field by recognising the interrelationship of land, language, story and song in language-based research.

Image from AIATSIS collection: WHITE.I09.CS-000117538
https://bit.ly/40vASUD

ABORIGINAL scientist Professor Alex Brown has been appointed to the CSIRO board of directors, becoming the first Indigenous scientist to serve on the national science agency’s board.

Prof Brown is a proud member of the Yuin Nation, with family connections to Nowra, Wreck Bay and Wallaga Lake on the NSW south coast.

He is Professor of Indigenous Genomics at the Telethon Kids Institute and was recently appointed as the director of the National Centre for Indigenous Genomics at the Australian National University.

MORE: www.koorimail.com

The Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) supports implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart And enshrining an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice in the Australian Constitution.