Spotlight on

Broome, Western Australia: In the mid 1980s, a bush meeting of Aboriginal elders from all over the Kimberley resolved to establish two new agencies: a regional centre for law and culture and an independent Aboriginal publishing house. The publishing house conceived in that meeting is Magabala Books (Aboriginal Corporation), and it’s the subject of this story.

For Edie Wright, retired educator and chair of the board of the corporation, those founding elders were bold and visionary:

Barunga, Northern Territory: A year ago, directors of Bagala Aboriginal Corporation launched a project to improve health and create jobs: a robust local public laundry. The Aboriginal community of Barunga is 80 kilometres south-east of Katherine. It’s famous both for the Barunga Statement (calling for a treaty) presented in 1988 to then prime minister Bob Hawke, and as home of the Barunga Festival of music, sport, arts and culture.

Tennant Creek, Northern Territory: Patta Warumungu people were the first Aboriginal group in Australia to negotiate a consent determination within a township. In that sense, Patta Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC has always been at the intense edge of the interaction between western law and Aboriginal law. Then and now, Aboriginal governance structures have been at the centre of all decision-making processes. The corporation is working on reinforcing these processes by having them reflected in their rule book.

Perth, Western Australia: Conceived, created and performed by members of Yirra Yaakin Theatre Company with respect for the community, elders and ancestors, the play Hecate powerfully meets the corporation’s objective as a cultural caretaker—ultimately, to ‘improve the cultural health of all involved and find space for an Aboriginal voice to be heard’. As if that wasn’t reason enough to celebrate, there are also layers of insights in this story for aspiring leaders of all corporations.

Sydney, New South Wales: Between 1912 and 1968 generations of young Aboriginal girls were taken from their families and forced to spend their childhood in Cootamundra Girls Domestic Training Home for Aboriginal Girls. Fifty years after the training home closed, some of the surviving detainees run Coota Girls Aboriginal Corporation, to maintain connection with each other and provide support. The corporation helps to meet their practical needs and looks after their social, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

Derby, WA: For thousands of years Indigenous Australians in the Kimberley have been catching and eating giant freshwater prawns they call jarramba. Emama Nguda Aboriginal Corporation (ENAC) will be the first group to commercially farm them.

Roebourne, Western Australia: Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation RNTBC purchased Roebourne's Victoria Hotel in 2013 and set about transforming it into a dynamic hub for community and collaboration. The hotel had closed in 2005 due in large part to its role in facilitating alcohol abuse in the town. So its redevelopment heralds a new era for Roebourne.

Above: Dhimurru rangers Wanga, Eddie, Grace, Hamish, Gatha, Rrawun, Yama and Guru

Gordon Bennett (1955–2014)

Dubbo, New South Wales: HIHAT Aboriginal Corporation is a new corporation that is already achieving its aim of getting Aboriginal people into training and jobs. Janelle Whitehead is the sole member and director of the corporation, which she registered in October 2018.