In 2002 the South Australian Coroner made recommendations from Inquests into deaths from petrol sniffing on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands.

Harnessing assets of advantage: Building sustainable enterprises and employment in Arnhem Land Aboriginal communities through cross sector relationships in land management, tourism and the arts

Sometimes these people in government don’t communicate.  People live in a dark corner here lookin’ for the light. Where is the light? Just feeling their way. At the moment it’s like a …I dunno….just like a big whirl of water. You know if you stir that water round it’s just like it’s goin’ round in circles! You got circles, and you just got bits and pieces comin’ out!

This seminar examines the viability of a wildlife enterprise in Maningrida that targets animal three species for commercial sale: saltwater crocodiles, northern long-necked turtles and tarantula spiders. Whilst the crocodile and turtle industries are well established, the tarantula spider industry is an emergent industry. The seminar will focus upon the broad range of factors influencing the development of the enterprise and its on-going viability. Particular attention will be paid to:

The Orang Asli or literally translated as ‘Original People’ are the Indigenous minority community of Peninsular Malaysia. This paper is based on the findings of an ongoing research project that is aimed at investigating literacy and social practices among the Orang Asli children. Orang Asli have been reported to remain as one of the poorest community in Malaysia. About 50% of the total population (149,723) of Orang Asli is categorized as hardcore poor or below the poverty level. A good education is believed to be the key in improving the lives of the Orang Asli community.

Perspectives of Indigenous realities rarely focus on life lived in major metropolitan centres. Instead there is a tendency to frame rural and remote locations as central to the survival of Indigenous cultures and societies. However recent censuses show that in many countries Indigenous populations are now mainly urban populations. According to the 2006 Canadian Census, 53.2 per cent of Aboriginal people lived in urban areas (Statistics Canada 2008a).

This seminar will present some preliminary findings from the Fitzroy Valley Population Project, undertaken for the Fitzroy Futures Forum under the auspices of Marninwarntikura Women’s Resource Centre based in Fitzroy Crossing. The Project’s design reflects a more general research concern with the modelling of local social categories from an anthropological perspective in order to make these categories visible and measurable, and thus available as a basis for constructing socio-demographic variables.

Policy development in Indigenous Affairs often proceeds with dated estimates of population and with little understanding of the likely impact of changing demographic parameters on future Indigenous population size and composition. To the extent that policy itself can influence demographic outcomes, this represents a significant deficiency in current planning methodology. To stimulate a dialogue around such issues, this paper models the national and regional population impacts of a continuation of existing mortality and fertility regimes compared to a situation where these converge.

This paper will begin by using population figures from the 2006 Census, organised by the ABS’s Indigenous geography, to raise some questions about the Northern Territory Government’s ‘Working Future’ policy, announced in May 2009. It will suggest that by focusing on more populous Aboriginal settlements, the policy has also, perhaps inadvertently, focused on the Top End of the Northern Territory at the expense of the Centre.

Halving the gap in employment outcomes between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians over the decade beginning in 2008 is one of six COAG targets set to address Indigenous disadvantage. To understand better the labour market outcomes of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and the human and social capital factors influencing those outcomes, the Productivity Commission has undertaken an analysis using the 2006 Census. The labour market indicators studied are participation, unemployment, hours worked and total personal income.