Role:
The ABS has Indigenous Engagement Managers (IEMs) in each Regional Office (except ACT) as part of its Indigenous Community Engagement Strategy (ICES). The goals of ICES and the IEMs are to:
- engage with urban and remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through collaborative partnerships to increase understanding of and participation in ABS collections;
- return information to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities including the provision of statistical training to communities in order to increase their access and usage of ABS information;
- improve the quality and relevance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander statistics for key stakeholders including meeting the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
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Meet your Indigenous Engagement Manager and Assistant Indigenous Engagement Manager (where applicable):
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| 'Hi! My name is John Austin and I have been the IEM in the ABS Victorian Office since 2000. I am of Gundijtmara, Kirrai Whurrung and Djap Whurrung descent from western Victoria. I have worked in Indigenous affairs for the past 30 years in most states and territories, and I strongly believe that timely, reliable and accurate statistics can provide the evidence to help improve Indigenous peoples lives.' | |
| | 'Waddi Mulli, My name is Juanita Johnson, I am from the Wiri Clan of the Birri Gubba Nation in Central Queensland and Kuundju people in Cape York. My mother was born in Deebing Creek (Purga) Mission and my father was born in Barambah (Cherbourg) Aboriginal settlement. My family settled in Brisbane in 1963 and established many Aboriginal organisations in South Brisbane. I have over 30 years work experience in Indigenous affairs through the Indigenous Community and the APS. In my role as the Queensland IEM , I engage communities to return statistical data and information that will support and assist them to make informed decisions to build their capacity and plan their future directions.' |
| 'Nukkan Ya (Hello) my name is Greg McCulloch I am a Ngarrindjeri man from the lower Coorong lakes area in SA. I worked for 2 years in an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander liaison role with Medicare before starting my employment with the ABS in January 2010. The ABS places a high priority on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander engagement. This strategic direction affords me the opportunity to assist Indigenous communities with their data needs. Access to ABS data can facilitate communities making evidenced based decisions on budget priorities. | |
| | 'Yungalya (Hi), my name is Ivan Copley 'Tiwu'. I am of Aboriginal descent of the Peramangk people of the Mount Lofty Ranges and of the Kaurna people of the Adelaide plains. As well as being employed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, I am involved with the Indigenous community through volunteer work as the Chairperson of the local Reconciliation Reference Committee and Chairperson of the Indigenous Information Network of South Australia. I maintain records on missions, homes, language groups and Aboriginal peoples of SA, dating back to 1802. I also maintain the Indigenous Information SA website (www.iisaol.com.au) to assist Indigenous people in South Australia find information to access services.' |
| HI I am Will and I am a descendant of the Ngemba people from Western NSW. I was born and raised in La Perouse NSW.
I joined the ABS as a Local Engagement Manger for the 2011 Census and enjoyed the experience so much that I applied for and won my current role of Indigenous Engagement Manager for NSW and ACT.
I have been involved in Aboriginal education and employment for the last 10 years across western NSW.
My role in the ABS has allowed me to assist community and organisation to raise their statistical knowledge and use, which helps facilitate positive outcomes at the community level. | |
| | 'Hi, I’m Lauren. I’m a Bundjalung woman from Baryugil on the North Coast of NSW. I’ve been living and working in Sydney for 12 years and I started working with the ABS just over a year ago. I’m the Assistant Indigenous Engagement Manager for New South Wales. I’m looking forward to working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to better understand statistics and how they can be used to achieve positive results.' |
| Hi. I'm Alan. I am a Palawa man from Tasmania. I am the Indigenous Engagement Manager currently employed to assist with the local level delivery of the National Health Survey. I have been involved as a support contact for many Communities and organisations over my 12 years as an external Consultant providing Business Development, Community Development and Feasibility Studies to support our Communities growth and sustainability. I have been appointed as Director of many Community and Organisational boards to assist with meeting governance requirements. | |
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| | Hi I'm Colin. I am the acting IEM for Western Australia. I have been involved with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander surveys and engagement in various capacity's for the past 18 years. I was State Manager for the Community Housing and Infrastructure Needs Survey (CHINS) in 1990, a Census Field Officer in the 2001 Census, responsible for the enumeration of discrete Indigenous communities in the Gascoyne / Murchison region, and more recently developed the W.A. Indigenous Enumeration Strategy and Enumeration Plan for the 2011 Census and managed the W.A. Remote Area Mobile Teams (RAMT) and Area Supervisor Discrete Communities (ASDC) field staff. I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to work closely with the Indigenous community and thankful for the amazing support and cooperation they have given me. |
| Kaya, my name is Steve Austin and I’m currently the Assistant Indigenous Engagement Manager. I’m a Yued man and have been living in Perth now for over ten years now. I have family spread over much of the state but try my best to return to my home town of Geraldton to visit my parents and younger brother as often as possible. Since moving to Perth I have graduated with a Bachelor of Heath Science from University of Western Australia before taking a position with the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Since starting, I have worked in a number of areas within the WA office including the 2011 Census and look forward in sharing this work with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community. I have a passion for Indigenous policy and believe ensuring we have the most accurate data and building the capacity to use it is a valuable step for our people moving forward. | |
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