Marnda Gardairri: Facilitation of an Indigenous Ranger Rock Art Workshop

The Marnda Gardairri Indigenous Rangers Workshop was held from 3–5 October 2017 on the Burrup Peninsula in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The event, which was hosted by the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC), brought together rangers from across Australia to discuss rock art conservation and management. The workshop was given the title ‘Marnda Gardairri’ as this means rock scratching/engraving on the Burrup Peninsula. The workshop was developed by MAC in collaborative partnership with Rio Tinto Iron Ore-Pilbara Operations and the Nulungu Research Institute (The University of Notre Dame Australia). Rio Tinto and Woodside Petroleum funded the workshop, with Mel Marshall and Lynley Wallis of Nulungu engaged to coordinate and facilitate the event, assisted by Kate Golson.https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/nulungu_insights/1002/thumbnail.jp

Aboriginal responses to the threat of COVID-19 in the Kimberley

In August 2020, Nulungu Research Institute was granted funding from the Chief Scientist of WA to conduct a study into the impacts of COVID-19 restrictions on Aboriginal people in the Kimberley. Our research team, with guidance from our Aboriginal Steering Committee, is focusing on Aboriginal organisations and communities, and seeking to document how people were able to respond to the threat of COVID-19. To achieve this, we have been building a detailed picture of the restrictions and other government actions and how these affected people’s lives from the critical early days and weeks of the pandemic through to now. In the Kimberley, and across Australia, Aboriginal Community Controlled organisations (ACCOs) have proven crucial in leading a successful approach which has seen numbers of Aboriginal people contracting COVID-19 to be minimal. Our presentation will overview preliminary observations from interviews and data collected so far. These highlight the extraordinary level of response from ACCOs across the Kimberley in assisting Aboriginal families to understand the threat of the virus, and to respond to this threat in ways that were culturally safe. Our presentation will also document a suite of unintended consequences, both positive and negative, of the measures brought in across levels of government in the name of limiting the possible impacts of COVID-19 on Aboriginal people in the region

Really proper dangerous one: Aboriginal responses to the first wave of COVID-19 in the Kimberley

https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/nulungu_reports/1002/thumbnail.jp

Voices from the Front Line: Community leaders, government managers and NGO field staff talk about what\u27s wrong in Aboriginal development and what they are doing to fix it

https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/nulungu_books/1000/thumbnail.jp

‘What about the rights of our kids to a future?’ Community instigated alcohol restrictions in the Kimberley and why they are working

Community initiated alcohol restrictions have been in place in the Kimberley for three years (Fitzroy Crossing) and two years (Halls Creek). Nationally, alcohol restrictions are regarded by many commentators and health professionals as an ineffective tool in dealing with systemic alcohol abuse afflicting regional communities. Yet, for two Kimberley towns two year qualitative and quantitative evaluations completed by the Nulungu Centre for Indigenous Studies for the Drug and Alcohol Office (WA) have revealed significant overall health and social benefits as well as the creation of windows of opportunity for social reconstruction of communities suffering the effects of excessive alcohol consumption, due to restrictions. This paper will reveal the findings of these two year studies and compare and contrast the results between the town of Fitzroy Crossing (the Fitzroy Valley) and Halls Creek (the central eastern Kimberley). The rights of old people and young people, in particular, to a safe and secure community environment will be examined against the often stated ‘right’ to drink of young and middle aged adults. Within a breakdown of social norms, collective community instigated interventions can work when instigated by community leaders, regardless of whether they receive the wider support of the community. The role of leadership in addressing controversial and conflicting issues within the value of collective responsibility will be examined

Indigenous engagement in water research

Made available by the Northern Territory Library via the Publications (Legal Deposit) Act 2004 (NT)."Discusses the Tropical Rivers and Coastal Knowledge Research Hub (TRaCK) and how it was formulated to provide the science and knowledge needed by governments, industries and communities to sustainably manage northern Australia's rivers and estuaries. A collaborative consortium of over 80 of Australia's most experienced tropical river and coastal scientists was established; TRaCK focussed on acquiring fundamental knowledge about the assets and values of tropical rivers and the ecosystem processes that underpin them including developing and sustaining partnerships with Indigenous groups, and strengthening their capacity to engage in research and planning processes." [Introduction]Introduction -- TRaCK: objectives, organisational structure and project activity -- TRaCK's Indigenous engagement strategy -- Results -- Discussion and recommendations -- References -- Appendix A-DThis project was funded by the Australian Government through the National Water Commission's Raising National Water Standards Program

Working together for wetlands: an Environs Kimberley, University of WA, Yawuru and Kimberley Aboriginal Ranger project

Theme: Acquiring New Skills for a Transforming and Transformed Worl

Réactions à la pandémie de la COVID-19 dans les communautés aborigènes de la région des Kimberley en Australie-Occidentale

La crainte suscitée par les épidémies et les pandémies chez les peuples aborigènes de l’Australie n’a rien de nouveau. Dès ses débuts, la colonisation a provoqué des éclosions de grippe, de variole et de rougeole qui ont décimé des populations entières, bouleversant ainsi le tissu socioculturel de plusieurs nations aborigènes. Dans la région des Kimberley, en Australie-Occidentale, la lèpre a justifié le déplacement d’Autochtones de tous âges vers des établissements hautement supervisés et des missions en région éloignée (voir Annexe). Ceux qui travaillaient sur les ranchs d’élevage bovin recevaient initialement des rations en guise de « rémunération ». À la fin des années 1960, en raison de politiques d’accès à de meil-leures conditions de travail et à l’établissement du salaire minimal en Australie, plusieurs travailleurs au-tochtones ont été expulsés des ranchs, ce qui a engendré un exode vers les villes régionales. S’en est suivie la création de réserves et de camps dans les pourtours de ces villes (town camps), dans lesquels les con-ditions de vie étaient précaires et qui sont devenus aujourd’hui des entités administratives officielles. Au début des années 1970, le chômage et les prestations d’aide sociale offertes aux Autochtones, com-munément nommées sit-down money, ont largement contribué à l’augmentation du taux d’alcoolisme et de toxicomanie, ici considérés comme étant des maladies coloniales qui font encore des ravages aujourd’hui. Ainsi, en raison de ces traumatismes, la peur des épidémies et des maladies résultant de la présence des colons occidentaux est un sentiment partagé par plusieurs. L’histoire coloniale a engendré une tension continue, voire de la méfiance en ce qui a trait à la perception des services de sécurité déployés dans les communautés éloignées. Depuis la colonisation, les peuples aborigènes font continuellement face au retrait forcé des territoires avec lesquels ils entretiennent une relation intrinsèque et qu’ils ont la responsabilité de protéger. Des politiques encourageant la réappro-priation des terres ancestrales ont vu le jour dans les années 1970. Cependant, en 2014, en réaction à l’annonce du gouvernement du Commonwealth de l’Australie d’abolir le financement opérationnel des communautés éloignées, le gouvernement de l’État de l’Australie-Occidentale, dirigé par Colin Barnett, a menacé de littéralement les fermer, bien qu’elles accueillent 12 000 Autochtones (Kagi, 2014; Kelly et Lobo, 2017). Cette déclaration et d’autres dans la même foulée ont semé la confusion et une profonde inquiétude chez les peuples aborigènes des Kimberley et leurs alliés non autochtones, et ce, sur une période prolongée. Elles réaf-firmaient l’idée selon laquelle les pouvoirs coloniaux des gouvernements l’emportent sur les perspectives locales et les intérêts des peuples aborigènes. Dans un contexte de crise comme celle de la COVID-19, les membres des communautés continuent de plaider en faveur de leurs droits, une perspective renforcée par June Oscar (2020), commissaire de l’Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice, qui soutient que les territoires traditionnels sont les milieux de vie les plus sécuritaires pour les Autochtones. À l’échelle nationale, les peuples aborigènes et les insulaires du détroit de Torrès sont reconnus comme étant l’une des populations les plus vulnérables de l’Australie en raison de la forte prévalence de maladies chroniques et d’autres problèmes de santé. Alors que le nombre de cas de COVID-19 augmentait rapidement au sein de la population australienne au début de l’année 2020, plusieurs membres des peuples aborigènes, notamment par le truchement des Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCO), d’autres organismes non gouvernementaux affiliés et des ministères concernés, ont fait part de leur inquiétude. À son apogée, la panique suscitée par la pandémie a déclenché des actions rapides prises par le gouver-nement, dont l’élaboration d’une loi d’urgence rédigée du jour au lendemain et adoptée en quelques heures. Cela a provoqué la confusion et une réelle préoccupation partagée par les peuples aborigènes des Kimberley. Les mesures de distanciation sociale mises en place par les gouvernements des États et le gouvernement fédéral, dont il est question dans cet article, constituent un exemple probant qui illustre le caractère intrusif des mesures d’urgence adoptées par ces autorités. Cet article vise à présenter les réflexions initiales d’un projet de recherche innovant mené par des Autochtones en cours d’élaboration dans la région des Kimberley

Empagliflozin in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Background The effects of empagliflozin in patients with chronic kidney disease who are at risk for disease progression are not well understood. The EMPA-KIDNEY trial was designed to assess the effects of treatment with empagliflozin in a broad range of such patients. Methods We enrolled patients with chronic kidney disease who had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of at least 20 but less than 45 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2) of body-surface area, or who had an eGFR of at least 45 but less than 90 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2) with a urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (with albumin measured in milligrams and creatinine measured in grams) of at least 200. Patients were randomly assigned to receive empagliflozin (10 mg once daily) or matching placebo. The primary outcome was a composite of progression of kidney disease (defined as end-stage kidney disease, a sustained decrease in eGFR to < 10 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2), a sustained decrease in eGFR of & GE;40% from baseline, or death from renal causes) or death from cardiovascular causes. Results A total of 6609 patients underwent randomization. During a median of 2.0 years of follow-up, progression of kidney disease or death from cardiovascular causes occurred in 432 of 3304 patients (13.1%) in the empagliflozin group and in 558 of 3305 patients (16.9%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.64 to 0.82; P < 0.001). Results were consistent among patients with or without diabetes and across subgroups defined according to eGFR ranges. The rate of hospitalization from any cause was lower in the empagliflozin group than in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.78 to 0.95; P=0.003), but there were no significant between-group differences with respect to the composite outcome of hospitalization for heart failure or death from cardiovascular causes (which occurred in 4.0% in the empagliflozin group and 4.6% in the placebo group) or death from any cause (in 4.5% and 5.1%, respectively). The rates of serious adverse events were similar in the two groups. Conclusions Among a wide range of patients with chronic kidney disease who were at risk for disease progression, empagliflozin therapy led to a lower risk of progression of kidney disease or death from cardiovascular causes than placebo