Postgraduate Research Guide

The Knowledge partnership RESEARCH BASED ON ‘RIGHT PEOPLE, RIGHT COUNTRY, RIGHT WAY’ ABORIGINAL METHODOLOGIES FORMED THE BASIS OF SPECIFIC PROJECTS AIMED AT IMPROVING HEALTH AND WELLBEING IN ABORIGINAL COMMUNITIES IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S KIMBERLEY REGION. Two projects – The Evaluation of the Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Centre Cultural Governance Program and Evaluation of the Karajarri Ranger Education Program were based out of The Nulungu Research Institute and undertaken by three appointed research staff and a PhD student. A third project, Living on the Reserve , was based out of the Broome township. A fourth project, aimed at developing better policies to enhance Aboriginal wellbeing, centred on an investigation of cultural and corporate governance frameworks and operations across Australia. This led to a three-year Australian Research Council-funded grant entitled: Reciprocal accountability and public value in Aboriginal organisations , which investigated high value products and services produced by Aboriginal organisations and will shape new ways of reporting that accurately reflect the value of this work. Project outputs include 26 journal publications, six competitive grants including an Australian Research Council Discovery grant and nine research contracts. As well as research outcomes, there were a number of other achievements including the development and staging of two, three-day Aboriginal Researcher professional development courses and The Nulungu Publication Series, a peer-reviewed electronic publication designed to make Kimberley research more accessible to the wider community. The Collaborative Research Network (CRN) enabled Nulungu to make a valuable contribution towards broadening the research and policy agenda by valuing and foregrounding the different applications of culture for improved Aboriginal Health and Wellbeing outcomes. Collaborative partners: The Kimberley Institute, the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research (CAEPR) at ANU and Aboriginal organisations and communities in the Kimberley. Anna Dwyer and Dr Kathryn Thorburn from Nulungu Research Institute, with Lorna Kelley (centre), discussing a 1971 aerial photograph of the town of Broome for the ‘Living on the Reserve’ project. RESEARCH MATTERS Apply direct notredame.edu.au 53