People matter to us at Articulous, regardless of who they are and where they come from.
As engagement professionals, it’s our job to interact with a diversity of community members, including those who may not have been engaged with (or engaged well) before. We hear time and time again that First Nations Australians are poorly engaged with, and we want to be part of the change.
Cultural competency is an increasingly important factor which determines the appropriateness of any individual to engage with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, while ensuring their visibility, comfort and safety.
In the wake of NAIDOC Week 2024, we’ve been reflecting on some of the best indicators of cultural competence that are used to determine appropriateness to engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
If you’re not there for the right reasons – rethink!
First Nations communities provide unique insight into projects and social change initiatives that cannot be sought elsewhere. From sharing Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) to advising on alternative structures of community health, wellbeing and governance, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are subject matter experts who have owned and managed land for thousands of years.
“Recognising the strengths and diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, communities, knowledges, histories and cultures” (A Guide to Evaluation under the Indigenous Evaluation Strategy, 2020) is a core part of ensuring genuine engagement with meaningful contributors to our past, current and future Australian landscape.
1. Build your awareness
Working to rectify harms felt by First Nations communities first comes with understanding the nature and history of opression inflicted on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Take the time to learn about previous inappropriate actions and attitudes held broadly in society and within your sector of work, and encourage your workplace to invest in purposeful mitigations.
2. Make a plan
Once you have identified the need for purposeful mitigations against harms enacted against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, encourage your organisation to product policies and corporate documents that foster culturally appropriate practices.
Consider whether these policies are:
- Credible – developed and implemented in a culturally responsive manner, on issues that are important to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and delivered in a way that is seen as relevant
- Useful – informed by evidence-based research and evaluation activities, considering the needs of a range of end-users, including governments, organisations and communities
- Transparent – shared widely throughout your organisation and with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, who were engaged in the drafting process.
3. Consider your encounters
Building your individual cultural competency comes only with repeated, genuine interaction and engagement with culturally diverse people. Consider:
- Does your organisation employ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples?
- Does your organisation include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in projects and initiatives?
- Do you regularly communicate and consult with First Nations peoples?
If the answer is no to any of the above questions, invest in opportunities to include First Nations peoples in your work and social life. This is often the best way to foster understanding of alternative cultures and promote knowledge sharing.
However, remember that the onus is on non-Indigenous people to make the effort to increase cultural understandings independently. Refrain from expecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to act as your cultural experts and appreciate the emotional labour that goes into sharing about one’s cultural background.
4. Consult the experts
Like any skill – cultural competency can be developed and expanded on through formal learning. These capabilities are not typically taught during schooling or in workplaces organically, which necessitates reaching outside of these traditional avenues to learn.
Engage a First Nations owned business that provides cultural upskilling services, and enrol as many people in your organisation as possible in their courses – regardless of their level of interaction with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Our team recently had the privilege of participating in a cultural capability workshop hosted by Mundanara Bayles, Managing Director of BlackCard.
BlackCard is 100% Aboriginal-owned business and specialist consultancy and training
provider, delivering cultural capability training and cultural immersion experiences.
We could not recommend BlackCard’s services more highly and are incredibly grateful for the care and commitment Mundanara showed us.
As it turns out, this is our very top tip! If you don’t know – ask (and make sure you’re asking the people who really matter!)
I would like to acknowledge the work of my colleague, Bernard Houston, who kindly provided the materials used to produce this article. Bernard has worked extensively on research projects with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, investigating cultural competency and engagement frameworks.
