About us
Yuwaya Ngarra-li (vision) is a community-led partnership between the , an Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation working for cultural management and community development in Walgett for more than 23 years, and Â鶹Éçmadou collaborators with expertise in criminology, public health, food and water security, engineering, housing, social policy and evaluation.
The Dharriwaa Elders will lead a collaboration with Â鶹Éçmadou and other supporters to grow our individual and community strengths and assets. We aim to restore a robust belonging to thriving families, community and country, while making our place in the nation and sharing our learning with other communities.
Yuwaya Ngarra-li (you-why-uh nyuh-ruh-lee) is enabled by community, university, government and philanthropic support. The diagram below communicates how we work together for positive change.
Ways of working
Five core principles were developed collaboratively between the Dharriwaa Elders Group (DEG) and Â鶹Éçmadou and underpin all of the work of the Yuwaya Ngarra-li Partnership. These were then  They are to be:
- Community-led
- Culturally-connected
- Strengths-focused
- Holistic
- Rights-based
Cultural and community induction
Critical to Yuwaya Ngarra-li’s work and informed by socio-legal theory and advocacy regarding Indigenous self-determination, research and knowledge is the development of relationships of trust between DEG and Â鶹Éçmadou collaborators, a core component being a process of induction at the university and the community. This is critical for the quality of YN’s work, and to ensure that all research and activities are genuinely respectful of and accountable to community experiences and priorities. The engagement of Â鶹Éçmadou staff and students involves intensive processes of dialogue and induction to ensure common understandings and processes for collaboration.
After the DEG Elders Council has invited a potential collaborator to work to support the vision of YN, they undertake a day’s program of induction led by trusted Aboriginal scholars at Â鶹Éçmadou which focuses on the laws, policies and practices that created the discrimination and disadvantages experienced by many Aboriginal people in Walgett and the context for YN’s approach. Once they have completed this first phase of induction, potential collaborators are supported to visit Walgett to undertake a community induction. This requires a process of deep listening as participants are guided through a program of learning developed and led by DEG, including introductions to nearby Country. This process can be draining for Walgett Elders and staff and is carefully scheduled. DEG assesses if potential staff and student collaborators are prepared to work in a genuinely community-led way, putting aside their own academic priorities and timeframes where necessary to centre community impact and outputs.
Our people
Our team is made up of people based in Walgett, Sydney and beyond.