ANZSOG’s First Peoples to All Peoples Conference to bring public servants, academics and First Nations leaders together in Brisbane

Registrations have opened for ANZSOG’s First Nations public administration conference, First Peoples to All Peoples: partnerships, devolution, transformation and sharing at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre from 1-3 March 2023. The conference will build on the success of previous ANZSOG First Nations conferences and provide a unique forum for the voices of First Nations to be heard by public servants and academics, to deepen understanding of the value of First Nations knowledges and cultures and their importance to public policy, and to build links between people and organisations working for positive change and genuine partnerships. 

The conference will examine First Nations policy through the lenses of Australia’s National Agreement on Closing the Gap commitments, particularly the four Priority Reforms, as well as the New Zealand Public Service Act 2020, which now clearly sets out the responsibility of the public service, particularly its leadership, in supporting the Crown’s relationship with Māori under the Treaty of Waitangi. 

Since 2017, our First Nations conferences have provided a valuable opportunity for people working in First Nations public administration to connect, share stories and ideas, and build networks across jurisdictions in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.  

ANZSOG’s First Nations Senior Advisors, Sharon Nelson Kelly and Shane Hoffman said that they were excited to be able to return to an in-person conference after the success of the online only Proud Partnerships in Place conference in 2021. 

“Like our previous First Nations conferences, this will be an occasion which brings together hundreds of public servants, community organisation representatives and academics to listen to many uplifting stories; and learn from and be inspired by different approaches and perspectives,” Sharon said. 

“Ways of working with First Nations peoples are undergoing a transformation across Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia. Public servants working in all areas of public administration, not just those who work directly with First Nations, are being challenged to think and work differently. Bringing together attendees from across all sectors and jurisdictions, is a chance to learn what transformation can achieve and be inspired by different approaches, models, cultural frameworks and perspectives.” 

Proud Partnerships in Place attracted over 500 participants in 2021 and featured speakers from across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, including cabinet ministers from both countries. Bringing together public servants, academics and First Nations communities, it challenged participants to think beyond the way things have always operated, to consider how First Nations knowledges, local community decision-making and new relationships with government and the public purpose sector can be mobilised to meet the needs their communities. The virtual format included opportunities for attendees to network and to ask speakers questions during less formal ‘yarning circles.’ Video recordings from all conference sessions are available in our Wise Practice collection of First Nations resources. 

This conference built on the success of its two predecessors: Reimagining Public Administration, held in Melbourne 2019, and Indigenous Affairs and Public Administration: Can’t we do better? in Sydney 2017. 

In 2023, the First Peoples to All Peoples: partnerships, devolution, transformation and sharing conference, will include First Nations speakers from Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, who will share their insights and experience of how transformative approaches can serve the wider public and First Nations interests. 

All presenters will help conference participants explore four key themes: 

• formal partnerships and shared decision-making, 
• building the First Nations community-controlled sector, 
• transforming government organisations, 
• shared access to data and information. 

The conference will begin with an opening address from two Ministers, followed by plenary sessions with 11 First Nations community speakers and eight public sector speakers.  

In Australia, all governments have signed up to the National Agreement. The Productivity Commission monitors progress on closing the gap. Each party’s implementation plan responds to the differing needs, priorities and circumstances of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across Australia and to act in a way that does not diminish in any way, the cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This will require them to change the way they work with First Nations communities. 

To provide more information on the National Agreement, ANZSOG, with the assistance of the Coalition of Peaks Secretariat and the Closing the Gap Secretariat have produced an Explainer ‘The National Agreement on Closing the Gap – and what it means for public servants’ which outlines in detail frameworks for action which show how public servants at all levels, and in all agencies, can work to help support the four Priority Reforms. Background information about the Treaty of Waitangi and the 2020 New Zealand Public Service Act requirements regarding progressing relationships between the Crown and Māori, are also available on the ANZSOG conference page’s conference resources.

These frameworks put the focus on public services to take a new approach, where policy-making that impacts on the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is done in full and genuine partnership, and where the voices of First Nations peoples are heard and responded to. 

ANZSOG is committed to building public service capability in First Nations public administration, and helping public services to become more culturally competent. Ways of working with First Nations peoples are undergoing a transformation and public servants working in all areas of public administration must change their thinking and upskill, in order to engage successfully with First Nations peoples for improved outcomes.  

The 2023 conference will take place on Turrbal and Jagera country, Queensland and is being held in partnership with the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) and is also sponsored by the Northern Territory and Western Australian governments. 

“We encourage you to take advantage of the early bird special (finishing 18 November), and we look forward to having a yarn with you in Brisbane” says Sharon and Shane.   

For more information on pricing and conditions, and a detailed program, please visit the First Peoples to All Peoples: partnerships, devolution, transformation and sharing web page. New speakers will be added as they are confirmed. A virtual version of the conference, allowing access only to plenary sessions is also available for those who cannot make it to Brisbane.