Learn about the potential of partnerships and community-led development at ANZSOG’s 2025 First Nations Conference

Governments across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand are working to transform the way that governments work with First Nations and Māori communities and create community-led development and local solutions, but progress is slow. 

ANZSOG’s upcoming 2025 First Nations Public Administration Conference: Leave a Legacy – Be a Transformer  will be held in Meanjin/Brisbane from 26-28 November.  

The Conference will feature 23 inspiring speakers from Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand who will help public servants build their understanding of the importance of these issues, and hear stories of success from speakers who are part of the transformation of First Nations policy.  

In addition, Stan Grant, ground-breaking journalist and Wiradjuri man, will address the Conference Dinner on Thursday 27 November. 

Local governments can play, and are playing, a key role in enabling community-led development and flexible, place-based approaches to policy. 

One of the speakers is Marc Sutherland, a Gomeroi man who is the first Aboriginal person to be elected to the Tamworth Regional Council and Founding Director of the Gomeroi Culture Academy. 

He will talk about his experiences in developing the Mara Ngali partnership between the Council and local Aboriginal community-controlled organisations – a partnership that aims to create shared governance structures to address Closing the Gap initiatives. 

Mr Sutherland said Mara Ngali – which means ‘two hands’ in Gomeroi – was about embedding the priority areas of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap into the governance mechanisms of the Council. 

“One of the big steps to being able to create a change is for governments to be able to step away from this level of control and being able to look at, how do you bring Aboriginal people or First Nations people into that conversation around shared decision making, which really is talking around sharing power in some degree,” he said. 

“It’s hard for some organisations or some governments to even be a part of that,” he said. 

“But from an Aboriginal perspective, a lot of our communities are tired of being consulted and having a conversation that doesn’t lead to any systemic change or any tangible outcome in that space.” 

“Unless people are truly committed to creating change, more and more communities are hesitant to be a part of the process because it takes time and effort, and people don’t want to waste their time.” 

“What we are trying to do with Mara Ngali is to look at how we commit to this idea of shared decision-making at a structural level, rather than implementing it ad hoc across different services and different agencies.” 

“One of the big things I’ve learned from this is that shared decision making isn’t just about having Aboriginal people around the table. It’s about actually bringing cultural governance into the way that decisions are made. 

“Like the fact that decisions might take longer, but they’re made as a collective, you know. That the people who sit at the table are all equal, and equally able to share an opinion and share a voice in that space.” 

Listening to, and working with local communities

Mr Sutherland said that First Nations-led development, where barriers stopping community self-determination were removed, would lead to better outcomes on the ground and stronger relationships between government and First Nations. 

“Councils play a unique role by being the form of government closest to the community. We’re in the best positions to build relationships and to foster those connections and to advocate for the needs of people,” he said. 

“Here in Tamworth, Aboriginal people make up about 10 per cent of the population. And it should be obvious that Aboriginal people and their needs and aspirations of Indigenous people should make up a big part of what our plans are.” 

“We’re fortunate that we have five strong Aboriginal community-controlled organisations that are really valuable legacy pieces for us here in Tamworth, which have been around since the 70s or 80s. That has helped Tamworth become one of the six locations across Australia that’s been recognised by the Commonwealth as a place-based partnership between councils and local First Nations communities.” 

Mr Sutherland said that public servants who wanted to make a difference and improve the way they worked with First Nations communities needed to begin by listening, without having a pre-determined view of what outcomes should be. 

“They also need to have the confidence to try and do things differently, which isn’t always easy when there’s a policy or a structure that says, this is how we have to do it.” 

“The other thing is just to understand power and the power dynamics that inherently exist. I know that some people in government organisations don’t feel like they hold a lot of power, but they do, and that power inherently exists when people from governments or organisations step into a community space.  

“Most public servants come from a very process-based, transactional and hierarchical kind of organisation, and it’s difficult to make the relationships and connections that they need to make. That’s something which has burnt communities for such a long time, where people have walked away because a funding program has stopped or whatever. We know that story.” 

Creating change for future generations

 Mr Sutherland said that being the first Aboriginal councillor in Tamworth’s history was a proud achievement, but one that made him aware of barriers that still existed for Aboriginal people working in government structures.  

“Some of the rooms and structures that we walk into haven’t been designed for us to be who we are,” he said. 

 “My parents and my grandparents, and generations before us, were made to feel as though if they wanted to get access, then they had to give up who they were. You had to surrender a part of your identity if you wanted to fit in. 

“We’re fighting hard to make sure that those walls don’t exist, that our children don’t have to enter those spaces. But the reality is that they do exist. And if we can identify them, how do we move towards removing them? You could call it a challenge, but it’s also a massive opportunity for us to be able to leave a legacy and create the change and transform those spaces so they’re more inclusive.” 

Bringing inspiring speakers together in Meanjin/Brisbane

Leave a Legacy – Be a Transformer will being together hundreds of public servants, academics and First Nations community representatives for three days of frank discussions. 

Lil Anderson will host the conference, bringing her insights into the current situation in Aotearoa, and its relevance to transformation in Australia. 

Ms Anderson has worked in Australia as an ANZSOG Teaching and Leadership Fellow and is well known and respected by many Australian public servants who have participated in her ANZSOG Masterclasses. 

The Conference program is now finalised, and the following are now confirmed: 

• Donna Flavell – Chief Executive of Waikato-Tainui and Chair of the Iwi Advisors Group for Freshwater, Aotearoa New Zealand 
• Geoff Richardson PSM – former senior public servant, Chief Executive of First Nations Development Services 
• Jason Ardler PSM – former senior NSW public servant, co-founder and director of Thiriwirri 
• Craig Leon – Managing Director, Conscious Solutions 
• Selwyn Button – Commissioner at the Productivity Commission 
• Sacha McMeeking, Executive Director Māori, Pacific and Equity, University of Canterbury, NZ 
• Hera Douglas, Chief Advisor, Aroturiki Tamariki/Independent Children’s Monitor, NZ 
• Jess Smith, Deputy CE, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, NZ 
• Leanne Liddle – Executive Director, Community Resilience and Engagement, NT Police 

Registrations for Leave a Legacy: Be a Transformer are open until Monday 17 November. Don’t miss out!