Never alone | Uncovering shared history and shared goals

After meeting Dr Ash Francisco (Dilin Duwa Engagement Stream Lead and Lecturer) a few months ago via Zoom, ELP’s Community Manager, Troy Garling was keen to learn more about the work that Dilin Duwa are involved in, particularly in the Yarrabah community, 40-50 kilometres south of Cairns.

The Dilin Duwa Centre for Indigenous Business Leadership brings together the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Melbourne and the Melbourne Business School Limited to support Indigenous business. They convene spaces and facilitate relationships in service to the Indigenous business sector locally and globally. 

Creating and maintaining momentum. 

A program of particular interest to us here at ELP is the MURRA Masterclass. The program runs for Indigenous people anywhere in Australia, giving them the opportunity to head to Melbourne 12 days out of the year to immerse themselves in Masterclass sessions on Strategy and Marketing, Finance and Creating Value Through People, and Negotiations and Leadership. 

The program has a lot of similarities to ELP’s Incubation Program and, in particular, has a great Alumni pathway, so Troy was able to learn a lot from the way they operate and continue to strengthen their network.

Back in 2013, Dilin Duwa held the Yarrabah Leaders Forum. The pandemic has stopped many people from being able to head back there to see how the momentum from the forum has grown, so Troy wasn’t the only one jumping at the chance to learn what’s happening on the ground in Yarrabah.  

One of those people was Jye Lawton (CEO of Triple-A Radio station | Brisbane) who has been a part of the MURRA Masterclass. Now an Alumni, he was keen to see how the Yarrabah community was embracing leadership and business. 

An important person in maintaining this momentum is Joanne Walters (Business Consultant with Yarrabah Wugu Nyambil Business Hub). Troy was particularly excited to learn how she sets up events, runs workshops, and supports the people in Yarrabah – from the big stuff, right down to the little administrative tasks that make it all run smoothly. Learning a lot, he has big plans to bring his learnings back to our network here in the Northern Territory. 

In Cairns, he also connected with organisations who are doing great work to train people up, connect them with opportunities and resources, and support them in business. 

“There are companies like us, doing the same thing,” Troy says. “It made me feel like I’m in the right place – we’re not alone in this. They’re all at capacity too, so they’re ready to collaborate with us, to share knowledge and grow impact.” 

Seeing the progress at the Wugu Hub.

It’s not just business, it’s personal. 

Troy’s trip to Yarrabah was about more than just work. 

“I’m a Traditional Owner of Yarrabah, but because [my family] live in Darwin, it’s really hard to find where we fit,” he says. “Being a Traditional Owner doesn’t mean much unless you go there and find out what your role is supposed to be, if any. So for me to connect back with family, to hear stories from my Nanny’s sister, to hear stories about how we came about, it was really meaningful.” 

Cultural reasons were at the front of his mind as he made the trip, ready to hear some stories from his family, and his Dreamtime. 

By the end of his fourth day, Troy was so overwhelmed with the sheer amount that he’d learnt, that he went silent in reflection as he absorbed it all. 

“My cultural cup has been topped up. I came home and passed on all that knowledge to my own family and it has reconnected them to that history.” 

One particular story about Yarrabah stood out to him. In days gone by, Indigenous people in Queensland needed to apply for a licence to see their wife. The Yarrabah community was one of the first to challenge the law, and to get it revoked to restore one part of their freedom. 

“That determination is in our DNA, to continue to fight for what’s right.” 

This is something that Troy sees in his own role at ELP. 

“I can see that what I’m doing here [at ELP] means that I can have the same impact that our mob are having in Yarrabah. It makes it really personal to work in this space.” 

A multi-faceted trip, Troy has come away with a lot to think about and act on but one thing stood out above the rest – the fact that Troy is not alone in his work, nor is ELP alone in its goals. 

“We’re having the same issues in our communities that they’re having in other Indigenous communities. It was really interesting to see how we’re having the same issues right across the country in different contexts. Maybe if we talk to each other, we can share these issues and make a difference.” 

“That’s the next step,” he says. “Figuring out how we collaborate.”