Strategic priority 3

We continued to provide the National Indigenous Australians Agency with ethics review services, advice on evaluations, and workshops on ethical evaluation.

AIATSIS Code of Ethics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research

On 1 July 2019, a consultation draft of the AIATSIS Code of Ethics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research (the Code) was released following a comprehensive review of the Guidelines for Ethical Research in Australian Indigenous Studies (GERAIS) in 2018–2019. The consultation draft included the Code itself, with four principles for ethical Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research; and a practice guide for implementing the Code, with advice on applying those principles. The principles are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander self-determination; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership; impact and value; and sustainability and accountability.

The Code supersedes and replaces the GERAIS.

The response to the consultation draft was considerable. After an extended consultation period, further discussion and synthesis of feedback has proceeded on topics including compliance and enforceability; institutional responsibilities; the relationship with other codes and guides; and specific application in fields such as native title.

The final Code is due for release in September 2020, after which we will continue to work with the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Australian Research Council (ARC) and Universities Australia to ensure that the Code is integrated with the broader framework for ethical and responsible conduct of research in Australia. We will also continue to build the community of practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ethical research and deliver tools, resources and training to support the implementation of the Code.

The first application of new understanding of gaps and priorities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research identified through the Indigenous Research Exchange was in determining priorities for the Exchange’s first research grant round in 2019–2020. With the Exchange Advisory Board’s strategic guidance, the first funding round is supporting research related to:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander governance and prosperity
• cultural resurgence and resilience.

More information about the exchange and the grant funding is below.

Indigenous Research Exchange

We received $10 million in funding over three years from 2018–2019 to develop an Indigenous Research Exchange—an aggregator, facilitator and disseminator of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge for the primary benefit of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The Exchange also administers a research-based grants program, distributing $6.5 million over three years, designed to add to the collective knowledge that empowers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led decision-making and planning. The first Indigenous Research Exchange grant round opened on 13 December 2019 and closed on 28 February 2020. External experts assessed the applications for quality, impact and contribution under identified research priorities, and more than $2 million was granted for 12 diverse projects, nine of which are administered by Aboriginal organisations. The projects will support robust research and generate evidence-based solutions with wide relevance and impact which can inform future decision-making by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and policy-makers.

The first commissioned research project under the Indigenous Research Exchange 
also began, in partnership with Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council. The project is investigating a case study under the Mt Keira Aboriginal Cultural Tourism and Cultural Connection Project, linking datasets to strengthen Aboriginal cultural identity and improve economic development opportunities through cultural tourism.

If you can bring Indigenous knowledge together and create a framework around that, and training and governance, it’s going to be a lot easier for communities to access this and understand ways they can use data to  improve their own outcomes.
Paul Knight, CEO Illawarra Local Aboriginal Land Council

Native Title Research Unit

The Native Title Research Unit (NTRU) provides the native title sector with high-quality research, policy advice and information resources. The NTRU supports native title holders by carrying out research and developing resources on native title law and policy, options for leveraging native title rights and interests, and Prescribed Bodies Corporate (PBC) governance and economic development, providing access to our records and collections, and hosting events such as the National Native Title Conference and workshops on topical issues including compensation and commercial rights.

In 2019–2020 the NTRU has contributed to a number of significant sector reviews including reforms to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, planning and consultation for the Reef 2050 plan, and the Pathways and Participation Opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians in Employment and Business inquiry.

The annual Native Title Representative Body (NTRB) Legal Workshop took place in Perth from 19 to 21 February. The workshop is a key professional development opportunity for native title legal practitioners to share and develop their knowledge of contemporary native title legal issues. The 2020 workshop included a focus on native title compensation, alternative settlements and future matters in the Native Title Act 1993, as well as updates on significant cases.

The PBC website provides clear and practical information for native title corporations and links to online resources. In 2019–2020 it had 55,315 users, a 170 per cent increase from 2018–2019, of which 83.3 per cent were new users. There was also a 133 per cent increase in page views from last year, 75 per cent of which were unique page views.

In 2019–2020 the PBC website was updated with additional resources to support PBCs to access funding and training opportunities and stay up to date with developments in the sector, including the impacts of COVID-19. It was also migrated to a new Drupel 8 platform to ensure longevity and simplify editing procedures.

To support information-sharing across the sector, a consultation process with PBCs and NTRBs began in May 2020 to gather input on sector needs for information, resources  and templates.

Work to support decision-making and dispute management in native title governance during the year included the co-design of decision-making guides for PBC members and directors with the Taungurung Clans Aboriginal Corporation (and Right People for Country, Aboriginal Victoria). These guides are available on the AIATSIS website. The Youth Engagement in Native Title project also had significant achievements.

The Preserve, Strengthen and Renew project, which is progressively building and testing methods and approaches to understanding and measuring research impact, is now in its second phase: Preserve, Strengthen and Renew South Coast. A final discussion paper has been completed for the pilot project with the Kiwirrkurra, Karajarri traditional owners and Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre, reflecting on how impact can be achieved through community co-design and partnership.

One of the most significant conclusions is that ethical partnerships are fundamental to working through the complexities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander decision-making, law-making, dispute resolution and conflict management, to resolve historical questions of access and ownership. Our work demonstrates the benefits of reinforcing ethical behaviour, supporting archive management practices and reinforcing knowledge generation and practice when connecting communities with archives. We hope to continue to refine our impact assessment methodology through the project’s second phase.

Austlang

After Austlang was implemented as the authoritative international resource on Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages in 2018–2019, AIATSIS has led its adoption for coding and describing language materials in other institutions such as the National Library of Australia, State Library of New South Wales, University of Western Australia and University of Sydney. More institutions are expected to follow as talks with National and State Libraries Australia (NSLA) progress.

We collaborated closely with the National Library in implementing the Austlang codes in catalogue records, including through the July 2019 NAIDOC Week ‘codeathon’ when NSLA libraries recruited volunteers to apply Austlang Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander language codes to as many catalogue records as possible through TROVE. During the codeathon, 9,117 individual Austlang codes were added to 8,017 records in the Australian National Bibliographic Database, making information about Australian languages easier to find.

During the year, our staff have presented on Austlang through webinars and at academic and industry symposia and conferences, and discussions are in train with colleagues in North America and the NSLA about future collaborations.

Participation in networks and forums on cultural collections practice

We have also provided leadership through participation in networks and forums including the PULiiMA 2019 Indigenous Languages and Technology Conference, the Australian Digital Alliance Copyright Forum and the International Cultural Institutions Working Group Examining Traditional Knowledge and Bio-cultural Labels, and co-designing training with the Australian Libraries Copyright Committee.

Return of Native Title Materials pilot study

A new project providing leadership in recognising the rights of Aboriginal communities to control their knowledge, culture and stories began in partnership with La Trobe University in October 2019 - Aboriginal Land Claims in the Northern Territory: Documenting and Preserving Records and Memories. This will support research practitioners to prepare their materials so that the relevant Aboriginal communities can access them.

Performance criterion: Use and influence of Guidelines for Ethical Research in Australian Indigenous Studies (GERAIS)

Performance measure: Number of times GERAIS utilised

Target: 5,000

Outcome: Downloads of GERAIS significantly exceeded the target of 5,000. This measure is  in transition, as the new Code of Ethics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research will shortly replace GERAIS. The consultation draft of the new Code was downloaded an additional 1,238 times, not included in this total.

Performance criterion: External use of Ethics clearances through Research Ethics Committee 

Performance measure: Number of Ethics clearances annually

Target: 20 annually

Outcome: The target was exceeded by a very significant proportion.

Performance criterion: Take up of AIATSIS collection protocols and standards

Performance measure: AIATSIS collections’ protocols and standards adopted 

Target: Increase from 2018–2019 baseline

Outcome: Austlang dataset downloads are a new measure. The result indicates that institutions are adopting and implementing Austlang codes, which most accurately describe collection materials in or about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages.

Performance criterion: AIATSIS influence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research

Performance measure: Requests for advice and input (number and type of requests)

Target: Increase from 2018–2019 baseline

Outcome: The outcome relative to the target cannot be determined for this year, as it is a new measure.

*Includes requests for advice on ethical research practice; particular areas of expertise such as language and native title; participation on research advisory boards; and staff contributions to peer review, grant assessment and higher degree by research supervision and examination (excludes student inquiries).

Performance criterion: AIATSIS influence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research

Performance measures: Number and value of research partnerships 

Target: Increase from 2018–2019 baseline

Outcome: There was an increase in the number and a new measure has been introduced to measure the value of those partnerships.

Performance criterion: AIATSIS influence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research

Performance measures: Number of publications and presentations by staff by type

Target: AIATSIS has 100 publications and presentations by staff 

Outcome: Total publications and presentations were slightly down from 2018–2019 numbers, and did not meet the target of 100.