Our Projects, Our Way

Transcription

1 Our Projects, Our Way COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM The Central Land Council s Community Development Program delivers results because communities use their own money to pay for projects they prioritise and plan.

2 Nobody tells us what to do, we make our own decisions. FROM: A Community Development Committee Member, 2012 Monitoring Report, p.65 Our Community Development Program The CLC is a statutory authority governed by a representative council of 90 Aboriginal People elected from communities in the southern half of the Northern Territory. For over 30 years the CLC has supported Aboriginal groups to reclaim and manage their traditional lands. In 2005, the CLC started a major new program where its constituents drive their own development. A Community Development Unit (CD Unit) was set up to work with Aboriginal groups that choose to use income from royalties, rent, lease, and compensation payments to achieve their social, cultural and economic objectives. Supporting constituents to use payments from land use and other agreements is a statutory function and an important growth area of the CLC. The unit s unique strength is its ability to facilitate and implement the informed decisions of Aboriginal groups to invest this money for sustainable community benefit. Our Goal and Objectives The CD program s long term goal reflects the dual aspirations of CLC constituents: strong and resilient Aboriginal people who can maintain their identity, language, culture and connection to country while participating fully in mainstream Australia through better health, education, training and more employment. The program s objectives are to: Maximise opportunities for Aboriginal engagement, ownership and control, particularly regarding the management of their own resources; Generate lasting social, cultural and economic outcomes that benefit and are valued by Aboriginal people; and Build an evidence base about the CLC s community development approach and share lessons learned. Our Approach For the CLC community development is a flexible way of working that involves a set of principles and strategies that build strong, self-reliant communities through the achievement of specific community objectives. At the heart of our CD approach is facilitating processes that ensure local participation and control. That s because initiatives are most effective and sustainable when the people they seek to benefit are actively involved in all aspects of project design and implementation.

3 Community development is complex, particularly in our challenging Central Australian context, and results take time. To give our program the best chance of working we ve set out our community development approach in the CLC Community Development Framework. It draws on the local and international evidence of what works. It is based on the following principles: Social justice supporting marginalised groups to assert their human rights and to have their basic needs met. Self-reliance building strong, resilient and independent communities. Equality changing power relations that marginalise people and sharing power within communities as well as between communities and outsiders. Learning recognising the skills, knowledge and expertise people contribute and develop by taking action to address issues. Co-operation working well together, based on mutual respect of diverse cultures and contributions. Our community development strategies include: Facilitating highly participatory processes where Aboriginal people set their own development goals and make informed decisions at their own pace; Fostering project ownership and local control by refraining from suggesting project ideas; Working with Aboriginal people to design, implement and monitor projects that draw on their local knowledge and external advice to ensure projects last; Building on Aboriginal peoples strengths and learning from successes; Strengthening Aboriginal governance and effective leadership at all levels; Forming partnerships with organisations that bring complementary skills, expertise and additional resources; Monitoring and evaluating each project to ensure accountability and continuous improvement; and Adapting our processes to local contexts and lessons learned. Our Track Record A growing body of evidence suggests that the CLC s long term community development approach is working. One of the strongest signs of this is that Aboriginal people are increasingly choosing to forgo individual payments and instead invest their money in community benefit with support from the CLC. From 2005 to 2013 a growing number of Aboriginal groups across the CLC region have invested over $25 million to over 400 social, cultural and economic projects. They vary from small infrastructure projects to multi-million dollar, multi-year programs. Their investment has attracted millions of dollars in co-contributions from governments and industry. Annual monitoring and an independent evaluation show a broad range of achievements and outcomes from the many projects delivered by the end of 2013: Development and implementation of an evidence-based community development approach supported by Council and increasingly being taken up by constituents. Specific benefits highly valued by Aboriginal people: Early childhood and parenting support to get children school ready Safer and healthier communities Maintenance and strengthening of Aboriginal language and culture Education, training and employment Enterprise development Aboriginal people participating in their projects and reporting a greater sense of control and ownership. Evidence of greater capacities and capabilities of Aboriginal participants. A very cost effective operation where 85% of income is directly funding on the ground services and outcomes.

4 Learning Centre is here for people to learn. It is a yapa place. It s been built by WETT mob. They re the ones been helping build the centre here for yapa. FROM: Willowra Community Member, La Trobe Evaluation. These projects are helping the community. If there weren t these projects the community would be different. It s a really positive feeling in Lajamanu now. PHOTO CREDIT: Peter Eve and Tracks Dance Company 2005 Warlpiri Education and Training Trust (WETT) 2007 Tanami Dialysis Support Service Project 2010 NT Parks Rent Money Project MAJOR PROJECT TIMELINE 2005 Uluru Rent Money (URM) Project 2008 Granite Mines Affected Area Aboriginal Corporation (GMAAAC) Project 2012 Community Lease Money (CLM) Project

5 1. Getting Started Traditional owners/community members decide how much money to put aside for good projects that benefit the group. 3. Choose Project The Aboriginal group talks about the main areas they want to work on to make life better now and for future generations. The group chooses the most important project/s to start working on. 4. Plan Project The group works with the CLC to make a project plan and shares it with everyone. The plan shows (1) how the project will help Aboriginal people (2) which organisation will do the project and (3) how much it will cost. 5. Decide on Project After the project plan is finished the group decides whether to allocate money to the project. 2. Agree on Process Group and CLC talk about how to work well together and how Aboriginal people will make the decisions. Will there be a Working Group or will everyone be involved? PLANNING FOR ACTION PROJECT HAPPENS! 6. Enter Agreement The CLC checks that the right Aboriginal people were consulted and decisions were made in the right way. The CLC then signs a legal agreement with the organisation saying they will do the project as planned and budgeted. 7. How did it go? The group and CLC ask: How did the project benefit Aboriginal people? Was the money used the right way? How can we work better together next time? COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM How We Work Together The CLC understands the need for flexibility in the ways we work and in our relationships with others but generally we work in the following way: The Decision Makers The Aboriginal group takes the lead by: Deciding on a process, which often involves forming a governance group; Agreeing on a collective vision of a better future and prioritising actions to realise it; Planning projects that address community priorities; Choosing organisations capable of delivering their projects; Contributing money, local knowledge and labour to the projects; Working with the CLC and delivering organisation to monitor project implementation and solve any problems; and The CLC CLC community development workers support Aboriginal groups to take collective action by: Facilitating community and governance group planning meetings and informed decisions; Inviting identified organisations to submit plans for delivering projects and where necessary to input into the planning; Seeking approval for expenditure on completed plans; Negotiating funding agreements with project managers; Managing contract compliance and delivery of agreed outcomes; and Collecting information and feedback for project evaluation and sharing lessons learned. Giving feedback about the project and sharing lessons learned.

6 The Project Managers Once a group has identified an organisation as a potential project manager, the CLC asks the organisation to submit a project plan and briefs them about the group s initial planning. These organisations are expected to: Participate in further project planning meetings where invited by the CLC; Develop a fully costed plan for the consideration of the governance group or community; Negotiate and enter into a funding agreement with the CLC; Deliver the project in line with the funding agreement and the CLC s community development principles and strategies; and Give feedback for project evaluation and share lessons learned. MAP: 2013 CD project locations COMMUNITIES National Parks & Reserves MAJOR TOWNS FRONT COVER: Artwork from The Warlpiri Education and Training Trust Story painting by Barbara Napanangka Martin, Nancy Napurrurla Oldfield and Maisie Napaljarri Kitson (2013) RINGERS SOAK BILLILUNA BALGO LAJAMANU NORTHERN TERRITORY TENNANT CREEK TANAMI DOWNS WILLOWRA WUTUNUGURRA Devil s Marbles Davenport Range ALI CURUNG ALPURRURULUM IMANGARA TARA WILORA AMPILATWATJA KALTUKATJARA NYIRRPI KINTORE TJITJINGATI MUTITJULU YUENDUMU MOUNT LIEBIG HAASTS BLUFF LILLA ULPANYALI Watarrka NTURIYA YUELAMU LARAMBA Native Gap PAPUNYA West MacDonnell IMANPA PMARA JUTUNTA ALICE SPRINGS TITJIKALA ENGAWALA Chambers Pillar ATITJERE Arltunga Kuyunba N Dhala Gorge HERMANNSBURG AMOONGUNA Finke Gorge AREYONGA SANTA TERESA Ewaninga WALLACE ROCKHOLE Rock Carvings Dulcie Range Trephina Gorge Corroboree Rock Emily & Jessie Gaps PILANITJA SOUTH AUSTRALIA For more information contact the CLC CDU on (08) or