Aurora interns advocate for Native Title

This year the Aurora Native Title Internship Program will celebrate its 10th year of operation – and even just going by the statistics, it’s been quite a decade. 

More than 3800 applications from Australian and international students and graduates; over 1350 internships; placements in all corners of the country, like Adelaide, Alice Springs, Broome, Karratha, Kununurra, Sydney and Thursday Island; and upwards of 80 Native Title Representative Bodies (NTRB), Indigenous corporations, government bodies and community groups all contributing to the program – it’s truly a collaborative effort with valuable impacts for intern and placement organisation alike.

Established in 2004 with the placement of legal interns at a limited number of NTRBs and other organisations working in Indigenous affairs, the Aurora Native Title Internship Program has since expanded and now introduces students and graduates of anthropology and other social sciences to career opportunities in native title, policy development, social justice and Indigenous affairs. 

Interns who demonstrate a keen interest in native title, social justice, policy and Indigenous affairs more generally, are linked with host organisations to provide assistance in the legal, anthropology and other research-related areas of their work.

Supported as part of the University’s Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences range of internship opportunities, this year’s summer program placed Arts graduates Camilla Price and Carolyn Plaistowe with participating host organisations. Over six weeks during the summer break, they gained a unique appreciation of what is often an under-resourced and over-worked community of practice.

Ms Plaistowe approached her internship at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research as a valuable linking opportunity between studies – what she describes as “a productive and inspirational way” to spend the summer before starting her honours year at the Australian National University.

“For many people, Aurora internships are about travelling to a new place and gaining firsthand experience in the field. For me it was a way to enter an unknown field of research and begin to understand the fundamentals of Aboriginal affairs,” she says.

“I have had an interest in Aboriginal affairs throughout my time at University, but my subjects in geography and anthropology focused more on theory. I do not have a strong desire to become an academic so I decided that a better understanding of the issues at home would lead to the most interesting anthropological career. I was also keen to trial this interest in the workplace before committing to my thesis research question of how Aboriginal land management intersects with identity.”

Ms Plaistowe’s internship work included analysis of key findings by economist Dr Nicholas Biddle during analysis of Australian Census data from 2006 and 2011. It was a challenging task – the thinking and style of analysis required quite a different approach from anthropological or ethnographic writing – but the process was valuable in broadening her understanding of the issues. 

“Some of his main findings are that the population who identify with the Indigenous category in the Census has grown by over 20 per cent between 2006 and 2011, they are also young, mobile and increasingly urban,” she says.

“This growth is occurring much faster than that of the non-Indigenous population and has great potential as an untapped work force, however the figures also outline that they are much less likely to participate in education or mainstream employment. There is also a disparity in the levels of disadvantage, disability, and satisfaction with housing between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations. Such findings highlight the importance of understanding contemporary Aboriginal lifestyles by policy-makers, educators, and academics.”

Fresh out of her undergraduate degree, fellow student Camilla Price was also eager for the opportunity to contextualise theoretical issues in a practical, professional setting, and discover how that knowledge could contribute to Indigenous affairs in Australia. Her six-week placement was at Recognise, a Sydney-based people’s movement to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Australian Constitution.

“The Constitution is our nation’s founding document, and yet it excludes any recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and allows states to ban people from voting based on their race,” she says.

“At Recognise they believe that in order to see fairness and respect at the heart of the Constitution, and to achieve a more united nation, this must be changed. With more than 178,000 supporters this national campaign seeks to build a grass-roots movement through advocacy, awareness and education so that when the referendum is announced, Australians are ready to make an informed decision to forge a more equitable future together.”

With more than 80 organisations from all corners of Australia contributing and supporting the Aurora program, each internship is unique in activity and approach. In Ms Price’s case, she had the opportunity to work closely with three departments of Recognise, collaborating on key tasks and producing a number of independent projects.

It’s these types of interaction which all internships offered through the University’s Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences aim to nurture. Sitting alongside formal study requirements, internships provide that valuable vehicle where students can better understand how their studies are applied in practice and then critically reflect on the relationship between theory and practice. 

“The Recognise team were very welcoming and I feel very fortunate that I was integrated with the team on a professional level and my work was valued in its contribution to the organisation. My time there has consolidated my desire to work in social justice and Indigenous affairs and has given me great insight into the professional context of this work.”

Participants in the Aurora Program have transitioned into a wide range of employment or study paths following their internship experiences. In the past decade, 49 law graduates and 29 anthropology graduates have taken up full-time positions at NTRBs, more than 20 percent of program alumni are working or have worked in native title or Indigenous affairs, and five of the 45 Australian Indigenous internship placements led to full-time positions in the NTRB system. 

Applications for Aurora Program internships open annually in March and August. 

http://arts.unimelb.edu.au/graduate-studies/coursework/planning/internships