Welcome

Supporting strong, healthy, self-determining Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children connected to family and culture requires the transformation of Australia’s child protection systems.

This theme focuses on early intervention approaches that address economic, social and community-level factors that impact the safety and wellbeing of our children. Holistic views of child wellbeing that includes safety, health, culture and connections, mental health and wellbeing, home and environment, learning and skills, empowerment and economic wellbeing. We would like to hear on:

• Latest research, practices and policies that shows effective permanency for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and applies the five elements of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle(ATSICPP);
• Innovative practices and outcomes that are public facing, evidence based, collective, transformative, and provide long-term sustainability;
• Successful programs and services that support our children’s safety and wellbeing that share best practices and integrate community-based initiatives; and
• Practices that collectively strategise to achieve broader political and system change.

The early years for our children are critical, shaping their futures. The announcement by Minister for Indigenous Australians, Ken Wyatt, of a whole-of-government Indigenous early childhood strategy recognises that achieving equality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people must place our children at the centre. We know that access to quality, culturally safe services, including maternal and child health, family support, and early childhood education and care, are essential for supporting children’s development. This is particularly true for children who experience disadvantage early in life. We are interested in hearing from services that develop culturally safe and responsive policies and practices that increase access and improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children early in life and contribute to the safety and wellbeing of our children and include:

• Genuine co-design in working towards a National Early Childhood Strategy;
• Respecting, preserving and teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages;
• Child-centred approaches;
• Embedding cultural strengths at a national, regional and local level; and
• First Peoples’ rational ways of child rearing.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people remain one of the most vulnerable groups in Australia, experiencing poverty, exclusion, discrimination and removal from their homes and cultures. This reflects serious systemic denial of human rights and intergenerational trauma requiring targeted, strengths-based measures that redress the causes behind these problems.

This theme is focused on presentations that include a rights-based approach for children and young people. Focussing on self-determination and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation in issues affecting our communities. Embedded within this is the right to raise our children within our culture and support them to grow up strong in their identity. We are interested in presentations on:

• Child rights, including the rights of our children to participate in decisions affecting them and staying connected to family and culture, are embedded in legislation, policies and practice across Australia;
• Strategies that include young people and families in developing services and policies that lead to improved changes in current systems and nurture our children and youth as future leaders; and
• Programs and services that harness indigenous youth innovation.

This theme focuses particularly on collaborations that support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous organisations in building partnerships for child and family service delivery. Self-determination in relation to the wellbeing of their children and young people requires genuine partnership in the design and delivery of child protection systems, family support services, and early childhood services.

In building capacity and enabling self-determination of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, aiding the design and creation of systems that will best meet the needs of their families and communities. We are particularly interested in presentations that:

• Promote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and are led or supported by community Elders;
• Provide opportunities to partner and collaborate in providing community-based solutions for our children, young people and families; and
• Includes research on data sovereignty that supports self-governance structures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Abstract submissions will open on 4 December.