The 2019 SNAICC National Conference was our eighth official conference and was held in the lands of the Kaurna people, Tarntanya (red kangaroo place) at the Adelaide Convention Centre. Senior Aboriginal Man Mickey Kumpati Marrutya O’Brien, descendant of the Kaurna (Adelaide Plains) and Narrunga (York Peninsula) peoples, welcomed delegates at the conference opening which included a smoking ceremony.
The conference attracted record numbers, with 1230 delegates coming from approximately 400 organisations from around the country. The delegation included participants from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children’s services, health and wellbeing workers from government and non-government sectors.
With a key focus on Growing Up with Strong Identity, Culture and Connection the conference provided the opportunity for the sector to convene, share and showcase knowledge, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from across the country. It also gave delegates the opportunity to connect and hear from leading national and international child rights and development experts.
Emanating from the conference, was a united call for urgent action to ensure our children have every opportunity to grow up safe and cared for in their family, community and culture. With the following actions needed to set us on that path:
- The establishment of a national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children’s commissioner.
- A comprehensive National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children’s Strategy that includes generational targets to eliminate the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care.
- A dedicated funding program for integrated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander early years services, and an exemption to the child care ‘Activity Test’ for our families.
- An end to legal orders for permanent care and adoption for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, replaced by a focus on supporting the permanence of their identity in connection with their kin and culture
Daily round-ups
For a summary of the action from each day, view these daily round-ups.
Conference Communiqué
Plenary Presentations
We are in the process of updating this page. Videos of the plenary sessions will be posted shortly.
Photo Galleries
Downloadable Presentations
SNAICC is very pleased to be able to showcase many of the presentations from the concurrent sessions held at the conference. There are over 30 well-researched, insightful and poignant presentations to view.
