First Nations Community Engagement

First Nations community engagement website page

The Centre for Learning and Innovation (CFLI) would like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri, Bunurong, Wadawurrung, Yorta Yorta and Gunai Kurnai peoples who are the Traditional Custodians of the lands and waterways where we offer training in centres and online around Australia.

We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. We recognise and value the many contributions that Traditional Custodians make to Victorian communities each day.

We warmly welcome all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Victoria to our services. We understand that you have a choice of providers when seeking services and hope that you will consider us when you need support.

We support Aboriginal-led agreements in Victoria and recognise that self-determination is foundational to any successful and meaningful partnership with Aboriginal communities in Victoria.

We are committed to growing cultural competency across our services and recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ lived experiences of the Stolen Generations and institutional abuse.

We are committed to promoting and ensuring culturally safe access to our services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and communities.

We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ enduring connection to Country, their deep cultural knowledge and custodial rights and responsibilities to the lands and waterways. We allow this to lead and inform us in all interactions and working partnerships moving forward.

We are continually developing our understanding of how best to engage with First Nations peoples and communities, being always mindful of the importance of self-determination. Our centres engage with local Aboriginal communities in the regions in which we work, to develop deeper, trusted and more meaningful relationships that support community members accessing our services.

We source Cultural Awareness training for our staff from a number of providers in Victoria including the Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA), Salt Consultancy and local Elders. This allows us to access culturally specific training to help us better meet the needs of Aboriginal communities and increase our cultural competency as an organisation.

Our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement Specialist also regularly delivers cultural education presentations to a range of external agencies, organisations and universities.