Reconciliation Australia
Encyclopedia
Reconciliation Australia is the non-government
, not-for-profit foundation
established in January 2001 to provide a continuing national focus for reconciliation. It was established by the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation. The Council had become inactive as there was only a limited political commitment to reconciliation from the government of John Howard
.
In 1991, the Commonwealth Parliament voted unanimously to establish the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation and a formal reconciliation process. Parliament had noted that there had been no formal process of reconciliation and that it was “most desirable that there be such a reconciliation” by the year 2001, marking the centenary of Federation.
It is funded from corporate and government partnerships as well as tax deductible donations from individual Australians.
It works with business, government and individual Australians to bring about change, identifying and promoting examples of reconciliation in action. They also independently monitor Australia’s progress towards reconciliation.
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
, not-for-profit foundation
Foundation (architecture)
A foundation is the lowest and supporting layer of a structure. Foundations are generally divided into two categories: shallow foundations and deep foundations.-Shallow foundations:...
established in January 2001 to provide a continuing national focus for reconciliation. It was established by the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation. The Council had become inactive as there was only a limited political commitment to reconciliation from the government of John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
.
In 1991, the Commonwealth Parliament voted unanimously to establish the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation and a formal reconciliation process. Parliament had noted that there had been no formal process of reconciliation and that it was “most desirable that there be such a reconciliation” by the year 2001, marking the centenary of Federation.
It is funded from corporate and government partnerships as well as tax deductible donations from individual Australians.
It works with business, government and individual Australians to bring about change, identifying and promoting examples of reconciliation in action. They also independently monitor Australia’s progress towards reconciliation.
Directors
- Ms Jackie Huggins AM (Co-Chair), a woman of the Bidjara/Birri-Gubba Juru peoples, is Deputy Director of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit at the University of QueenslandUniversity of QueenslandThe University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
. - Mr Mark Leibler AC (Co-Chair) is the senior partner in the Melbourne legal firm Arnold Bloch Leibler and a prominent leader of the Australian and international Jewish community.
- Mr Campbell Anderson is a company director who first worked for Boral LtdBoralBoral is a multinational company dealing in building and construction materials. Founded in Australia, it also has extensive operations in the USA and Asia. Boral was demerged from the 'old' Boral Limited in February 2000. The 'old' Boral Limited, comprising energy assets, was renamed Origin Energy...
before moving to the resources sector where he spent the remainder of his executive career. A council member of the Business Council of AustraliaBusiness Council of AustraliaThe Business Council of Australia represents the chief executives of approximately 100 large Australian corporations. It was formed in 1983 by the merger of the Business Roundtable - a spin-off of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia - and the Australian Industry Development...
since 1986. - The Hon Fred ChaneyFred ChaneyFrederick Michael Chaney, AO is a former Western Australian politician who, until April 2007, held the position of deputy chairman of the Australian Native Title Tribunal and is Chair of Desert Knowledge Australia and on the Board of Directors of Reconciliation Australia.Chaney was born in Perth,...
AO is Deputy President of the National Native Title TribunalNational Native Title TribunalThe National Native Title Tribunal is an independent body that assists people to reach timely and effective outcomes for disputes about native title in Australia....
. After practising law, Fred was elected a Liberal Senator for Western Australia (1974-90) and a Member of the House of RepresentativesAustralian House of RepresentativesThe House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
(1990-93). He held various Ministerial appointments in the Fraser government, including Aboriginal Affairs. He left Parliament in 1993 and undertook research into Aboriginal Affairs policy and administration as a Research FellowResearch fellowThe title of research fellow is used to denote a research position at a university or similar institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a principal investigator...
at the University of Western AustraliaUniversity of Western AustraliaThe University of Western Australia was established by an Act of the Western Australian Parliament in February 1911, and began teaching students for the first time in 1913. It is the oldest university in the state of Western Australia and the only university in the state to be a member of the...
. He was Chancellor of Murdoch UniversityMurdoch UniversityMurdoch University is a public university based in Perth, Australia. It began operations as the state's second university in 1973, and accepted its first students in 1975...
for eight years until early 2003. - Professor Mick DodsonMick DodsonProfessor Michael James "Mick" Dodson, AM is an indigenous Australian leader, a member of the Yawuru peoples in the Broome area of the southern Kimberley region of Western Australia. His brother is Patrick Dodson, also a noted Aboriginal leader.Following his parents' death, he boarded at Monivae...
AM is a member of the Yawuru peoples. He is Professor and Chairperson of the Australian National UniversityAustralian National UniversityThe Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students...
's Institute for Indigenous Australia, and Chairman of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander StudiesAustralian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander StudiesThe Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is Australia's premier institution for information about the cultures and lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is located on Acton...
and the Australian Indigenous Leadership Centre. He represents Indigenous people of the Pacific region on the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. - Mr Dick EstensDick EstensRichard Lucas "Dick" Estens AO is an Australian cotton farmer and businessman.-Early life:Estens was born in Gilgandra and was brought up on a property close to the town. He was educated at All Saints College in Bathurst...
is a business leader and involved in the Gwydir Valley Cotton Growers’ Aboriginal Employment Strategy. - Ms Raymattja Marika-Mununggiritj is from the Rirratjingu people in the Northern TerritoryNorthern TerritoryThe Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
. She has worked predominantly in education and has collaborated with the indigenous languages strand of the Northern Territory Curriculum Frameworks. She is a council member of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, Dhimurru Land Management and the Nambara School Council. - Ms Shelley Reys, an Aboriginal woman of the Djiribul people is Managing Director of Arrilla – Aboriginal Training and Development, which promotes respect between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the wider community through practical services to the private, public and community sectors. Shelley was New South Wales (NSW) Coordinator of Australians for Reconciliation and a NSW Reconciliation Committee member. She is currently a board member of the Hollows FoundationThe Fred Hollows FoundationThe Fred Hollows Foundation is a non-profit aid organization based in Australia founded in 1992 by eye surgeon Fred Hollows. The Foundation focuses on treating and preventing blindness and other vision problems...
and is Vice President of the YWCAYWCAThe YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...
of Sydney.