A dedicated team to empower Indigenous Australians on matters affecting their Country has been established by the Western Australian Government Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DEMIRS).
The unit is focused on empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as part of the department’s Aboriginal Empowerment Initiative (AEI).
The AEI is part of the department’s response to the WA Government’s Aboriginal Empowerment Strategy 2021–2029 that outlines how the government will direct its efforts towards making Indigenous people and communities feel empowered to live greater lives.
This team will be part of the Resources and Environmental Regulation group, which is focused specifically on the resources industry, ensuring mining and resource projects are developed and regulated in a culturally respectful way.
DEMIRS said that AEI is an opportunity to deliver better outcomes for Indigenous Australians.
The unit will support Indigenous people and businesses in understanding government systems and the resource industry, while also guiding department staff on effective ways to engage with the Aboriginal communities they interact with. Government policies and procedures are also being assessed to ensure they are culturally appropriate.
Regional Aboriginal Engagement team members are based in DEMIRS locations across WA, available in the south-west, Goldfields, mid-west and Pilbara regions to meet, listen, provide information and collect feedback.
The WA Government’s Aborignal Empowerment Strategy 2021-2029 was developed in partnership with the Aboriginal Advisory Council of WA.
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