During the first week of July 2023, many lab members went to the Ecological Society of Australia conference in Darwin – an excellent and diverse conference that spans theoretical ecology, applied conservation, and in particular this year, an emphasis on Indigenous knoweldge, collaboration and science.

We were delighted that the award for ‘best right way science’ was won by our group-members, Mavis Kerinaiua and Alana Brekelmans!

Mavis and Alana are part of the team working on the ARC Linkage grant, Planning for Economic Development and Biodiversity, a partnership between the Tiwi Land Council, Tiwi Resources, Deakin University, The University of Melbourne and Charles Darwin University.

The research involves the development of a framework for Tiwi governance and cross-cultural knowledge sharing, and is led by Tiwi (Mantiyupi clan) Community Based Researcher Mavis Kerinaua, in collaboration with Alana Brekelmans (Deakin University), Michaela Spencer (Charles Darwin University), Margaret Ayre (University of Melbourne), Alys Young (Deakin University) and Emily Nicholson (UniMelb). 

The Turtuni Framework is a model derived from traditional Tiwi ceremony as well as governance models created by late senior Tiwi women. In developing the framework, Mavis built on these concepts and created a visual representation of the framework in the form of a painting that could act as an engagement tool. The painting explains a Tiwi perspective on ngaruwanajirri (coming together and working together) and planning for Murrakupuni (Country), Winga (saltwater), and Kukukini (freshwater)on the Tiwi Islands.It can be used when Tiwi people are working with researchers to encourage collaborative partnerships where Tiwi knowledge and science is valued and respected alongside Western knowledge and Science.

The Turtuni framework has been developed through consultations with 39 Tiwi individuals and representatives from 10 Tiwi organisations. Based on these consultations and close work with cultural mentors the research team has drafted a ‘welcome statement’ to be used in meetings, a template memorandum of understanding for Tiwi people and other organisations to work together, and applied the Turtuni framework as an entry point for mapping important places and cultural values.