The Centre for Indigenous Futures OBJECTIVE is to investigate and improve the vitality of Indigenous Australians by utilising Indigenous knowledges in unique transdisciplinary research to enhance our understanding about the complex nature of Indigenous intergenerational inequity.

Relationality is the core value driving the Centre, acknowledging the shared lifeforce that connects us to our respective lands, our creators, all living and non-living entities and our ancestors. It informs the way research is conceived, interpreted, designed, conducted, analysed, and presented. It draws our attention Indigenous presences within different social contexts (Moreton- Robinson 2017; 2000).

Survivance recognises the continued presence of Indigenous ways of knowing, being and doing. It informs the research program’s three themes and is a core element of relational transdisciplinary research. Indigenous survivance is integral to relationality, which is defined as the interpretive and epistemic scaffolding shaping and supporting Indigenous social research.

As Indigenous researchers our research conduct is defined by our cultural obligation to be responsible and accountable to our respective communities, including being compliant with the ARC endorsed AIATSIS Code of Ethics for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research (2020), which encompasses self- determination, leadership, impact and value, sustainability, and accountability.

The Centre’s principle of self-determination resolves that Indigenous communities and researchers, together, will provide solutions to Indigenous inequity. The right to self-determination is contained in Article 3 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights both endorsed by the Australian government.

For the first time in the world, a Centre of Excellence dedicated to transforming the lives of Indigenous peoples through the comprehension of intergenerational inequity, will be completely Indigenous led. By bringing Indigenous grounded knowledge, self-determination and responsibility, the IFC presents an intervention into the social research landscape which has thus far failed to address Indigenous inequality.

The Indigenous Futures Centre’s community driven and relational research approach aligns with the NA-CTG-2020 which petitions for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have, “a genuine say in the design and delivery of services that affect them, better life outcomes are achieved. It recognises that structural change in the way Governments work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is needed to close the gap”.

Critical to the Centre’s legacy is building the next generation of Indigenous researchers. The Indigenous Futures Centre presents a longer-term commitment to Indigenous research capacity building that builds upon the National Indigenous Research and Knowledges Network (NIRAKN) led by Distinguished Professor Aileen Moreton-Robinson.