This year’s Australasian Aid Conference was a really special full circle moment for me. My first week at Ninti last year was spent at AAC, completely new and taking everything in. Coming back this year, marking my one year at Ninti, and being given the honour to present on behalf of our organisation meant a lot.
I presented on Panel 6E Perspectives on First Nations Approaches to Development: Past, Present and Future. The panel was chaired by David Poulton who brought so much depth to the conversation. I was lucky to present alongside Dr Sanjaya Mahato and Alasdair Hill, who spoke powerfully about the harms of top-down approaches in Nepal and the impacts of extractive systems in Tuvalu and the Torres Strait Islands.
Representing Ninti, I posed the question: will DFAT’s new Guidance Note on First Nations Approaches enhance development cooperation? This is something that sits at the heart of our work. First Nations peoples have carried knowledge, evidence and ways of working that have sustained communities for tens of thousands of years. The question is not whether these perspectives can enhance development, because they already do. The real question is whether the system is finally ready to use the knowledge that has been here all along.
It was wonderful seeing friends, colleagues and partners in the audience, and yarning with new people afterwards. A special shout out to my AFNAD family for always showing up for each other. It honestly means so much.
Thank you to the Indigenous people in the room who carry the stories of their old people, the wisdom of knowledge and the heart from their lands. It is always an honour to be together. And to the non-Indigenous people who walk beside us as strong allies, thank you. As I said, we cannot do this effort alone.
I also posed a light-hearted but serious question to the audience. Who won the last Ashes test in Perth? It was a metaphor leading into my final message about the hands that First Nations people continue to raise.
First Nations peoples have had our hands up for generations, with knowledge, with evidence, with ways of working that have sustained communities for tens of thousands of years.
So, the question we should be asking is not whether First Nations perspectives can enhance development cooperation.
They already do.
The real question is whether the system is ready to use the knowledge that has been there all along.
The Guidance Note gives us a framework to build from.
The next step is building the pathways that allow those raised hands to finally be called on.
Sharing this on behalf of Ninti, exactly one year after joining, was a true honour and holds deep meaning for me.
December 17, 2025
Australasian Aid Conference
This year’s Australasian Aid Conference was a really special full circle moment for me. My first week at Ninti last year was spent at AAC, completely new and taking everything in. Coming back this year, marking my one year at Ninti, and being given the honour to present on behalf of our organisation meant a lot.
I presented on Panel 6E Perspectives on First Nations Approaches to Development: Past, Present and Future. The panel was chaired by David Poulton who brought so much depth to the conversation. I was lucky to present alongside Dr Sanjaya Mahato and Alasdair Hill, who spoke powerfully about the harms of top-down approaches in Nepal and the impacts of extractive systems in Tuvalu and the Torres Strait Islands.
Representing Ninti, I posed the question: will DFAT’s new Guidance Note on First Nations Approaches enhance development cooperation? This is something that sits at the heart of our work. First Nations peoples have carried knowledge, evidence and ways of working that have sustained communities for tens of thousands of years. The question is not whether these perspectives can enhance development, because they already do. The real question is whether the system is finally ready to use the knowledge that has been here all along.
It was wonderful seeing friends, colleagues and partners in the audience, and yarning with new people afterwards. A special shout out to my AFNAD family for always showing up for each other. It honestly means so much.
Thank you to the Indigenous people in the room who carry the stories of their old people, the wisdom of knowledge and the heart from their lands. It is always an honour to be together. And to the non-Indigenous people who walk beside us as strong allies, thank you. As I said, we cannot do this effort alone.
I also posed a light-hearted but serious question to the audience. Who won the last Ashes test in Perth? It was a metaphor leading into my final message about the hands that First Nations people continue to raise.
First Nations peoples have had our hands up for generations, with knowledge, with evidence, with ways of working that have sustained communities for tens of thousands of years.
So, the question we should be asking is not whether First Nations perspectives can enhance development cooperation.
They already do.
The real question is whether the system is ready to use the knowledge that has been there all along.
The Guidance Note gives us a framework to build from.
The next step is building the pathways that allow those raised hands to finally be called on.
Sharing this on behalf of Ninti, exactly one year after joining, was a true honour and holds deep meaning for me.
Zara Maddigan
International Development Advisor