Indigenous Persons' Liaison Officer and Women's Officer

Sadie Heckenberg, a member of the Wiradjuri Nation, is both the CAPA Indigenous Peoples’ Liasion Officer and Women’s Officer for 2012. Sadie is currently undertaking a PhD within the Faculty of Education at Monash University, as well as the Professional Certificate in Indigenous Research at the University of Melbourne. A passion for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights has always been very important to Sadie and has directed her research including that of her honours, "Yindyamarra: Cultural Safety and Indigenous Peoples in Australia". Indeed since 2006 she has been working in the Monash Faculty of Arts at the Gippsland Centre of Australian Indigenous Studies as a research assistant, sessional lecturer, tutorial teacher and unit coordinator. Working in research and academic teaching has allowed experience in areas such as; Indigenous education, literature, archival research, Gippsland picture shows, East Gippsland Reconciliation and Victorian Stolen Wages. The last of which, under the auspices of AIATSIS, resulted in the 2009 book the Government Owes a Lot of Money to our people: A History of Indigenous Stolen Wages in Victoria, co-authored with Dr Andrew Gunstone.

Sadie’s PhD research is examining teaching Indigenous language within mainstream education. In Australia there is a revival of inclusive Interdisciplinary education within mainstream school systems, lead by Indigenous community Elders. Indeed to create a truly sustainable future for Indigenous children, those from traditional communities should have the right to be taught within their own language. Furthermore children within a more urban environment should have the benefit of learning their own cultural language within a school-based setting. During 2012 Sadie will have the privilege of visiting communities across Australia to see how their language programs have become a staple within local school communities.

Sadie is the Indigenous Officer of the Monash Postgraduate Association.

Contact Details: women [at] capa.edu.au

indigenous [at] capa.edu.au