Moving Forward Together in Aboriginal Women's Health: - Theses ...

Moving Forward TogetherJanet Kellythem and tell them all of his cultural business, against his and his community’swishes (as discussed in the Ethics Chapter). One of the Tauondi guidesspontaneously took the picture off the wall and gave it to her saying ‘here, youhave this, we have two of them’. Kim was very appreciative. The next weekendshe went back to her home country and related the encounter to the old Aunties(Elder women). They told her that that is a sign that that is the right place foryou to have the conference. When Kim came back and shared this with us,many Team SA members (Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal) said that they foundthis very reassuring as they often look for a sign when setting up programs andprojects, a message to indicate that what they are doing has approval or aserendipitous moment. For one Aboriginal Team SA member it was the turningpoint of their involvement; suddenly the conference became real because itwas supported by ancestors. A few Team SA members found this eventintriguing, and although they themselves did not seek such signs, they wererespectful of what it meant for those who did, highlighting the cultural respectbetween team members.The welcome & knowledge-sharing panelMuch discussion and care went into arranging the Traditional welcome tocountry and to Tauondi College. We juggled the political correctness ofrecognising a Kaurna Elder representing their country, involving the chair ofthe board, and the president of ALARA. We chose to support cultural waysbefore organisational politics. Following concepts of social justice, equity andacknowledging all knowledges as equally important, we decided againsthaving a key note speaker at our conference. A keynote speaker is usually paida large amount of money and their knowledge is showcased as (possibly more)important and valid. In a move away from this, we envisaged starting theconference with a panel discussion that could set the tone for the conference.We invited eight people to be involved, two from health, education,environment and research. Each ‘pair’ consisted of an Aboriginal and nonAboriginal person who discussed how they related to concepts of actionlearning/action research and collaboration. Our aim was that every person inthe audience could relate to at least one panel member and what they weresaying. Accordingly we had younger and older Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal305