Voice Co-Design Senior Advisory Group Communique

Canberra - Wednesday, 13 November, 2019

The Senior Advisory Group guiding the co-design process to develop an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice met for the first time in Canberra today.

The Group comprises 19 members drawn from a broad cross section of the Australian community. Members have a range of backgrounds and bring different experiences and expertise to the table.

The Minister provided an opening statement to the Group and media, noting the historic opportunity presented by the process. He asked that the focus remains on mechanisms and models to ensure all 800,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across the country can have a say in decisions that affect them.

The Senior Advisory Group Co-Chairs, Professor Dr Marcia Langton AM and Professor Tom Calma AO, chaired the meeting which led the agenda on how the Group and process will work. The Group provided advice on the membership of the Local & Regional and National Co-Design Groups.

The Group agreed clear communication is critical so Australians have the opportunity to engage with and understand the co-design process. The Group also recognises all the work to date, and the need to ensure we learn from current and past models.

The Group committed to ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from across the nation would finally have direct input to government about their experiences, ideas and aspirations. This is a concept we invite all Australians to embrace.