Lowitja Institute

Lowitja Institute

Research Services

Collingwood, Victoria 10,598 followers

Australia's National Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Research

About us

Australia’s only Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled health research institute. It is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisation, named in honour of its patron, Dr Lowitja O'Donoghue. The Institute was established in 2010, emerging from a 14-year history of Cooperative Research Centres in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research. Since 1997, the Lowitja Institute and its predecessor CRC organisations, have led a substantial reform agenda in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research by working with communities, researchers and policymakers, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people setting the agenda and driving the outcomes. At present, we work in partnership with 22 participants around Australia, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations, State and Australian government departments, and academic research institutions. Together, we aim to achieve demonstrable impact in better health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through research, capacity building, workforce development, knowledge exchange and research translation.

Industry
Research Services
Company size
11-50 employees
Headquarters
Collingwood, Victoria
Type
Nonprofit
Founded
2010
Specialties
Research, Health, Knowledge Exchange, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health research

Locations

Employees at Lowitja Institute

Updates

  • Lowitja Institute reposted this

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    Cancer Australia is calling for applications for the Partnerships for Cancer Research grant program – a new $9.6 million initiative to support cancer research for and by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Cancer Australia is delivering this grant in partnership with the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). This national grant program aims to involve communities in designing research for their benefit and strengthen partnerships between communities, health services, and research institutions. Partnerships, with funding of up to $2.5 million each, will improve outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, enhance equitable cancer care, build research skills among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander researchers, and support local leadership in cancer research.  Applications for the Partnerships for Cancer Research grant program are currently being accepted until 5pm (AEDT) Wednesday 12 February 2025, via NHMRC's grant management system – Sapphire. To learn more about the Partnerships for Cancer Research grant program and how to submit an application, visit https://bit.ly/4cEY7lw

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    Read more about the latest article in First Nations Health and Wellbeing – The Lowitja Journal ⬇️

    Our latest research paper is hot off the press: "Exploring practical and ethical dilemmas when conducting research with small population groups in First Nations communities: Privileging stories as data, and data as stories."   This work is led by Rhonda Marriott AM at the Ngangk Yira Institute, in collaboration with Carrington Shepherd from Curtin Medical School's Indigenous Health Research Program.   The article delves into the complexities and ethical considerations of researching in First Nations contexts.   Key highlights:   - Co-designing innovative methodologies that align with both Indigenous ways of knowing and scientific paradigms is a powerful way to generate high-impact knowledge, to distil locally relevant cumulative wisdom and attain a bridge to more generalisable findings and theory development.   - The manuscript highlights the importance of collective (larger scale) data as ‘community stories’; to be useful and accessible in a community context, data must be translatable as meaningful stories to guide action.   - Drawing on mixed methods provided stories with both breadth and depth of understanding of complex issues.           The article is open access and therefore available free of charge: https://lnkd.in/ecdiinJq. Authors: Corinne Reid, Roz Walker, Kim Usher, Debra Jackson AO, Carrington Shepherd, Rhonda Marriott AM.   Feel free to share with your networks, especially those collaborating with First Nations people in research, to promote wider discussion and engagement.   Please also share and support the newly established, Indigenous-led journal: Lowitja Institute's First Nations Health and Wellbeing - The Lowitja Journal.   #Research #FirstNations #IndigenousKnowledge #EthicalResearch #OpenAccess #CommunityStories #DataSovereignty #LowitjaInstitute

    Exploring practical and ethical dilemmas when conducting research with small population groups in First Nations communities: Privileging stories as data, and data as stories

    Exploring practical and ethical dilemmas when conducting research with small population groups in First Nations communities: Privileging stories as data, and data as stories

    sciencedirect.com

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    Read how a South Australian Aboriginal Health Research Accord was developed in this article from the first edition of the Lowitja Journal. The Accord acts as an important step forward in ethical health research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities by offering a localised framework to ensure respectful, impactful, and culturally appropriate research practices. This was developed to ensure Aboriginal voices shape health research that benefits their communities. The article lays out 9 guiding principles that were developed as a road map for researchers, institutions, and service providers, through consultations, literature review, and a consensus workshop. 1. Identify the right people within the kinship network to enable culturally sensitive communication (Jacobs et al., 2010). 2. Be transparent and open in communication: • a series of conversations with community members may be necessary • establish equivalent partnerships with community members • determine a shared understanding of the proposed research • identify any specific or sensitive cultural matters that may influence the way in which samples should be best managed. 3. Establish formal community endorsement for the project to proceed. 4. Ensure informed family or individual consent which adheres to local Aboriginal cultural protocols (AIATSIS, 2011). 5. Identify any potential risks or harm to communities and individuals (NHMRC, 2003). 6. Adhere to all ethical requirements when dealing with biological materials (Jacobs et al., 2010). 7. Produce protocols relating to the use and storage of biological materials that are agreed to, with clear provisions for withdrawal of samples (Jacobs et al., 2010). 8. Any use of samples for secondary purposes will require community consent and approval, without exception (Hendersen et al., 2002). 9. Researchers must be prepared for community refusal of research and this must be accepted and respected, irrespective of the stage of the research, even if this involves the destruction of biological material. Read more about the Accord and its impact in The Lowitja Journal: https://hubs.li/Q02RBBT90 #EthicalResearch #IndigenousHealth #LowitjaJournal #CommunityLed #ResearchAccord #AboriginalHealth

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    Join us for the next webinar in The Lowitja Journal webinar series. Our speakers will break down the CONSIDER statement, a global guideline for reporting health research involving Indigenous peoples, and provide practical examples of how you can strengthen your research practices. Hosted by Kristy Meiselbach and Amali Andrews, this webinar features Distinguished Professor Suetonia Green and Associate Professor Tania Huria from the University of Otago. Together, they will share their expertise in decolonised research practices and discuss how to implement best practice tools in your own research. Register now and secure your spot: https://hubs.ly/Q02RBnhp0 #IndigenousResearch #LowitjaInstitute #CONSIDERStatement #FirstNationsHealth #HealthResearch

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    Our co-patron, the late Dr Lowitja O’Donoghue AC CBE DSG has been honoured through a new award recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander South Australians delivering exceptional care to advance health outcomes across the state. The Dr Lowitja O’Donoghue Award for Excellence in Aboriginal Health was announced at the SA Health Aboriginal Workforce Network (SHAWN) Forum held last week. Lowitja Institute's Deb Edwards spoke at the event alongside Minister for Health and Wellbeing Chris Picton MP. This award honours Yankunytjatjara woman Dr O’Donoghue’s legacy by recognising individuals and initiatives across SA Health that reflect her commitment to improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workforce development.

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    Nominations are now open for the Tom Calma Award. The award highlights those working to advance health equity, improve public health and reduce tobacco-related harm. Nominations for the inaugural Tom Calma Award close 8 Oct 2024. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gMRyyYtA #OTCC2024 #SystemicChange University of Canberra Raglan Maddox Yardhura Walani

    Tom Calma Award — Tobacco Free Research Group

    Tom Calma Award — Tobacco Free Research Group

    tobaccofree.com.au

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    "Critically, supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health requires a comprehensive approach that considers health as more than just the absence of disease or illness; it is a holistic concept that includes physical, social, emotional, cultural, spiritual and ecological wellbeing, for both the individual and the community." This article in the Lowitja Journal highlights how high vaccination rates among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities was made possible during the COVID-19 pandemic https://hubs.li/Q02QyJGc0

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    We are proud to celebrate our co-Patron Pat Anderson AO who was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education at their 2024 graduation ceremony. Pats’s recognition reflects the profound impact she has made on the lives of First Nations peoples, and we are honoured to have her as a guiding force at Lowitja Institute.

    A special highlight of our recent graduation ceremony was the conferral of an Honorary Doctorate to Ms Pat Anderson AO, recognising her outstanding contributions to First Nations rights in health, education, and social justice. Born in Darwin and raised in the Parap Camp, Ms Anderson is an Alyawarre woman renowned nationally and internationally for her advocacy and leadership in First Peoples’ communities. To learn more about Pat and her work visit https://lnkd.in/gPithANn

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