The Northern East Kimberley region of Western Australia is facing a development crossroads with the need to make a decision on either the extension or closure of Argyle Diamond Mine. This region also has a major economic development problem in that half of its adult population is almost entirely Aboriginal, is highly dependent on welfare...

The ultimate strength of Indigenous peoples' political claims lies in their being seen as quite different from those other interest groups. Following the example of Canada, Will Sanders looks at the idea of Indigenous peoples' organisations and their processes of representation as constituting an Indigenous order of Australian government. It is argued that this is...

In May 2001, the Federal Government announced a new policy framework, Australians Working Together, in response to the McClure Reference Group Report on Welfare Reform. Mark Champion, an Indigenous project officer for ATSIC's Queanbeyan Regional Office, outlines the initiatives aimed at encouraging 'urban' Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP) schemes to take on the additional role...

In collaboration with biological scientists at Northern Territory University and Bawinaga Aboriginal Corporation in central Arnhem Land, Jon Altman aims to generate creative ideas about development futures for Aboriginal people living on Aboriginal land. By broadening the notion of economy and development to include the customary economy, the hybrid economy model includes important Indigenous contributions...

The Australian desert's unique social, economic and environmental characteristics create challenges in supporting its 179,000 people. This report presents research commissioned as part of supporting documentation for a proposal to establish a Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre (CRC). The aim was to explore the scope for demographic analysis of the desert by preparing population projections...