THE Edith Cowan University’s Business Innovation Centre, which has 38 businesses in its incubator, has been praised helping to bring through successful new Indigenous businesses.

Federal Small Business Minister Michael McCormack made the remarks on his Western Australian ‘listening tour’ which was focused on small businesses, especially learning of Indigenous business success stories.

With indigenous employment and procurement a key focus of the Federal Government, Mr McCormack said he met with two businesses which participate in the Indigenous Supplier Development Program.

"I toured Tri Shield Services – an indigenous company providing maintenance, construction and security services to mining and resource companies throughout WA, as well as In-Balance – an Aboriginal-owned and family-run company which exports a range of unique, environmentally-friendly Australian industrial cleaning products to the world,” Mr McCormack said.

“Both these companies are Indigenous Australian Small Business Advisory Service clients and provide the jobs, investment and opportunities Indigenous communities in WA deserve.

“It was terrific to see directly how investment through the ASBAS program can deliver the confidence and investment the Government wants to see across Australia.

“It’s clear the National Innovation and Science Agenda, as well as our Crowd-Source Equity Funding program is helping many young people at Edith Cowan get their start and pursue their dream,” Mr McCormack said.

www.treasury.gov.au

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THE Federal Government has dedicated $4.6 million for 11 new research projects through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Indigenous scheme, boosting training and projects by Indigenous researchers.

Investigating culturally-appropriate social technologies to improve connectedness and well-being among Indigenous Australians, examining the development of resilience and well-being of Indigenous youth, and researching culturally sensitive ways to teach Indigenous students are some of the important new research projects to be undertaken by Australia’s Indigenous researchers with new funding. 

Acting CEO of the ARC, Leanne Harvey, welcomed the announcement by Education and Training Minister, Senator Simon Birmingham, saying the Discovery Indigenous scheme was important as it developed and supported the research expertise of Indigenous Australian researchers.

Some of the research projects to be undertaken by the Discovery Indigenous researchers commencing in 2017 include:

University of Melbourne’s Dr Christopher Lawrence will use $473,000 to investigate culturally-appropriate social technologies to improve connectedness and wellbeing among Indigenous Australians.

Murdoch University professor Rhonda Marriott from will lead a $371,000 project to examine the development of resilience and wellbeing in Indigenous youth, to better understand the connections between age, cultural identity, resilience, wellbeing and risky behaviours. 

University of South Australia professor Lester Rigney will receive $337,000 to examine how teachers in mainstream middle school classrooms can teach young Indigenous Australians in a culturally sensitive way and improve attendance and learning outcomes.

This announcement of 11 Discovery Indigenous projects is part of the ARC Major Grants announcement totalling $416.6 million for 989 research projects. 

www.ministers.education.gov.au

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SOLAR power technology specialists, Brisbane-based Redback Technologies, has announced a partnership with AllGrid Energy to address energy reliability access issues facing Australia’s remote communities.

Under the partnership, AllGrid will utilise Redback’s core hardware and software technologies with a focus on adapting the Redback suite for utilisation in remote applications. AllGrid will build additional functionality in conjunction with Redback for integration of water and related bio systems required for increasing quality of life for remote community inhabitants. 

The partnership initiated when Redback Technologies managing director, Philip Livingston and AllGrid Energy CEO, Ray Pratt were presenting at a recent storage summit at Parliament House. 

Mr Livingston said it was apparent each company’s value proposition and goals aligned, and both were dedicated to their respective products.

“The partnership was a natural fit,” he said.

AllGrid Energy, an Indigenous renewable technology company, partners with remote and indigenous communities, implementing what they have dubbed ‘The Oasis Strategy’, an oasis being a source of abundance in a desert of depletion. AllGrid strives to facilitate a return to self-sufficiency and make a true difference in these communities.

Mr Pratt said the AllGrid team were happy not be re-inventing the wheel in their alliance with Redback.

“Redback’s inverter and software technology provide an intelligent platform for the use of storage in the home. This melds perfectly with AllGrid’s systems which are ideally suited for the work we are doing in remote areas,” Mr Pratt said.

“Bringing the two together will allow the creation of a technologically superior product for our customers.

“Australia is a vast continent and many Indigenous people live in remote and regional areas. The cost of transmitting energy through wires that span thousands of kilometres is enormous and this means that these communities are often compromised in their power supplies and are experiencing real energy poverty.”

Redback’s proprietary cloud enabled intelligent system for analytics and remote control, which it calls the Ouija Board, uses machine learning to gather intelligence over time, learning from user preferences as well as drawing data from external factors like the weather.

Redback Technologies’ Mr Livingston, believes that software is the secret to solar energy management and the partnership with AllGrid will benefit those who are in most need of our collective solutions.

“The idea is to use smart software to maximise the energy produced,” Mr Livingston said. “We are both young and emerging companies who are passionate and determined to reach the same vision of a renewable energy future. Our partnership and commitment to collaboration gives us agility and resilience in this new and exciting market.”

Ray Pratt pointed out that, “although we are a wealthy first world country, in many remote communities and areas of significant Indigenous population, people are living in third world conditions. Across the world it is being increasingly recognised that renewable technologies have the potential to facilitate self-sufficiency.

“Community engagement is essential to the success of our projects. Delivering holistic outcomes through culturally appropriate methods and education to ensure long term solutions, beyond just technical ones, is our priority.”

AllGrid, as an Indigenous corporation, uses a percentage of profits to create training and work programs for the indigenous youth of Australia. AllGrid has notable projects in Western NSW, Port Augusta in South Australia and Northern Queensland, working regularly with Indigenous Business Australia and the Department of Defence.

www.allgrid.energy

www.redbacktech.com

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THE winning partnership between Cairns Indigenous Art Fair (CIAF) and Ports North continued in July as the waterfront venue of Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal and its park surrounds played host to the popular three-day event.

CIAF and Ports North have enjoyed a long and successful relationship that in 2012 received top honours at the Queensland division of the Australian Business Arts Foundation (AbaF) City of Melbourne SME Award.

According to CIAF general manager, Vanessa Gillen, CIAF shared the Queensland award with Ports North in recognition of their partnership that enabled the world-class event to evolve and expand as a result of its move to Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal. 

“Since those early years of CIAF the Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal has played an integral role in perfectly positioning the event and providing an idyllic, multi-dimensional venue to enjoy art exhibitions, fashion performances, music and dance on the outdoor stage, workshop activities on the lawn and close proximity to everything,” Ms Gillen said.

“The Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal is such a magnificent waterfront venue that showcases our stunning tropical Trinity Inlet while being more accessible to Cairns locals and visitors.

“As an Indigenous cultural experience, CIAF is a major contributor to the region, culturally and economically.

“Last year’s commissioned survey found that CIAF contributing more than 4.7 million in Cairns and more than 2.6 million to the Queensland economy in terms of local and tourist expenditure during the event,” she said.

Ports North chairman, Russell Beer commended the relationship which he said represented great synergies between Cairns heritage, environment and culture.

“We’ve had a strong relationship with CIAF from its beginning, and our sponsorship agreement which sees CIAF being held at the Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal is a worthwhile investment by the corporation,” Mr Beer said.

“As well as exhibiting Australia’s premier Indigenous artwork, it also showcases Cityport, our Cairns Foreshore Development and the Cairns Cruise Liner Terminal to a national and international audience.”

Cairns Indigenous Art Fair is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland’s Backing Indigenous Arts Initiative, a program that aims to build a stronger, more sustainable and ethical Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts industry in the state.  It is also supported through the Visual Arts and Crafts Strategy, an initiative of the Australian State and Territory Governments.

www.ciaf.com.au

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