INDIGENOUS CONFERENCE SERVICES
(ICS-MEES Pty Ltd)
The IMPOSSIBLE IS JUST THE NEXT STEP FOR US IN OUR JOURNEY
100% Proudly presented, formulated, designed and organised
By First Nations Peoples
 

 

WHY ATTEND THIS CONFERENCE

This conference presents a unique opportunity for delegates to participate in a positive environment that is dedicated to the sharing of information and the empowering of all who attend. In our everyday working environment, the day to day stresses of our positions tends to limit us in expanding our knowledge and networking. Whether you work at a community level or at the governmental level the opportunity to network and gain contacts outside of your local region tend to be limited, this is why this conference will be so valuable to participants. Hence all Indigenous people and non-indigenous people, whether professional or community-based, who have a vested interest in improving the health and well being of Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander peoples with a disability are invited. This conference is for anyone who is interested in strengthening and upholding the rights of Indigenous peoples living with a disability. With a rich diversity of speakers, delegates and exhibitors, this two-day conference will empower you, inspire you and invigorate your passion for supporting your clients to reach their goals each and every day through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

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WHO SHOULD ATTEND

• Disability Support Workers

• Allied Health Professionals

• Behaviour Support Specialist

• NDIS Participants

• Family Carers & Advocates

• Recovery Coaches

• Psychologists

• Occupational Therapists

• Speech Therapists

• Indigenous Community Workers

• Remote Community Connectors

• Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander Peoples living with a disability

• Nurses, Doctors, Psychiatrists, Social Workers and Allied Health Workers

• Teachers and Special Education Educators

• Community groups and Human Rights Enthusiasts

• Family relationship workers

• Elders and community leaders

• Indigenous women and men’s groups

• CEO, Executive Managements, Program Managers

• First Nation’s groups, Human Rights Enthusiasts

• Government and Non-Government Organisation Representatives

• Field, Remote & Rural Health Workers

• Community Visitors

• Public Guardians (OPG Delegate)

• Public Trustee Officers

 

THE VISION

The conference is not politically biased. Rather, it should be seen as an opportunity to access information that is not readily available. Today the world has become smaller with the invention of the internet and jet travel.  As such, we are of the belief that there is nothing more empowering and more effective than people having an opportunity to network and collaborate. The conference vision for this event is to embrace the philosophy of First Nations community-controlled and mainstream service providers through promoting an informative forum of research, health education and training of staff for the betterment of Indigenous health.

 

​To engage in partnerships with mutual respect

• In 10 years, the closing the gap initiative has had mixed results

• We still have an Indigenous life expectancy of around 10 years less than mainstream Australians

• The past decade has seen a 70 per cent increase in Indigenous students undertaking Higher Education

• Employment targets not met

• Many Indigenous Health Targets were falling short of the mark

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Federal Government has made a commitment to creating more opportunities for Indigenous Australians to

• Celebrate those successes

• Recognise “Healing Takes Time”

• Acknowledge, embrace, celebrate the humanity of Indigenous people

• Bring to the table policies and approaches that nurture optimism rather than entrench despair

• Do things WITH Indigenous people, not FOR Indigenous People

• Even though Indigenous Australians only make up 3 per cent of the population, First Nations People still make up over 20 per cent of the prison population and that number is still increasing

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EMPOWERING DELEGATE

This event guarantees the opportunity to enlarge your network and information base, thus empowering all delegates to make greater informed decisions within their professional and extended communities. Furthermore, it has been proven time and time again that events such as this empower and reinvigorate workers with new ideas and enthusiasm, with a greater feeling of support and new contacts that may be utilised for the betterment of their own local community. Whether you are an allied health professional, Indigenous health worker, medical professional or in an administrative clerical role within the organisation, this conference will provide excellent opportunities to gain and share information that will be of use to you and your organisation back in your community.  The opportunities that this Conference provides to people involved in First Nations Health is the sharing of knowledge and development of long-term friendships/partnerships.  This conference is designed from an Indigenous perspective, in which we all lend support to each other regardless of our employers. With all this in mind, we invite you to actively participate in the upcoming event.

 

CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES

The conference objectives are designed to empower and stimulate discussion in a positive manner that can and may be used back in our work environment to further develop strength, unity and education. Moreover, one of the most powerful objectives that Indigenous peoples have is the strength to overcome adversity through the power of sharing knowledge and therefore the conference will attempt to foster all of the issues set out in this conference. The conference believes that the participation of First Peoples living with a disability in the consultation, planning, formulation of policies and programs for Closing the Gap in Indigenous disadvantage to include the implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and other aspects of the National Disability Strategy is fundamentally important to achieving our desired goal of closing the gap. Moreover, the conference also aims to:

• Provide an open and frank forum for discussion

• Network and lend support to individuals and families working in the disability sector

• Help establish and grow a national network and resources through information sharing

• Show that there are great efforts being made to make change

• Exchange information regarding the successes and challenges in the roll-out and NDIS implementation

• To bring together all sectors of the community as a united voice 

• Bring together researchers, service providers, government agencies, policymakers & organisations

• Foster partnerships between government, NGOs, community groups and Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander peoples living with a disability and their families

 

CONFERENCE STATEMENT

Indigenous peoples, nationally and internationally, will come together in an environment that can lead to the sharing of information via their cultural and historical values.  This conference is designed to inspire and enable Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander disability and community workers as well as Indigenous peoples living with a disability, NDIS service providers and other community partners to take control, step up and take action to the next level, to ensure the rights and self-determination of First Nations peoples living with a disability are upheld. To honour our Indigenous men, women, youth and children living with a disability, acknowledge their strength and resilience by listening to their stories, learning from their experiences and committing to systemic change to protect the rights of our sisters, brothers, children with a disability and their families and community. To honour also the knowledge of our men, Elders and wisdom of our cultural responses, sharing successes and struggles to chart effective, evidence-informed ways forward. The conference provides a forum to discuss solutions by Indigenous peoples and to connect and acquire knowledge from each other to heal the spirit, heal the earth, and sustain cultural practices for this generation and for future generations to come.​

 

YOUR INVITATION 

We wish to invite Indigenous and non-Indigenous people from Australia and throughout, to attend the conference to share and gather information. We also extend an invitation to participants to join us at the conference dinner in a relaxed atmosphere. To ensure that delegates attend and participate in the conference experience, it is important to note that to show accountability of delegates in meeting their obligation; each delegate will receive a Certificate of Attendance only when they attend 85% of all the conference sessions. In addition at the end of the conference, delegates will receive a copy of all papers & presentations presented at the conference through Dropbox.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONFERENCE ORGANISER​

Indigenous Conference Services (Australia) is a privately owned, wholly self-funded Indigenous business that specialises in events and conferences. Even though we are a self-funded enterprise, we come from grassroots backgrounds with burning passion for social justice issues. As such, we seek to complement the workings of community initiatives and organisations across a broad spectrum of Indigenous affairs. The events that we design seek not to have a political agenda, however, to complement local, state and national organisations. Indigenous Conference Services (Australia) seeks to employ local community members wherever possible and gives a strong undertaking to adhere to local customs and protocols. As we are a not for profit enterprise, we are continually seeking to partner with organisations. ICS-MEES Pty Ltd is totally Indigenous-owned and over time has helped establish Indigenous controlled organisations free of charge. ​

 

CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS REQUIREMENTS
If you have any participation requirements (e.g hearing loop, interpreters, large print program) please advise us to ensure availability. Delegates will need to organise their own personal support. Family carers attending will need to register as well. The venue is wheelchair accessible and meets all the requirements to be NDIS user friendly.

 

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING FOR EMPLOYERS​

Come and celebrate First Nations people & Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, strengths, successes and empowerment. To share First Nations peoples stories and ideas about what has worked for you or your community and how we address life’s challenges. This conference is blessed with an abundance of the highest calibre guest speakers from proud Indigenous peoples around Australia.  As an employee, we are asked to present valid reasons why we should attend. Listed below are valid points that can be raised with your employer to justify your attendance. 

 

• Staff attending conferences regularly tend to become long term employees

• An event such as this adds to the positive morale of staff

• Conferences are a great way of providing ongoing training

• Provides the opportunity to further enhance the organisation knowledge base

• The opportunity for saving organisations money because of the short duration of the event

• Allows delegates to showcase their organisation nationally and internationally

• May provide organisations with new ideas

• Gives organisations a voice at a national level

• Provide an opportunity to evaluate various programs

• Because this event is conducted over a short period, staff are only absent for a minimal number of days​

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