Literature Review: Governance and Leadership in Indigenous Communities

This literature review examines Indigenous community governance, exploring the interconnectedness of communities through various factors such as cultural identity, political connections, and shared histories. It highlights different types of communities, including discrete geographic communi...Read More

Literature Review

Table of Contents
Indigenous community governance.................................................................................................3
Building leadership capacity to govern the community..................................................................5

Indigenous community governance
Indigenous community can be understood as the network of different people and
organizations which are linked with each-other through webs, cultural identities, political
connections, personal relationships, shared histories, social and economic conditions and more.
In this regard, different types of communities are given below:
 Discrete geographic communities: Like remote settlements, towns, there are nearly
1300 located with rural, urban and remote locations in Australia. These residents can be
understood as mix of different families, groups, languages or people who come from
different cultural groups (McLaverty, 2017).
 Dispersed communities of identity: Sometimes, members if nations, tribes are likely to
spread across different locations within a region. However, they are likely to share
similar cultural identity hence, they are considered as a part of same community.
 A community of interest: In this, people are included who do not share similar cultural
identity but come together voluntarily as they have same goals, interest and more. It
shows that often there are various indigenous communities who live together at a same
place. However, they share similar characteristics in their extensive networks and also
valued their cultural identities significantly (Chapela, 2021).
The indigenous community governance program was run from 2005 to 2008 that was
supported under Australian research council’ linkage funding scheme. The same project also got
fund from Northern Territory and West Australian governments through different departments
like department of housing, families, and community services and so on. This project was based
on partnership between centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research and Reconciliation
Australia with an aim to undertake research about indigenous community governance along with
participating indigenous communities, leaders all across Australia and regional indigenous
organizations (Indigenous Community Governance-Project overview, 2010).
Australian government is encouraging the incorporation of indigenous community
organizations to conduct their own community affairs and also delivered government funded
services from the last thirty years as per a policy of self –determination. As a result, a indigenous
community - based organization in Australia has been efflorescence. It includes different
services like legal services, child-care services, health-services, sporting club and more. Due to

this, numerous organizations working at regional, state level are promoting different forms of
indigenous corporate governance. In addition to this, these agencies have also been sponsored
indigenous programs and organizations through their varied programs with significant amount of
success. It is analyzed that the environment which characterizes indigenous community
governance programs is resulted highly depressed and fragmented environment. It is also seen
that activities related to multiple community organizations are likely to seen uncoordinated and
sometimes at odds with each-other. Since the beginning of project, Australians have been
experienced changing policy environment which included demise of ATSIC and the short lived
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Services (ATSIS), establishment of new national
indigenous council, new federal service delivered agreements along with the suggestion of
alternate form of Indigenous representation at regional level (Strengthening Indigenous
Community Governance: A step towards advancing Reconciliation in Australia, 2005).

Building leadership capacity to govern the community
The main responsibility of indigenous leaders is to maximize the benefit of local people. In
this scenario, leadership is all about performing collective responsibility over individual needs.
Further, indigenous leaders are also likely to get significant amount of respect within the
community due to the language, knowledge, histories and more. Also, leaders are likely to use
past learned lessons to handle the issues to prepare the people of community for future. Effective
leaders not only stand with their community but also gather valuable insights and listen them
effectively to take suitable decisions for future betterment (Building leadership capacity to
govern, 2022). For this purpose, leaders need to have certain characteristics to further assist them
in terms of performing role of effective community leader in significant manner.
 To become a good leader, a person needs to have effective listening abilities as it will
allow them to listen the issues that are being faced by others. Along with listening, there
is also requirement to maintain effective communication to get better outcomes.
 Further, there is requirement to have strong cultural and spiritual identity within the
individual with an aim to become a good leader in future. These cultural abilities are
useful in terms of maintain proper connection with individuals. Along with this, the
leaders of indigenous community need to have spiritual identity to influence people of
communities in significant manner.
 To be a community leader, one needs to give preference to community needs over
individual needs as it is imperative to think about the entire community first in order to
ensure maximum benefit of the community. This will help leader in ensuring growth of
community members significantly (Rodd, 2020).
 Being a leader, an individual have to take several decisions on daily basis. To take better
decisions, it is imperative to think with consensus. Decisions taken from consensus are
helpful in terms of guiding and supporting the community efficiently.
To become an indigenous leader, one needs to have certain qualities. Having knowledge and
self-assured identity is important as this makes a person enable to know the history of land &
community. Further, good leaders are confident with their indigenous identity. For this purpose,
it is important to have understanding and following suitable traditional practices along with

having respect for others, self-respect and indigenous culture (Indigenous Leadership, 2022). To
become an effective indigenous leaders major qualities are mentioned below:
 Community: There is focus on community interests rather than individual. There is
requirement to leave such a legacy behind that create paramount benefits for all.
 Collaboration: Here, leaders need to have ability to maintain collaboration among all the
members to take suitable decisions which are better & effective for the entire community
(Hammond, Clapp-Smith & Palanski, 2017).
 Safety: Leaders also need to have quality to ensure safety of all the people during the
process. Here, safety is also vital for achieving consensus.

Refernces
Books and journals
McLaverty, P. (Ed.). (2017). Public participation and innovations in community governance.
Taylor & Francis.
Chapela, F. (2021). Indigenous community forest management in the Sierra Juarez, Oaxaca.
In The Community Forests of Mexico (pp. 89-110). University of Texas Press.
Rodd, J. (2020). Leadership in early childhood: The pathway to professionalism. Routledge.
Hammond, M., Clapp-Smith, R., & Palanski, M. (2017). Beyond (just) the workplace: A theory
of leader development across multiple domains. Academy of Management Review, 42(3),
481-498.
Online
Indigenous Community Governance-Project overview, (2010). [Online]. Available through :<
https://caepr.cass.anu.edu.au/indigenous-community-governance-project-overview/>
Strengthening Indigenous Community Governance: A step towards advancing Reconciliation in
Australia, (2005). [Online]. Available through :<
https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/162631492.pdf/>
Indigenous Leadership, (2022). [Online]. Available through :<
https://oneca.com/documents/Indigenous%20Leadership.pdf/>
Building leadership capacity to govern, (2022). [Online]. Available through :<
https://toolkit.aigi.com.au/toolkit/4-5-building-leadership-capacity-to-govern/>