Thamurrurr Indigenous Youth Corporation
WHY – THE NEED
The Thamarrurr Youth Indigenous Corporation aims to improve the lives of the indigenous people of the Thamarrur region in the Northern Territory through identifying and developing its future leaders.
To help achieve its goals, the Corporation offers programs in Wadeye and Bright in North East Victoria.
The Dumu Balcony Café in Bright is a social enterprise that employs and trains youth from the Thamarrurr area. Whilst working in the café, trainees learn valuable employment and life skills and develop knowledge to use in their community or anywhere else they choose.
The owners and operators of Dumu Cafe, Justin and Rebecca Crawley, were seeking additional support to build knowledge about the business model of social enterprise with team leaders and youth from Wadeye.
HOW – THE APPROACH
In 2018 Social Enterprise Academy Australia for the first time delivered an Indigenous learning and development program which was translated in language for the participants. The approach was to use the Social Enterprise in Schools program and materials as a framework for the delivery of the program for the Thamurrurr Indigenous Youth Corporation.
*ACRE manages the Social Enterprise Academy in Australia
THE IMPACT
Over the course of two days, the team from the Academy worked alongside workshop participants to build confidence and capacity. Youth Team Leaders gained resources to continue group learning about social enterprise through the practical implementation of their ideas. Trainees developed business plans for a small motors social enterprise and a hairdressing social enterprise which be used to support applications for start-up funding.
Members of the Wadeye community subsequently joined an international symposium in Scotland that focussed on rural and remote social enterprises.
Dallas Mugarra and Leon Kinthari from the Thamarrurr Youth Indigenous Corporation travelled with the Corporation’s employment and training manager, Rebecca Crawley, to join members of the ACRE team at the Social Enterprise World Forum in Scotland in 2018. During the Forum, Dallas, Leon and Rebecca met a number of practitioners who alongside First Nations people to transform communities , especially in Canada. This networking offered opportunities to share experiences and learn from other people around the world who have similar aspirations.
