As part of his UTS Chancellor's Indigenous Research Fellowship, Dr Allan Teale is collaborating with the Kamilaroi community in Moree to create a seniors’ retirement living facility to house Indigenous Elders.
Housing solutions for Indigenous Elders
Caption
UTS Indigenous Chancellor's Research Fellow Dr Allan Teale with Uncle Tom French and his sister Marlene Weribone
“It’s hard for most people to visualise the scale of our vision, but it is a fact that one of the greatest needs in Indigenous communities is the availability of culturally appropriate and secure seniors’ housing,” Allan said.
Elders are the knowledge keepers, particularly in regional areas, where Allan says they are often overlooked by government authorities delivering public housing supply.
As a Churchill Fellow, Allan researched Indigenous housing models and their supply in North America. The Grand Chief of the Mohawk Nation told him that less than 1% of older Indigenous people had access to public retirement housing.
It’s hard for most people to visualise the scale of our vision, but it is a fact that one of the greatest needs in Indigenous communities is the availability of culturally appropriate and secure seniors’ housing.
“These Indigenous nation communities have initiated the development and provision of culturally suitable retirement living communities for their elders, and the system works well.” Allan said, adding that the Grand Chief of the Akwesane Mohawk Nation has initiated development of a large-scale retirement living complex comprising 300 beds.
“Our ambition is to reach a similar outcome in New South Wales.”
Working with communities to co-design solutions
Inspired by his visit to the Mohawk Nation and through his meeting with the Grand Chief and community elders and their exceptional progress in delivering housing solutions for their Indigenous communities, Allan hopes to develop similar housing models for regional Australia, with a focus on seniors’ living.
“My Chancellors Indigenous Research Fellowship project is based on the development of a housing master plan, and I will be working closely with Indigenous communities, my colleague Industry PhD candidate Giles Gunesekera and interested businesses such as TransGrid and the National Australia Bank,” Allan said.
Reflecting on his meeting with the Grand Chief of the Mohawk Nation, Allan discussed the importance of self-determination.
“For 45 years, the Mohawk Nation has been co-designing policies about how to govern and lead their own communities from within. Known as the “Stepping Stones to Entewatha:wi”, this process sets out how to incorporate language and histories back into the daily lives of their people,” Allan said.
“As a result of exceptional leadership, today 92% of the people in Mohawk community either own their own home or are buying a home.”
Planting seeds
When the Chairman of the Moree Local Aboriginal Land Council, Uncle Tom French, saw Allan and the UTS team on NITV speaking about a previous UTS project he'd been involved in at Murrin Bridge, he got in touch to see what might be possible.
In 2023, Allan and colleague Dr Campbell Drake, alongside students from the UTS School of Interior Architecture, were invited to Moree to participate in workshops with Year 10 students. They wanted to design a keeping place for archival and historical purposes.
“The workshops were excellent because the school students were so engaged,” said Allan, adding that at the same time, researcher Dr Sam Donnelly was investigating how to design culturally appropriate domestic violence shelters.
We were privileged to spend time in the community, with people who generously shared their stories and ideas about their future. We learned about the importance of family, safety, and storytelling, and were challenged to design with, rather than for, people who are connected to powerful landscapes and narratives,” said Sam.
“We really appreciated having the UTS architecture students coming to work with us,” said Uncle Tom. “They assisted us with the design of our housing and cultural projects, and their professionalism and inspiration have greatly benefitted our youth and Elders in the community.”
Uncle Tom said that this kind of inspiration is crucial for fostering future engagement in projects that aim to enhance the community. From these experiences, the UTS team has developed a very strong relationship with the Indigenous communities of Moree.
Further conversations have led to collaboration on the development of the seniors’ living project that now forms the basis of Allan’s Indigenous Chancellor’s Research Fellowship.
An engaged partnership approach
“I've been out to Moree for another couple of workshops with the Aboriginal Land Council and community members and Uncle Tom has become a close colleague,” Allan said. “As researchers, we've got to get outside the box and make those connections from when you get the initial idea, not when the idea is developed.”
“And when you wish to develop such collaborative partnerships as a university, you also need to let people know you're open for business, and that you're welcoming and helpful,” said Allan.
Uncle Tom agreed and said that his community has been excited to contribute to the master plan that has evolved through community consultation and input from the Aboriginal Land Council.
As researchers, we've got to get outside the box and make those connections from when you get the initial idea, not when the idea is developed.
“For too long, our community has been overlooked. It is refreshing to experience the continued interest and involvement of the UTS team here in Moree,” he said.
Sharing the learnings
Allan is documenting the process as the project evolves and hopes to share the learnings of the partnership so that other communities can do the same.
“By listening to communities and truly partnering in our approaches to how we go about building housing solutions, we will come up with a master plan that everyone can get behind and support,” said Allan.
“We greatly appreciate the time and effort that the UTS team has dedicated to engaging with our community in such a meaningful way,” said Uncle Tom.
By listening to communities and truly partnering in our approaches to how we go about building housing solutions, we will come up with a master plan that everyone can get behind and support.
“The urban design workshops have had far-reaching impacts that extend beyond building design. They have shown our community that there is a genuine effort to include our perspectives in discussions about our land and culture in a respectful and professional manner.”
Leveraging further research opportunities
With the masterplan complete, Allan is now working alongside Industry PhD candidate Giles Gunesekera to focus on the planning and funding aspects of the project, with a major infrastructure grant application in the pipeline.
Their ambitious plan includes the creation of a large-scale solar facility with the potential capacity output to power the equivalent of 78,000 homes.
The masterplan also ensures adequate transport, commercial and employment opportunities and community facilities like shops and medical services.
Allan anticipates that these collaborations will lead to further research partnerships, particularly considering that the project includes solar development, schools, a retirement village and community housing, all built on the Sustainable Development Goals and models that are chosen and led by community members.