Indigenous women in science: A proposed framework for leadership, knowledge, innovation, and complexity

Indigenous engagement in tertiary education has been contentious in Australia for many years. This was brought sharply into focus with the 2012 review into higher education, which highlighted a lack of parity for Indigenous Australians. One of the solutions to a lack of parity in participation could be the concept of a dual academy. A dual academy approach to higher education would incorporate both Indigenous and Western knowledge systems equally. Conversations and thinking about Indigenous participation and engagement in higher education led to an opportunity to coordinate a series of workshops. These workshops, conducted in Darwin, Alice Springs, and Galiwin’ku in the Northern Territory of Australia, were attended by Indigenous women with definite views about links between their own cultural knowledge and education. The combined knowledge addressed diverse areas of science, including midwifery, educational design, linguistics, and drone piloting. After listening to the participants, a list of themes emerged together with a proposed implementation framework requiring testing and possibly paving the way for a future research project.