Council training program in national excellence awards final

An Indigenous cultural awareness training program for Redland City Council employees is a finalist in a prestigious national award for excellence in corporate learning and development.

Redland City Mayor Karen Williams said Council’s Look, Listen, Understand education program for its employees was a finalist in the Australian Institute of Training and Development (AITD) Excellence Awards with the winners being announced on 12 November.

Redland City Council is up against Origin Energy, Engineers Australia and Anneli Blundell (Women@Work) in the Best Diversity and Inclusion Program awards category, Cr Williams said.

“The AITD awards recognise outstanding achievement in learning and development and the competition is fierce with a record number of entries this year, so it is exciting to be a finalist,” she said.

“It also is an affirmation of Council’s commitment to being a culturally safe, inclusive and resilient workplace, which in turn creates and strengthens positive and lasting relationships with the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

“The Look, Listen, Understand program includes a two-hour Indigenous information session as well as a full day of immersive training on-country on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) at the invitation of the Minjerribah Moorgumpin Elders-in-Council (MMEIC).

“The MMEIC and Traditional Owner Matt Burns have been gracious and generous in helping Council deliver this program which was developed by Redland City Council’s Learning and Development Adviser Merrin McCulloch and Indigenous Partnerships and Programs Coordinator Brett Nutley.”

Cr Williams said that to date more than 528 employees had participated in the program.

“It is designed to further develop the participant’s knowledge around the traditional way of Indigenous life and how to respect social, cultural and professional values and beliefs,” she said.

“The course design deliberately focuses on moving participants from a classroom-based environment to where they can taste the culture (bush tucker and medicines), see and touch the flora and fauna and experience the language that has been part of the Quandamooka history for thousands of years.”