Protocols of engagement with Indigenous communities to address postgraduate enrolments

Abstract

The commitment by universities to foster a collegial and mutually respectful collaboration with Indigenous communities has been seen as a major step forward in addressing systemic barriers that have historically isolated communities from enjoying the fruits of such a relationship. To enable this commitment to build long-term benefits that are mutually sustainable, cultural protocols and ethical standards must be adopted to ensure outcomes are both systemically and culturally acceptable for Indigenous communities and the university sector. Such standards must provide opportunities for Indigenous people to be involved in the development and implementation of policies and practices designed to guide and inform programs around research, teaching, support and governance initiatives. This is particularly important to the engagement of Indigenous postgraduate students. This paper will address the development of a national and international Indigenous postgraduate forum and global Elders alliance, which is being proposed by World Indigenous Nations Higher Education Consortium (WINHEC) to address these and other issues as they pertain to the enrolment and progression of Indigenous students at the postgraduate level.