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Griffith University acknowledges the people who are the traditional custodians of the land, pays respect to the Elders, past and present, and extends that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Please be advised -
- This guide (and the links within this guide) may contain images or names of people who have passed away and other culturally sensitive materials.
- Some items in library collections and databases may contain culturally offensive words or descriptions, which reflect the author's attitude or that of the period in which the item was written. When searching historical information, it may be necessary to include outdated or obsolete terminology, in order to find this information.
Be mindful of using any resource that may be of a secret or sacred nature. If using images, add an appropriate disclaimer at the beginning of your work.
Get ready to search
Search effectively by using these strategies.
Key resources
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Australian Bureau of Statistics - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander PeoplesIncludes statistics on health, housing, education and training, language and culture and social issues.
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Indigenous Australia (via Informit)Represents the collections of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission Library and covers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander studies, Stolen generation, removal of children, Arts, copyright issues, Racism, discrimination, Internet and telecommunications facilities and Communities. NOTE: Coverage - 1968 to December 2002.
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Indigenous Collection (via Informit)With a broad range of international Indigenous research resources brought together, the Informit Indigenous Collection offers a variety of content on both historical and topical issues within Indigenous studies. Readily available, the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary framework encompasses anthropology, community development, cultural studies, economics, education, health, history, human geography, law and land rights and literature. NOTE: Coverage - 1977 to present.
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Indigenous Studies Bibliography (via Informit)Covers published and unpublished material on Australian Indigenous studies. NOTE: Coverage - 1990 to present.
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Remote Australia OnlineRemote Australia Online contains evidence based reports and research on topics related to remote Australia, including education, business, policy, communication, infrastructure, social and cultural welfare and natural resource management.
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Aboriginal HistorySince 1977 the journal Aboriginal History has pioneered interdisciplinary historical studies of Australian Aboriginal people's and Torres Strait Islander's interactions with non-Indigenous peoples. It has promoted publication of Indigenous oral traditions, biographies, languages, archival and bibliographic guides, archaeology, sociology, linguistics, demography, law, geography and cultural, political and economic history.
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AlterNative : An International Journal of Indigenous PeoplesAlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples is an internationally peer-reviewed interdisciplinary journal containing Indigenous perspectives from around the world.
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Australian Aboriginal StudiesAustralian Aboriginal Studies is an interdisciplinary, peer-reviewed journal promoting high-quality research in Australian Indigenous studies, with a focus on the humanities and social sciences. It is published for a wide audience in both print and digital form, and visual content is encouraged.
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Ngoonjook : Journal of Australian Indigenous IssuesNgoonjook is the biannual publication of the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education which seeks to make relevant material available to an Indigenous readership and to all those interested in Indigenous Australian issues. Themes explored include: education, health, cultural identity, natural and cultural resource management, the arts and linguistics.
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Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander StudiesAIATSIS is the custodian of a unique collection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ culture and history, which includes research material, art and objects, books, film, photographs and sound. AIATSIS conduct and support research led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and publish works including scholarly material, children's books and biographies through Aboriginal Studies Press.
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Indigenous.gov.auThis website is designed to connect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with Australian Government policies and programs and raise awareness about the initiatives that affect them most. The site shares news and events as well as stories from individuals, communities and organisations across Australia.
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National Indigenous Australians AgencyThe NIAA works to influence policy across the entire Australian Government. They liaise closely with State and Territory governments, Indigenous peak bodies, stakeholders and service providers to ensure that Indigenous programs and services are delivering for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as intended.
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National Indigenous TelevsionNational Indigenous Television (NITV) informs, educates and entertains its Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences about the issues that matter the most to Indigenous Australians. NITV provides a rich diversity of cultures, languages and talent.
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Reconciliation AustraliaAn independent not-for profit organisation, the lead body for reconciliation in Australia. They promote and facilitate reconciliation by building relationships, respect and trust between the wider Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples"Today the Declaration is the most comprehensive international instrument on the rights of indigenous peoples. It establishes a universal framework of minimum standards for the survival, dignity and well-being of the indigenous peoples of the world and it elaborates on existing human rights standards and fundamental freedoms as they apply to the specific situation of indigenous peoples."
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Trove : digitised newspapers and moreThe Trove digitised newspapers service allows free online access to historic Australian newspapers digitised as part of the Australian Newspapers Digitisation Program, a collaborative program between the National Library of Australia and the State and Territory libraries to digitise out of copyright newspapers. The service includes newspapers published in each state and territory from the 1800s until the mid 1950s. It is an evolving service with new content added progressively. The service provides full text searching of newspaper articles which have been scanned from microfilm. Enhancement of the content by users is allowed through correction of text and tagging of articles.
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INFOKOORIINFOKOORI is an index to the Koori Mail, a national fortnightly newspaper published in Lismore, NSW, for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples from May 1991 onwards. It also indexes biographical information on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples from the magazines: Our Aim (1907-1961), Dawn (1952-1969), New Dawn (1970-1975) and Identity (1971-1982).
Griffith Library's APA 7 and AGPS Harvard referencing guides contain formats and examples for referencing First Peoples materials, including artwork, designs, objects, images, and personal communication with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Evaluating First Peoples research materials
Some key considerations for evaluating First Peoples resources are:
- Who produced the materials? Was it produced by or in collaboration with First Peoples?
- Does it have appropriate terminology?
- Is there a range of perspectives from different First Peoples communities?
This Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander quality appraisal tool provides useful guidance on evaluating research involving First Australians. It can be readily adapted to different research topics and contexts.
