Dillin Duwa Centre with Melbourne University Partners with Kinaway!

Overview of the Partner’s business

The Dilin Duwa Centre for Indigenous Business Leadership is an Indigenous-led centre situated at the University of Melbourne, focused on supporting Indigenous business and leadership across the nation. Dilin Duwa means ‘everlasting flow’ in the Woi wurrung language of the Wurundjeri people of whose land the centre is situated on.

 Through three streams of activity, Programs, Research and Engagement, Dilin Duwa seeks to promote Indigenous economic self-determination.

a.     Programs – through teaching, we equip Indigenous business owners and managers with the skills to grow their organisations and exercise their leadership, leading to impact at the individual and community level.

The MURRA Indigenous Business Masterclass Program is our flagship program. Since 2012, almost 250 amazing changemakers have completed the program, many of whom have assumed leadership roles across Australia.  From MURRA, we have introduced the Graduate Certificate in Indigenous Business Leadership which allows people who face contradictions between Western concepts of leadership and Indigenous ways of doing to develop and exercise their leadership skills in a culturally supported way. 

b.     Research – through research, we provide knowledge and insights to equip policy makers, corporations and government to create programs and policies to support the Indigenous business sector, leading to sectoral change. We currently have six research projects across three themes:  

i. The Indigenous Economy

ii. Policy and Indigenous Economic Empowerment

iii. Socio-economic and Cultural Legacies and Impact

We are about to launch Snapshot 3.0, the latest in an annual series tracking the size of the Indigenous business sector. The project is the only one of its kind in Australia.

c.     Engagement – we work with the community to deliver programs which meet their needs and priorities, empowering people to create systemic change.

How has the Partner engaged with the Indigenous sector?

Our flagship program, the MURRA Indigenous Business Masterclass Program, was founded in 2012 to support growth of the Indigenous business sector. Since that time, MURRA has led to a range of other initiatives in programs (National Indigenous Business Summer School and the Graduate Certificate in Indigenous Business Leadership); in research (Indigenous Economic Power Project “Snapshot” and the Indigenous Preferential Procurement Project); and in Engagement (programs on country created in consultation with local communities).

 A common link throughout has been the consultation and co-design process to ensure that our activities are led by Indigenous voices. Our Indigenous Advisory Group lead our strategy, our Research Steering committees ensure that Indigenous voices drive our research, and of course MURRA was co-designed with Kinaway.

Why did the Partner sign up with Kinaway? What was the driving factor?

From 2012 when we consulted with Kinaway on the design of MURRA, Kinaway has been a natural partner for us. From sending students to MURRA to participating in the Indigenous Economic Power Project, as a representative of Victorian Aboriginal Businesses, Kinaway’s contribution has been natural and powerful.

How will Kinaway member businesses benefit from this partnership?

Through accessing our research or joining the classroom as a participant, the network which Dilin Duwa offers will assist member businesses to find opportunities to collaborate, to enrol in further studies and to gain more skills and to access a network of likeminded people for support.

Our programs are designed for Indigenous people, by Indigenous people and remains unique in the Australian context – a postgraduate level program which centres First Nations  ways of doing and being.  Members will feel empowered and celebrated.

How does the partner hope to benefit from the partnership with Kinaway?

Over the past 2 years, we have delivered programs in the region – Kanny Goopna/Shepparton, Rubibi/Broome, Mparntwe/Alice Springs and Yarrabah.

These experiences have highlighted the need for us to visit these amazing regional centres and to deliver programs on country when possible.

We believe that a partnership with Kinaway is a natural progression of our history. From creating Australia’s #1 educational program for Indigenous business owners in 2012 which brings First Nations entrepreneurs to Naarm.