Publications

Computer Business Workshop CDU 28-30 April 2006
Report by M Christie

Facilitated by John Greatorex, Bryce King, Trevor van Weeren, Michael Christie.

Participants: Dhanggal Gurruwiwi (from Gunyangara), Maratja Dhamarrandji (from Galiwin’ku), Gothadjaka (from Gawa), Wulumdhuna Yunupingu (from Djurranalpi), Lawurrpa (from Galiwin’ku), Nawutpu Garrawurra (from Langarra), Frank Djirrimbilpilwuy (Darwin).

Observers: Garadhawal Garawurra, Muthamuluwuy and Lisa (Galiwin’ku), Bandak Marika (Yirrkala), Mula (Milingimbi), Anthea Nicholls (PhD student).

Friday Morning:

Set up computers and have breakfast.
Looking first at the hardware and file management systems
Looking at Safari (web browser)
Google earth.
Setting up email addresses at Yahoo.com
Starting work with Microsoft Word

Friday Afternoon:

Visit from Leon Morris and Mark Motlop from the Indigenous Business and Industry Services.
Discussion about business models
More work on Google earth
Sending emails,

Saturday Morning:

Finding emails and attachments.
Introduction to Microsoft Word.
Downloading, opening, saving a Microsoft Word document.
Modifying the document, saving it, and attaching it to a return email.
Writing a preliminary business plan
Looking at plant knowledge software, and how it can be used with traditional knowledge work.
Looking at ‘TAMI’ digital object presentation software

Saturday afternoon:

Discussion about business possibilities and need for further help.
(This discussion will be transcribed and translated as part of the ongoing research project for full report to IBA)
Main identified needs:
• more computer training
• more training about how a business runs
• more discussion on business models
• legal side of business training

Sunday morning:

Downloading and using Skype (web-based communications software)
More work with Google-Earth. Using Google-Earth to tell stories and identify places.
Worked with Guthadjaka using Appleworks to create a poster for her Law Project.
Finding and downloading free image manipulation software (considerable difficulty installing)

Sunday afternoon:

Looked at video made by Mangay about the land east of the Arafura.
Discussion about why the video was made, and how it was made, and the use of collaborative software.
Audio editing and download of audio editing software.
More discussion about where to go next with people’s business goals.
Different people had different ideas.
• one-on-one following someone through with the development of their business step by step, and learning how to do each thing as the need arises. Learning on the job. Talked about the metaphor of the learning journey: Where you are? where do you want to go? and how you are going to get there?
• suggestion that people team together to do cultural awareness training under the guidance of Don Christopherson.
• people keen for workshops to be held at Galiwin’ku or Gawa, talking about how many people (no more than we had this time) and how to focus the work.
• people in Darwin keen to make use of the INC studio computers, will start in three weeks, just getting more familiar with the software and hardware we have been working with. This includes Harry and Frank, but also Lanybalanyba who was keen to attend but not available.
• people keen on continuing to do linguistic work for money. Gotha, Frank and Maratja will take home video clips from the workshop and transcribe and translate them and send them in with invoice, ($30 per 100 words) this will be paid for from the Yolngu Studies account, and will be used both as a resource for teaching Yolngu studies, and as data for the ongoing InterNetworking Communities research (see www.cdu.edu.au/inc)
• Wulumdhuna requested a workshop which helps her develop multimedia, does not really want to make money out of it, just educational resources at this stage.
• Frank keen to develop the skills to make music CDs and DVDs which can be marketable very cheaply for a very local audience (family members etc) Barrarra also keen to make DVDs of ceremonials to distribute to family members.
• Things which we didn’t get around to covering which people wanted to learn about: taking pictures and downloading them, video editing, sound recording, CD production, Microsoft Word (only basics covered), internet banking, ABN numbers.

Feedback on the workshop:

People agreed that it was good to have everyone from the same language group working together. We had invited people from Anmatyerre, who were unable to come, but it turned out well to have everyone related to each other, even if one woman was the classificatory mother-in-law of the other so avoidance protocols needed to be observed.
Participants agreed that it was good to talk about small business models, the future of Yolngu communities, and technical issues like software and hardware uses all at the same time. It is this sort of integration of agendas, on-the-job learning, and political/philosophical discussion which seems to work best for this group.
Participants stated that the collaborative research approach where training and technical needs could be identified in the context of ongoing business development, was more useful than a conventional training workshop (eg through VET delivery). People were not particularly interested in gaining a formal qualification, but rather in learning business skills. However the issues of appropriate training did come up frequently.
The notes from the ‘Where-to-from-here’ discussion on Sunday afternoon (described above) make clear the areas which require further work.

Identified Business Models and Business Opportunities

Participants all had a chance to talk about the sort of business they were involved in, and would like to continue to work in. These were all videorecorded and will be transcribed and translated into English.

There was considerable interest in the idea of a government-supported Indigenous Business Service Agency (to help with book-keeping, taxation, brokering of work etc) and a Business Incubator, but general agreement that people would start out with tele-interpreting, transcription and translation work, and cross cultural consultancies, and start to get a feel for the work, and the use of computers, before they set up a formal business.

Dhanggal spoke of her family business selling and teaching didgeridoos which has been set up by a friend, and which she would like to take a greater role in organising.

Everyone agreed to continue talking about options and within a couple of months make plans for further research-training methods.

Linkages created between other agencies and State and Commonwealth departments

Agencies and departments who have helped us, and with whom we have formed linkages are;

• Indigenous Business Australia - provided funding to assist with the workshop costs
• Indigenous Economic Development Taskforce, Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development, Northern Territory Government – came to speak at the workshop, and originally suggested that we contact IBA for funding
• Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, - visited to talk about supporting tele-interpreting as part of their Indigenous Health Workforce Implementation Plan.
• CRC Aboriginal Health is interested in supporting tele-interpreting
• CDU has awarded $80,000 for ongoing research work into information communication technology and remote community capacity building, which supported the workshop.

Proposed future activities

There was general enthusiasm for continuing our collaboration. When asked specifically to make clear what may be required, the needs identified were to do with infrastructure and further training through similar collaborative workshops.
Infrastructure needs:
• more computers. People without their own computers were interested in being helped to buy the best computers for the work they wanted to do. People were happy with the idea of paying for the computer through the work which the computer generated (mostly linguistic and consultancy work at this stage)
• a couple of people need satellite links to be made available at their homes, and would like assistance to pay for them.
Workshop needs:
From the many ideas which circulated, three workshop ideas seemed particularly useful:
• Professional linguistic business setup. Already in the week since the workshop four people are working on transcribing and translating videos made during the workshop for which they will be paid from the Yolngu Studies database account. The proposed workshop would deal with the audio video and word processing software for transcription and translation, and the business side of things: calculating costs on a per-word basis, generating invoices, and accounts for the transfer of funds. It is propsed that this workshop be held at Galiwin’ku.
• Producing community-level digital memory resources: A number of people are already using video and audio recording to make DVDs and CDs of ceremonies and song performances for distribution in the communities of origin. At this stage, this is cultural work, and no money is changing hands. However we have been asked to help people upgrade their digital object production skills, so potentially they could become commercially viable. this workshop would involve some examination intellectual property issues in both Aboriginal and Australian law.
• Professional Cross cultural consultancy workshop. Some of the participants are already involved in cross cultural consultancy and awareness training work. This is increasingly a source of income for people in the group. A workshop would concentrate specifically on the digital aspects of this work; making a set of resources for talking about land, language, culture, kin etc. Setting up possibilities for teaching on-line using collaborative software tools. Setting up publicity, invoicing and banking systems to support consultancy work.

For a short report and photos from the CDu website, please visit: http://www.cdu.edu.au/newsroom/story.php?nID=923