About the Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre
The Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre is a vibrant, values-led research community dedicated to advancing the wellbeing, agency, and economic futures of First Nations and culturally diverse peoples across Australia and globally. At the Centre’s heart is a commitment to social justice, equity and inclusion, ensuring diverse knowledge, experiences and ways of being are listened to and valued. We align our efforts both with national priorities – such as the Closing the Gap targets – and the global imperatives articulated in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Our research is organised around three interconnected themes:
- Knowledge Systems (Led by Dr Raj Yadav), which explores plural knowledges shaping lived experience, innovation, and cultural continuity.
- Cultural Practices (Led by Dr Rachael Dwyer), which investigates creative expression, language, meaning-making, and identity in transcultural contexts.
- Community Futures (Led by Dr Aaron Tham), which focuses on policy, enterprise, health, and sustainable development within and across communities.
2024: Transformation and impact
This year marked a defining moment for the Centre, which in February – after more than a decade of groundwork as a research theme – transitioned into a fully-fledged university research centre. This formal recognition affirms the growing importance of Indigenous- and transcultural-led research in shaping just, plural, and sustainable futures. It also signals UniSC’s commitment to transformative, engaged scholarship that centres Indigenous knowledge and community priorities.
In 2024, the Centre comprised:
- 16 core researchers across multiple disciplines
- 23 higher degree by research (HDR) students, including 10 Indigenous scholars
- 4 adjunct researchers
- 7 research affiliates
Our researchers made significant advances in external research funding, securing $3 million across 10 projects. In addition, Centre Co-Director Professor Maria Raciti represents UniSC as a Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous Futures, a $35 million initiative established in 2024 to transform the life chances of Indigenous Australians through Indigenous-led, transdisciplinary research aligned with the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.
We also delivered 129 high-impact publications, celebrated 10 successful HDR completions and deepened our national and international collaborations. Our researchers continue to lead place-based, relational capability-building initiatives that are designed to uplift Indigenous and transcultural communities.
Purposeful research
The Centre’s 2024 research output includes over 100 publications aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, with a strong focus on education, climate action, and reducing inequalities. This work reflects our commitment to equity, resilience, and community wellbeing.
Sixteen publications also directly support Australia’s Closing the Gap outcomes, advancing Indigenous student success, wellbeing, cultural identity, and education pathways. The Centre’s research contributes to economic participation and the revitalisation of Indigenous knowledges, languages, and cultural heritage.
Highlights
- Following the success of its pilot program, Marigurim Yan – a community-driven education initiative led by Dr Sharon Louth and designed to improve school engagement and career pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth – was awarded $292,000 for rural and remote research with Indigenous students, funded by the John Villiers Trust.
- A team led by Professor Patrick Nunn received $2.25 million in funding from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) to explore water security in Pacific coastal communities.
- Five research projects were awarded ITRC Seed Funding of $3,000 each to support diverse initiatives aligned with the Centre’s mission. These small grants helped to advance Indigenous and transcultural knowledge through pilot studies, creative practices, and capacity building.
- Four PhD Student Bursaries valued at $5,000 each were awarded to support candidates conducting research across themes of human rights, decolonisation, disaster, and education.
- The Centre delivered a keynote panel presentation at the 2024 Quality in Postgraduate Research Conference on an ARC Discovery study investigating how to incorporate Indigenous knowledge approaches into Australian doctoral education.
- Dr Leah Barclay and team’s project on wellbeing and sustainability was awarded an $867,741 ARC Discovery Indigenous grant.
- ITRC’s Wandiny 2024: Uniting Nations Through Poetry project brought First Nations voices into local schools and the UniSC community, and produced a poetry anthology.
Celebrating our researchers
Celebrating our researchers
- In April, Dr Aaron Tham represented the Centre at the World Indigenous Tourism Summit in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
- In September, Centre member Dr Shannon Brincat took part in a high-profile lecture at the Presidential Palace in Dili, Timor-Leste.
- Dr Renee Morrison, awarded best presentation the 6th International Conference on Advances in Education and Information Technology (AEIT) in Fukuoka, Japan.
- Dr Paul Williams, awarded best conference paper at CAEPIA 2024 (Conference of the Spanish Association of Artificial Intelligence).
Making a difference: Our research in action
Professor Catherine Manathunga: Reimagining Australian higher education through research
Higher education plays a vital role in shaping society’s future. Yet in Australia, universities have long privileged Western knowledge systems, often overlooking the rich cultural insights of First Nations peoples and transcultural communities, including migrants, refugees, and international students. This exclusion limits the relevance and inclusivity of research and teaching, reinforcing systemic inequities in whose knowledge is recognised and valued.
For more than three decades, Professor Catherine Manathunga has led transformative research advocating for a more culturally responsive higher education system. Her qualitative work focuses on two key areas: decolonising doctoral education, and building public understanding of First Nations history, poetry and culture.
As a nationally and internationally renowned doctoral education researcher, Professor Manathunga led an Australian Research Council Discovery grant (2021-2025) on implementing Indigenous knowledge approaches in Australian doctoral education, which built upon a two-year Australia-China Council (DFAT) project focused on building Australia-China research capabilities for intercultural knowledge collaboration. These projects involved close research collaborations with First Nations and transcultural research colleagues across Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, China and South Africa. The work has resulted in more than 16 peer reviewed publications and 27 national and international keynote presentations. Professor Manathunga’s extensive research on decolonising doctoral education has been adopted into four Australian and eight international reports in England, Finland, The Netherlands, Germany and Canada, including the 2021 Australian Council for Graduate Research’s Good Practice Guidelines on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research Education, which guide universities incorporate greater measures of cultural safety in doctoral programs to support First Nations candidates.
Nationally, Professor Manathunga’s leadership has been recognised through her appointment as National Chair of the Committee of Associate Deans Research in Education (cADRE) from 2021–2024. During this time, she led the development of the cADRE National Report on the State of Education Research, which provides strategic recommendations to decolonise doctoral education and elevate Indigenous knowledge systems in line with national science priorities.
Professor Manathunga’s global influence has been further recognised through international fellowships in Japan, South Africa, Ireland and England, and by her nomination as one of the 16 most influential scholars worldwide by the International Doctoral Education Research Network (IDERN).
Sustaining Indigenous food cultures: Tapping into knowledge and collaborative insights
Sharing Indigenous food culture with the broader community helps to promote cultural identity, improve health outcomes and increase economic opportunities. But as globalisation and modern food systems increasingly dominate agriculture and consumer habits, Indigenous food cultures risk being lost.
Recognising the importance of preserving these traditions, a research project led by Centre members Dr Aaron Tham and Associate Professor Harriot Beazley (in partnership with Dr Vikki Schafer) explored ways to support cultural revitalisation and sustainable food systems in Southeast Queensland. Focusing on seven Indigenous business operators across the Sunshine Coast, the researchers analysed websites to explore the types of food products and experiences offered – ranging from catering and bush food tours to online retail – and their understanding of the importance of Indigenous knowledge in their food stories. This work informed the creation of an innovative digital platform using the Kobo Toolbox app, which maps Indigenous food businesses and allows operators to update content and share stories directly.
The platform has already influenced local tourism, with businesses like Kiff & Culture using it to design immersive travel experiences that connect visitors with Indigenous food enterprises. The project gained further visibility through presentations at industry events, including the Moreton Bay Region tourism social and the World Indigenous Tourism Summit in Taiwan, attended by over 650 international delegates.
Academic interest in Indigenous food cultures continues to grow, with the research team invited to guest edit a special issue of Food, Culture & Society. Long-term, the project aims to expand nationally and across the Asia-Pacific, fostering networks and collaborative funding to support Indigenous-led food initiatives and creative economies.
Looking ahead: 2025 and beyond
As the Centre builds on the momentum of 2024, our focus is on deepening research excellence, expanding impact, and enhancing our national and international presence. Central to this is mobilising research for social impact through strategic grant applications aligned with our core themes.
As we move forward, the Centre will remain grounded in purpose, driven by collaboration, and focused on generating knowledge that transforms systems, strengthens communities and advances justice.
Key priorities for 2025 include:
- Strengthening research outputs, including traditional formats and non-traditional outputs such as curated exhibitions, digital media, and community-informed reports – all vital to our mission of producing research that is accessible, culturally relevant and impactful.
- Investing in capacity building through targeted support for HDR candidates and early-career researchers.
- Continuing to grow international partnerships – especially with researchers from Aotearoa, South Africa, and the Pacific – to connect us to broader global dialogues on equity, sustainability, and self-determination.
- Nurturing the Centre’s community and continuing to develop a collaborative and supportive research environment that reflects our shared values.