Innovative models in addressing violence against Indigenous women: Final report

While Indigenous women are the most vulnerable group in Australia in terms of the risks of becoming a victim of violence, little is known about how Indigenous women themselves are working to prevent and respond to family violence.

There is considerable literature about Indigenous women as victims, but little by them. The Innovative models in addressing violence against Indigenous women project aimed to rectify this by looking at the theme of innovation from an Indigenous perspective.

Foregrounding the perspective of Aboriginal people who work within the family violence space or have had experience of family violence, this report is based on qualitative research in three sites in Australia: Fitzroy Crossing (Western Australia), Darwin (Northern Territory), and Cherbourg (Queensland). It supports the creation of a network of place-based Indigenous family violence strategies owned and managed by Indigenous people and linked to initiatives around alcohol reduction, inter-generational trauma, social and emotional wellbeing, and alternatives to custody. These initiatives may be constructed differently depending on context, but would ensure that responses to family violence reflect the needs of local women.