Please make a note in your diaries – the fourth annual Indigenous Health May Day Twitter festival will be held on Wednesday, May 17.
You can track the discussions and news at #IHMayDay17.
The event will be co-hosted by University of Canberra Professor Peter Radoll, Dean of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership and Strategy, with UC colleagues Associate Professor Kerry McCallum from the Faculty of Arts and Design, and Dr Holly Northam from the Faculty of Health. It is also co-hosted by Croakey, with public health journalist Melissa Sweet assisting with the organising.
Discussions on the day will be moderated by the founder of #IHMayDay, Dr Lynore Geia from James Cook University, and by Professor Radoll and Croakey Contributing Editor Summer May Finlay.
Last year #IHMayDay occurred both online and IRL (hosted by Associate Professor Bronwyn Carlson at the University of Wollongong, with her colleague Dr Tanja Dreher), and the plan is for a similar real life-meets-cyberspace experience this year.
As in previous years, a program of guest tweeters will run from 7am until 10pm AEST.
Calling for expressions of interest
The theme for the event is Representation: politics, policy and education.
The #IHMayDay17 organisers are calling for expressions of interest from individuals and organisations interested in guest tweeting for a session during the day.
Please contact us by May 5, via the details on the bottom of this page (or ping us on Twitter), with a short bio and an outline of what you would like to tweet about and how it connects with the theme.
As in previous years, the program is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as guest tweeters. We invite and encourage non-Indigenous friends, allies and those who have an interest to partner with us on the day and participate by RT-ing and listening.
Dr Lynore Geia said:
I am thrilled that this will be our fourth event. Also a big shout out to the @IndigenousX project for reaching its fifth birthday, congratulations!
Our theme is timely given the increasing number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people taking their places in Parliaments around the country, from Treasurer Ben Wyatt in Western Australia to Leeanne Enoch in Queensland, and our representation across party lines in the Federal Parliament.
It’s encouraging to see these changes happening; they are important because at the end of the day politics and policy-making is about peoples’ lives and supporting people, families and communities to achieve their goals.
I am looking forward to tweeting from Ngunnawal Country on #IHMayDay and to hearing from people around the country about things that are working well.
I encourage Croakey readers to engage with #IHMayDay as an opportunity to contribute to strengths-based discussions and counter-narratives about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ health.
We would like the day to provide a constructive critical discourse on Indigenous health. IHMayDay is a day of sharing varied perspectives and discussion. As in the past three years, it’s been day where everyone engages in the discussions with respect and goodwill, without personal attacks, and I want to encourage participants to continue this protocol this year.”
Professor Peter Radoll said:
The University of Canberra is pleased to host #IHMayDay this year. The University of Canberra has renewed its commitment to Indigenous Higher Education.
UC is launching our first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Strategy Plan on 28 April. The plan covers four major areas of need increase timely Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student completions, increase in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment across the university, increase the cultural competency of all staff and students and building capacity in the area of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research.
On a very personal level I am very excited that #IHMayDay is a digital engagement event where Aboriginal health and community leaders share knowledge and challenge norms through the digital platform Twitter.”
Summer May Finlay said:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation at all levels of government and policy development is key to driving real change for our Peoples. We know our communities’ needs better than anyone else. We are the change agents.
#IHMayDay17 will demonstrate the knowledge and experience Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from around the country have. It is one the few opportunities for our Peoples to be heard.
Non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people don’t often get to hear from us on our issues. This is their opportunity to listen and to further their understanding.
#IHMayDay17 is so important because I believe when our voices are really heard and respected then we get to the business of real and meaningful change.”
Professor Diane Gibson, Dean of the Faculty of Health at the University of Canberra, said:
The Faculty of Health is delighted to support this important initiative. It aligns with our University commitment to build the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workforce by graduating more Indigenous health professionals across a range of disciplines.
I believe a stronger Indigenous health workforce is a critical plank in bridging the health equity gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.”
Croakey will publish the #IHMayDay17 program closer to the time.
For more information about IHMayDay
#IHMayDay backgrounder (with links to publications and video clips)
