WEST KIMBERLEY

 

OVERVIEW

The Kimberley region is located in far north Western Australia, comprised of the West Kimberley towards the coast and the East Kimberley towards the Northern Territory border. Jawun began working with the Indigenous communities of East Kimberley in 2010, and in 2012 broadened its boundaries to include communities in the West Kimberley region.

The West Kimberley region includes the towns of Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and a number of Indigenous communities on the Dampier Peninsula. The region extends to the Pilbara in the south, across to Yulumbu, Ngallagunda and Marunbadi in the east, and Kandiwal in the north.

Indigenous people in the West Kimberley face similar challenges to those faced by Indigenous communities across Australia. However, mining in Western Australian over the last decade has meant jobs, a government focus and investment in transitional housing, so there is considerable opportunity for improving the lives of Indigenous people in this region.

The Indigenous organisations and leaders Jawun partners with are focused on empowering governance, leadership (at all levels), and economic development. Successes are seen in youth empowerment, rising female leadership, and significant growth in Indigenous-led enterprises.

WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY

FIELD TEAM

  • Regional Director

    Cherie Sibosado is a Nyikina and Bardi woman from the West Kimberley, with over 20 years’ experience in community leadership, management, governance, development and service delivery. Cherie became a part of the Jawun team in April 2023 as the Regional Director for West Kimberley. Prior to Cherie joining the Jawun team, Cherie ran as the Labor candidate in the 2021 WA state election in the seat of Northwest Central gaining an incredible 8.4% election swing for Labor, only losing by 259 votes. In addition to this, Cherie was also operating her own consultancy business and held an appointed as a Commissioner with Tourism Western Australia Board.

    To contact Cherie, please email: csibosado@jawun.org.au

  • General Manager, Regional Investment

    Prior to joining Jawun, Glenn had a distinguished career working with some of Australia’s largest corporates. He has vast experience in management, including running his own businesses for five years, in excess of 11 years banking with Westpac and NAB and running Telstra store teams across 3 states. Glenn joined Jawun 6 years after having completed a secondment in 2009 working alongside the Archer Point Trust in Cooktown.

    In 2015, Glenn was appointed as the Regional Director for Jawun’s Cape York operations supporting the Indigenous communities of Cape York. In June 2017 he was appointed to the role of Jawun’s General Manager, Regions, supporting the local leadership in East and West Kimberley, North East Arnhem Land, Cape York, Goulburn Murray, Central Coast NSW and Central Australia. In 2019 Glenn was appointed General Manager Finance & Operations for Jawun; and in 2022 Glenn became General Manager, Regional Investment launching Jawun’s 12th region in the Pilbara.

    Glenn is an avid learner holding a number of qualifications including a Bachelor of Accounting and an Executive MBA, which provided him the opportunity to study overseas in four countries.

    To contact Glen, please email gweston@jawun.org.au

A Qantas secondee's story in the West Kimberley.

CASE STUDIES

Case studies show how Jawun secondees have achieved real results. If you are interested to learn more about Jawun's work in this region, click on the case studies below.

INDIGENOUS-LED ENTERPRISE IN WEST KIMBERLEY

EMPOWERED COMMUNITIES IN THREE REGIONS

WEST KIMBERLEY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

IMPROVING SAFETY AND SKILLS

SUPPORTING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF BEAGLE BAY FUTURE INDIGENOUS CORPORATION

SUPPORTING THE KIMBERLY LAND COUNCIL

RESHAPING THE FUTURE FOR NIRRUMBUK ABORIGINAL CORPORATION

KIMBERLEY LAND COUNCIL CULTURAL ENTERPRISE HUB