General News
16 April, 2025
Kalkadoon's on-Country program is working, say Elders
The next step is to secure long-term funding for the program.
Senior Kalkadoon Elders are calling for the state government to commit to long-term funding for an intensive program aimed at reducing youth crime rates in Mount Isa.
Mithangkaya Nguli Indigenous Corporation, which last year received $24 million from the state government to fund its two-year on-Country program, has mentored wayward Indigenous young people and their families through regular cultural engagement activities and counselling to improve communication between family members.
About 10 young people have been referred by the Department of Youth Justice to the diversionary and rehabilitation program since September, with a further 20 family members provided support systems and resources to work with the children to minimise further contact with the criminal justice system.
Kalkadoon Elder and former Queensland Mother of the Year Joan Kathleen Marshall said the locally-driven initiative was making real progress.
She said “change doesn’t happen overnight” and called on the state government to commit to long-term funding for the program.
“The intensive on-Country program is slowly but surely chipping away at the core root of the issues,” she said.
“This youth crime issue took many years to happen and now we need many years of investment to solve.
“Along the way we can save dollars from locking kids and adults up and once again, we all start working together to keep our community safe.”
Led by Indigenous case workers, the program’s cultural immersion activities are undertaken with guidance from Kalkadoon Elders, as young people and their families participate in bush trips to learn about their heritage, kinship connections, bush tucker and sites that hold significant traditional history.
Mithangkaya Nguli general manager Alvin Hava said the strong engagement from Elders and Indigenous case workers demonstrated that locals “genuinely want to help in addressing youth crime”.
“Community working together is the fundamental key to addressing youth crime in the city,” he said.
“Mount Isa is showing the way in the state in how this should be done”.
Mr Hava said there were still ongoing plans to construct a permanent camp site on a property near Mount Isa to train the youth in life skills.
On-Country team leader Danielle Radcliffe said there were future plans to work with the youth on mowing lawns and cleaning up graffiti to bring a “sense of pride back in certain parts of the city”.
“It’s great to see the family work alongside these young people to break down the barriers, and great to see the family unit rekindled with solid respectful relationships back into their homes,” she said.