Berry Street Web Docs Berry Street Aboriginal Plan | Page 4

Berry Street Aboriginal Plan 2009-2012 Community Berry Street walks together with the Community and Aboriginal Organisations to achieve better outcomes for Aboriginal children and families through respectful and sustainable partnerships. Objectives: ■ Collaborate with Aboriginal Organisations to build our combined capacity to support better outcomes for Aboriginal children and families. ■ Build and maintain networks that support Aboriginal children, young people and families and that establish positive connections to culture and Community. ■ Look for opportunities to promote positive stories about Aboriginal children, young people, families and communities. Knowledge Berry Street’s work towards better outcomes for Aboriginal children, young people and families is informed by, and builds on, shared knowledge. Objectives: ■ Build an evidence-base (including improved data collection), which informs continuous improvement of Berry Street services and supports advocacy to achieve better outcomes for Aboriginal children, young people and families. ■ Create opportunities to share knowledge with Aboriginal Organisations and Communities to achieve better outcomes. ■ Build our understanding of the impact of history and trauma (past and present) on Aboriginal Communities. Central Office 1 Salisbury Street Richmond Victoria 3121 Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone] Email: [email protected] ABN: 24 719 196 762 www.berrystreet.org.au ■ Identify and be honest about what we don’t know. ■ Hear the voice of, and learn from, the Aboriginal staff employed by Berry Street and the Aboriginal children, young people, families and Communities involved with Berry Street. Terminology We have used the word ‘Aboriginal’ throughout this document to refer to both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. We refer to Aboriginal peoples and Communities (plural) in acknowledgement of the diversity of Aboriginal peoples and Communities within Victoria, all of whom have different histories, political dynamics, social situations, cultural characteristics, economic resources and administrative capacities. The term ‘holistic’ when used in this document draws on the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation definition of holistic health. 'Health does not simply mean the physical wellbeing of an individual but refers to the social, emotional and cultural wellbeing of the whole community. For Aboriginal people this is seen in terms of the whole of life view incorporating the cyclical concept of life-death-and the relationship to the land. Health care services should strive to achieve the state where every individual is able to achieve their full potential as a human being of their community’.