The Australian Football League today announced the establishment of an Indigenous Advisory Group. 

The Advisory Group will provide advice to the AFL Executive and Commission on the implementation of the AFL’s Indigenous strategy and policies.

Yorta Yorta manPaul Briggs, Chair of the Kaiela Institute & President, Rumbalara Football/Netball Club will be the Advisory Group’s inaugural chair.  

AFL Chief Executive Officer Gillon McLachlan said that indigenous players and communities were a critical part of Australian rules football, and that the Indigenous Advisory Group would assist the industry in continuing to be part of social and cultural change in Australia. 

“The AFL is very proud of the indigenous leaders and players in our game, and the impact they have had on our code,” Mr. McLachlan said. 

“However, we know we must continue to learn from and engage with the indigenous community if we are really committed to reconciliation,  and the Advisory Group will ensure continued positive change in our organisation and industry,” Mr. McLachlan said. 

Mr. McLachlan said that the establishment of the AFL Indigenous Advisory Group was part of the AFL’s formal Reconciliation Plan. 

Paul Briggs said this is an exciting new chapter in the development of the AFL’s relationship with Aboriginal Australia. 

"Along with the other Advisory Group members, I am looking forward to helping shape the future of our great game. 

"Australian football plays a critical role in engaging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and is an enabler to greater individual and community wellbeing. It plays an even greater role when it comes to reconciliation, providing common ground."

The Advisor Group will meet three times annually with the first meeting to be held in Darwin in March, coinciding with the launch of the Michael Long Learning and Leadership Centre.

The AFL Indigenous Advisory Group will focus on :

  • Effective implementation and evaluation of the AFL’s Indigenous policies and programs including social inclusion, cohesion and community development
  • Creation of employment and procurement opportunities for Indigenous people across the AFL industry
  • Celebration and maintenance of cultural integrity through the continued understanding and respect for Indigenous customs, values and traditions
  • Supporting the ongoing cultural safety for the AFL’s Indigenous staff and players
  • Promotion of reconciliation through the ongoing education and the AFL’s focus on the Indigenous Round celebrations 

Inaugural AFL Indigenous Advisory Group:

  • Paul Briggs, Chair – Chair of the Kaiela Institute & President, Rumbalara Football/Netball Club
  • Peter Yu (Deputy Chair) – Chair of North Australian Indigenous Land and Sea Management Alliance Ltd (NAILSMA )
  • Sam Mostyn – AFL Commissioner
  • Kim Williams – AFL Commissioner
  • Adam Goodes -  2014 Australian of the Year, two-time Sydney Swans premiership player and Brownlow Medalist
  • Dorothy Hisgrove, General Manager, People, Customer and Community, AFL
  • Jason Mifsud, Head of Diversity, AFL
  • Professor Helen Milroy - Winthrop Professor and Director of the Centre for Aboriginal Medical 7 Dental Health, University of Western Australia; Commissioner for the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
  • Xavier Clarke -  former St Kilda and Brisbane Lions player, Senior Coach, Northern Territory Thunder
  • Tanya Denning Orman - Channel Manager, NITV
  • Jason Glanville - Chief Executive Officer, National Centre of Indigenous Excellence

To view the AFL’s Reconciliation Action Plan, click here: http://www.afl.com.au/staticfile/AFL%20Tenant/AFL/Files/AFL-2014-RAP.pdf