We’ve Started Our Reconciliation Journey
By Rob Doust, Managing Director
A few months ago, our first Reconciliation Action Plan, a Reflect RAP, was formally endorsed by Reconciliation Australia. I want to share a bit about why, and what it’s meant to us.
This is the first of four stages in the RAP framework. It’s a starting point, not a finished commitment. I think that’s worth saying plainly, rather than dressing it up as more than it is.
We began this process with a series of workshops amongst our teams, working through what reconciliation means for a business like ours. I didn’t want a RAP that was written to look good. I wanted one that reflects who we genuinely are and had commitments that we can follow through on.
As a business that’s built across a lot of our country for over 37 years, we work on land with histories and connections that go back far longer than we have. Part of this journey is about listening to First Nations perspectives and to the Traditional Custodians of the areas we operate in and letting that shape how we understand our own footprint.
Practically, our RAP sets out early commitments in a few areas. We’re focused on building genuine relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations, and on growing cultural understanding across our teams and sites. We’re also exploring real opportunities in employment and in how we work with Indigenous businesses and suppliers.
A few months in, this work is underway, but none of it is complete. We’re still early in the journey, but it’s a step I’m proud we’ve taken, in a way that’s authentic to who we are as a business.
Read our full Reflect RAP here
About our artwork
Our RAP artwork was created by Mumbulla Creative, an Aboriginal creative agency based on Gadigal and Wangal Country. The central circle represents Mainbrace, surrounded by hands that reflect the many stakeholders who shape our work. The flowing lines running through the piece represent Country, acknowledging that we build on land that always was Aboriginal land. Charmaine Mumbulla is a Kaurna and Narungga woman from the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia and Jason Mumbulla is a Gumbaynggirr man from the NSW Mid-North Coast. Together they work closely with organisations to tell their stories through their art.