NAVA launches First Nations Policy to strengthen cultural safety and self-determination

Today, the National Association for the Visual Arts (NAVA) proudly launched its First Nations Policy 2024-2029, setting a clear and strategic path to enhance First Nations representation, employment, and advocacy within the visual arts sector through the organisation’s work.

This comprehensive policy highlights NAVA’s commitment to creating a culturally safe environment that supports and sustains an empowered First Nations workforce within NAVA, while strengthening engagement with First Nations artists, arts workers, and organisations. 

Key objectives include:

• Lifting the level of cultural competency across the NAVA team.
• Supporting the safer employment of First Nations NAVA staff.
• Strengthening engagement with First Nations artists, arts workers, and organisations.
• Supporting opportunities for First Nations governance and Board Directorship.

Chair of the NAVA Board, Clothilde Bullen said, “It is an incredibly proud moment for me personally and as the Chair of the NAVA Board to offer this policy to the arts sector, and to introduce it as a key framework for the way that NAVA conducts its business. It encapsulates best practice in a way that has not been seen previously, and it is my hope that other organisations in our sector can utilise this policy to inspire their own work in what is a critical area of responsibility for us all.”

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Director on the NAVA Board, Ryan Presley, expressed, “I’m very proud and enthusiastic about the development and release of NAVA’s First Nations Policy. It is an impressively rigorous approach, and I think it reflects well NAVA’s ambitious but capable spirit. It is an important example of clear initiative in addressing important aspects shortcomings of our industry.”

The policy emphasises shared responsibility across the organisation to drive meaningful change. Key actions include:

• The establishment of a Deputy Director of First Nations Policy and Advocacy by March 2025 to lead the implementation of the policy and ensure accountability.
• The formation of an Indigenous Advisory Group to guide NAVA’s strategic direction and provide regular input on initiatives.
• A commitment to cultural competency training for all staff, management, and Board Directors, ensuring that NAVA continues to foster an inclusive and anti-racist workplace.
• Increased opportunities for First Nations artists through commissions, workshops, and public programs, with a particular focus on representation in leadership roles and governance structures.
• Ensuring that Indigenous Cultural Intellectual Property (ICIP) is respected and protected in all NAVA activities and that First Nations artists are fully acknowledged and compensated for their contributions.
• This includes working with new ICIP legislation to support other organisations to include it, utilising the Code of Practice.

NAVA’s Executive Director, Penelope Benton, said, “We understand that these changes require sustained effort and engagement across the sector. Through this policy, we aim to not only support First Nations practitioners but also to embed their perspectives into every aspect of our work, from policy development to advocacy and education.”

The First Nations Policy 2024-2029 is part of NAVA’s broader commitment to addressing systemic inequities in the visual arts sector and working collaboratively with First Nations artists to ensure that their cultural heritage, ways of working and representation is honoured and celebrated.