It’s been three years since Nguluway DesignInc began, and we’re proud to have made a huge impact through our projects, our culture, our people and events.
Projects
In our first three years, Nguluway DesignInc has worked on over 40 projects across six sectors (education, community, residential, Defence, transport) spanning the four services of architecture, urban design, interiors and landscape. Some of our most exciting projects to date include the Tubba-gah Wiradjuri Keeping Place, UTS Indigenous Residential College, Advanced Manufacturing Research Facility, Unanderra Station Upgrade, Wilpena Pound Entry Precinct, Bellambi Station Upgrade and Towradgi Station Upgrade. We have many have many more fantastic projects currently underway, so stay tuned for more updates in the near future!
In collaboration with the DesignInc Sydney team, we have developed a ‘Designing from Country’ methodology. Core to this methodology is guidance on how to sensitively, effectively and appropriately consult with Traditional Custodians to understand the stories of a place and bring them into the design. With only a small number of First Nations Indigenous architects and designers in the industry, we believe it is important to create pathways for non-Indigenous ‘allies’ to support us to engage with Indigenous Knowledge-holders regarding the places we are designing. The end goal, of course, is to build the capacity of Indigenous designers to do this important work. In the meantime, we believe non-Indigenous allies are an important piece of the puzzle.
Creating opportunities and facilitating conversations
Two of our core goals are to create opportunities for Indigenous people, and to engage in public discourse around historical and current issues experienced by Aboriginal communities, with the aim of creating a positive future for all Australians.
Since our inception in 2020, Nguluway DesignInc has employed five First Nations designers and mentored many others. We’ve hosted four public events foregrounding the opinions and experiences of First Nations people, creating a platform for nearly 20 Indigenous voices in the public domain. Through these events we have reached an audience of many hundreds of people and contributed to the conversation around topics such as reconciliation, designing from Country, consultation fatigue, cultural appropriation, protocols, equity and inter-generational trauma.
Panels, presentations, publications, partnerships
We have formed partnerships with many Indigenous individuals and organisations and are in the process of developing an Indigenous Procurement Strategy to make sure we support First Nations businesses whenever we can.
Nguluway DesignInc Director Craig Kerslake continues to be actively involved in industry conversations about First Nations voices in the built environment. He is on numerous panels including the UTS DAB Indigenous Industry Advisory Board and the NSW Government Architect State Design Review Panel.
Over the last three years Craig has also spoken at six national conferences hosted by organisations such as the Property Council of Australia (PCA), the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) and the Australian Institute of Traffic Planning and Management (AIPTM). He has presented at two VIVID Ideas events and has spoken on ABC Radio National and the Greater Cities Podcast, and he has also featured in publications such as the Quantas magazine, Architecture Bulletin, Vogue Living and The Local Project.
Craig has been instrumental in helping to create a place of cultural safety within the broader DesignInc Sydney and DesignInc national teams. He regularly facilitates ‘Cultural Sharing Yarns’ with the DesignInc Sydney team, educating our non-Indigenous peers on cultural protocols and practices.
Looking to the future
Nguluway DesignInc is on a growth trajectory in terms of both our people and our projects. We are incredibly proud of the impact we have made to date, particularly by bringing First Nations voices and stories into the built environment, though we acknowledge the journey has only just begun! There is a lot more work to be done to empower Indigenous design and designers culturally, socially, environmentally and economically, and we’re looking forward to continuing the journey.
For National Reconciliation Week (NRW) 2023, the DesignInc Sydney and Adelaide studios participated in a range of events to enable our teams to connect with, learn about and share knowledge with First Nations communities.
As an architect and proud Wiradjuri man, Craig draws upon his cultural heritage, community and knowledge of Country. He fosters this way of knowing and doing across the team, bringing…
As part of NAIDOC Week 2023, DesignInc Sydney and Nguluway DesignInc collaborated with Ethos Urban and Curio Projects to host an exciting event on Cockatoo Island—’Architecture, Design, People and Place’.
People often ask what it means to be a First Nations designer, and what designing from Country really means. Nguluway DesignInc Director Craig Kerslake has published a manifesto of his ideas around belonging to Country and designing from Country in the Architecture Bulletin
Research continues to demonstrate that inclusion and diversity in the workplace benefits not only the internal culture, but also outcomes such as creativity, strategic thinking, productivity and profit. In other words it’s a win-win for teams, clients, projects and the business.
‘Greater Cities’ is a podcast series about the future of cities. Each episode challenges listeners to look at the big issues facing our cities, with insights from leading thinkers from Australia and around the world.
