Research Research Themes Elevating & Supporting Indigenous Futures

Elevating & Supporting Indigenous Futures

Embracing Indigenous knowledge as a catalyst for realising Indigenous futures and self-determination.

Research with impact

Busting myths in Undara

Until recently, it seemed to be common knowledge that Aboriginal people did not live in the lava tubes (volcanic caves) that were created by the Undara volcano 190,000 years ago. JCU Adjunct Research Fellow Dr Alice Buhrich and Brian Bing, an Ewamian Elder, tell us what they found at Undara and at nearby Talaroo Hot Springs.

School success off the beaten track

High school teacher Tammy Sam knows first-hand how brightly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students are capable of shining. However, with much of the research in this area focused on identifying gaps and challenges, she was determined to take a different approach.

Explaining Indigenous Languages

Indigenous languages continue to disappear at an increasingly alarming rate. To celebrate the International Year of Indigenous Languages, JCU Adjunct Research Professor R. M. W. (Bob) Dixon has written the first user-friendly guide teaching about endangered Indigenous Australian languages.

Local voices, national conversations

After completing her PhD at JCU in 2022, Gugu Badhun/Ngadjon-ji researcher and academic Dr Janine Gertz has been awarded the prestigious 2023 Stanner Award — a national biennial prize that recognises her thesis as the best academic writing by an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander author.

Three people walking in the distance with the Cairns Institute in the foreground.

Our research

James Cook University (JCU) is committed to impactful research that supports Indigenous self-determination, governance, and justice while fostering knowledge, health, and community development.

Our research spans education, scholarship, and learning, the preservation and celebration of Indigenous knowledge and histories, and improving family, community health, and wellbeing.

We also focus on economic empowerment, sustainable development, and supporting healthy country through collaborative research that respects and uplifts Indigenous voices.

Research Institutes, Centres and Collaborations

Indigenous Education and Research Centre

Doing things better means doing something different. A leader in providing Indigenous education, research and engagement.

College of Arts, Society & Education

Delivering foundational knowledge and real-world impact which is focused on the societies and peoples of the tropics, working with partners to deliver globally informed and locally targeted insights to our communities.

The Cairns Institute

Work with and for people of the tropics to create brighter, more equitable, and enriching futures for all.

ARC Centre of Excellence for Indigenous & Environmental Histories & Futures

To work for Healthy Land and Sea Country, centred in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander understandings and approaches and informed by cutting-edge cultural, environmental, and historical research.