Chancellor's Address: NAIDOC Week Gala Dinner

The following speech was delivered by Western Sydney University Chancellor, Professor Jennifer Westacott AC at the NAIDOC Week Gala Dinner event at Western Sydney University's Parramatta City campus, on Friday, 11 July 2025. Please check against delivery.

Thank you, Josh, for that warm welcome.

Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of this land – the Burramattagal People of the Darug Nation – and pay my respects to their elders past and present.

I also acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People here today.

Thank you to GPT, and Evolve Housing for their sponsorship of tonight’s event.

It really is an honour to be invited to speak with you tonight to mark the 50^th anniversary of NAIDOC week. The celebration is a testament to the strength and endurance of Indigenous Australians.

Where do we stand as a nation?

As we reflect on this milestone, let’s pause and take stock of the progress we have made as a nation and also look to where more needs to be done.

As we know, at the halfway point of the Closing the Gap agreement – just four of the 17 targets on track to be met by 2031.

We have increased:

• the numbers of Indigenous children enrolled in early childhood education
• Indigenous people in employment
• Indigenous babies born at a healthy weight, and
• the area of land and sea subject to traditional owners’ rights or interests.

But far too many targets remain out of reach.

And on some, we risk going backwards including in the areas of:

• education
• legal justice
• and health.

Just as importantly, we are in danger of allowing silence to drown out any national debate on self-determination.

That debate will not be silenced at this University.

Where we are as a University

I am immensely proud to lead a University that is committed to Indigenous advancement.

We are fortunate to have strong Indigenous leadership with Michelle and her team – as well as a community that puts their hard work and hearts into making a difference.

Many of you are here tonight, and I thank you.

Last year, I made the comment that you will find no greater supporters of Indigenous self-determination than myself and the Vice-Chancellor, Distinguished Professor George Williams AO.

Later this month, we will launch our new Strategic Plan, WESTERN 2030.

It puts forward seven University-wide priorities, with Indigenous Advancement as one of the centrepieces. Not as a side agenda – as a central agenda.

Targets will be properly resourced, and progress will be benchmarked.

The Strategic Plan aims to:

• Increase the proportion of Indigenous undergraduate students from 2.5 per cent to 3.2 per cent
• Increase the proportion of Indigenous post graduate students from 2.5 per cent to 3.8 per cent
• Dramatically lift Indigenous student retention
• Double the number of Indigenous staff with doctoral qualifications, and
• Almost double the headcount of academic staff who are Indigenous.

Achieving these goals will enable us to lead the nation in Indigenous education.

And there is no better demonstration of our ambitions than our commitment to build the Indigenous Centre of Excellence on our Parramatta South campus.

I urge all of you to get behind this transformational project which will demonstrate what is possible.

Raising money for the Centre is one of my main priorities this year.

What our priorities need to be

So, going forward let me highlight some of our priorities.

At Western, we are determined to increase the number of PhD scholarships and post-doctoral fellowships.

I want us to be ambitious and apply these requirements across the whole university, not one or two schools.

I want to tackle the cost of living crisis that is impacting our students, particularly Indigenous students.

I am dedicating my annual Chancellor’s Golf Day this year to supporting the Badanami Centre for Indigenous Education and the Badanami Futures Fund.

This culturally safe and flexible fund is designed to ensure our future leaders can stay enrolled at University, continue in their studies and thrive.

I want to raise a minimum of $70,000 so I need you to get behind my golf day.

At Western Sydney University, we are determined to play an enormous role in nurturing the next generation of Indigenous leaders.

It’s why I want to explore co-designing an Indigenous leadership academy with you.

What is missing from our corporate and political sphere at the moment is a national agenda to encourage Indigenous Australians into advanced jobs.

Together, we can do more to increase Indigenous representation at our board and cabinet tables.

As the head of the Business Council of Australia, I saw great progress on entry level jobs but terrible progress on advancement.

We need to turn this around by putting in place an organised, structured pipeline to nurture the next generation of leaders.

But who does that work?

Do we cede it to another university?

Does it just not get done?

Or do we work together and – like so many areas in Indigenous advancement – lead the way.

If we don’t support and grow our young Indigenous leaders, who will be the voices of the next generation?

Who will drive progress?

I am talking a long-term project, not the next 12 months.

I stand ready to continue working with you to drive self-determination – shaping it as a legacy that we can all be proud of at Western Sydney University.

I want to understand your ambition, understand what we can do now but more importantly what we can do over the long term that is truly transformational.

By partnering together, we can unleash the remarkable potential of the Indigenous people who choose to study and work with us.

Thank you.

ENDS

14 July 2025

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