Reconciliation Action Plans are about taking good intent and turning it into action.
The Black Lives Matter protests which have erupted across the globe have caused a number of Australians to rethink the issues affecting Indigenous communities.
The health, wealth and employment gaps between Indigenous Australians and the rest of the inhabitants are well known, however the protests created new urgency to do something about them.
In July, the Australian authorities unveiled new Close the Hole targets together with reducing Indigenous incarceration rates.
For organisations that really feel the urgency act there is one obvious solution – a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).
In 2006, Reconciliation Australia introduced RAPs as a way for organisations to include strategic reconciliation initiatives as part of their business plans. The purpose of a RAP is to create meaningful opportunities on your organisation to actively support and recognise Indigenous Australians. Like many initiatives, reconciliation is a process that may evolve as you and your organisation begin to take action.
RAPs are broken down into 4 maturity ranges that reflect where organisations are of their reconciliation journey. They are: Mirror, Innovate, Stretch and Elevate. Every has a corresponding RAP type organisations can pursue. For example, the Innovate stage is for organisations that already understand the place they will improve on Indigenous issues and have begun taking action to actively address them.
The first step for all organisations is to determine its maturity level. “Contact the RAP team at Reconciliation Australia and find out which degree you will start at,” says Anthony. “The RAP crew will ship you a template that will outline what you should do. There are some fundamental compulsory actions required by Reconciliation Australia such as celebrating nationwide Reconciliation Day and growing knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. After that, it’s about the changes you may make.”
Because lots of organisations will start on the Mirror stage, this guide will outline the pillars you might want to set up to start your reconciliation journey.
Research
This is the place it all begins.
It may well help to look into why RAPs are so essential as well as the current issues dealing with Indigenous people. Reports similar to Close the Gap can provide context to your RAP and would possibly aid you with the next step.
Secure support
A part of a profitable RAP is establishing assist for reconciliation initiatives across the entire organisation. In most cases this must start on the top.
“Most often I find that if persons are offered with the details, they beautiful quickly get on board with wanting to be part of the reconciliation movement,”
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are three per cent of the population. They’ll’t do the heavy lifting by way of change and infrastructure change, societal change, or changing attitudes.
“RAPs are a way of stepping in and making significant change.”
Over 1,000 organisations have formalised RAPs, and their implementation has had a real impact on improving employee understanding of Indigenous points, the Reconciliation Australia 2018 RAP Impact report found. This can have a circulate-on effect. It makes employees more engaged with their community and so they often choose to donate to, or volunteer with, Indigenous organisations as a result.
A RAP also solidifies your organisation’s commitment to making a culturally safe work setting, which expands your recruiting pool by making your workplace a more attractive employer to Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander employees.
Set up a working group
The subsequent step is to type a working group that can oversee your entire RAP process. This group will have to be made up of assorted representatives from all sectors of your organisation.
The group is in command of planning and implementing the RAP, so it might want to include members who have some precise energy to make adjustments within the organisation, and members who understand it from a coverage and tradition perspective.
Lastly, for the RAP to be really successful, you’ll want involvement from members who work with customers or shoppers, so that individuals outside your organisation understand you are attempting to make a difference.
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