Future - Focused Education: Innovation Inclusion and Impact

 Dr Ambelin Kyaymullina is an Aboriginal writer, illustrator and law academic who comes from the Palyku people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. 

As an educator she has worked to create teaching and research spaces that are respectful of Indigenous peoples and knowledges, including through leading a project to Indigenise law curriculum. Her work in this field has been recognised through multiple awards, including the Neville Bonner Award for Indigenous Education. 

She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, a member of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, and a member of the First Nations Australia Writer’s Network. 

Professor James Arvanitakis is the Director of the Forrest Research Foundation which brings together the five Western Australian-based universities to attract world class early career researchers to the state, link with government and industry, and confront the world’s grand challenges.

He was formerly the Pro Vice Chancellor (Engagement and Advancement) at Western Sydney University, Principal Consultant at the Astrolabe Group, and Executive Director of Fulbright Australia. After successful careers in finance and the not-for profit sector, he has worked with universities for more than 20 years establishing innovative education and research programs. James was the driving force behind several innovative programs at Western Sydney University including The Academy (awarded the Australian Financial Review Excellence in Education Award).

He is an award-winning educator, cultural researcher, and a Fulbright alumnus, having spent 12 months at the University of Wyoming as the Milward L Simpson Fellow. He has a regular segment on Australian television (ABC News 24) discussing complex and controversial topics and has over 100 publications.

In 2021, he was appointed the inaugural Patron of Diversity Arts Australia in recognition of his commitment to a cultural sector that reflects the rich diversity of Australia. In 2022, he founded Respectful Disagreements, a brave spaces project that promotes the lost art of civility in political disagreement as well as the educational power of discomfort.