The Bawaka Collective is an Indigenous and non-Indigenous, human-more-than-human research collective. It includes Bawaka Country, Laklak Burarrwanga, Ritjilili Ganambarr, Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs, Banbapuy Ganambarr, Djawundil Maymuru, Kate Lloyd, Sandie Suchet-Pearson and Sarah Wright. Bawaka Country is the diverse land, water, human, and nonhuman animals, plants, rocks, thoughts, and songs that make up the Yolŋu homeland of Bawaka in North East Arnhem Land, Australia. Laklak, Ritjilili, Merrkiyawuy, and Banbapuy are four Indigenous sisters, elders, and caretakers for Bawaka Country together with their daughter, Djawundil. Sarah, Sandie and Kate are three non-Indigenous human geographers from the University of Newcastle and Macquarie University who have been adopted into the family as granddaughter, sister, and daughter. The Collective has worked together since 2006.

Laklak Burarrwanga

Laklak Burarrwanga is a Datiwuy Elder, Caretaker for Gumatj, and eldest sister. As such she has both the right and the cultural obligation to share certain aspects of her knowledge and experiences with others. She has many decades experience at sharing this knowledge with children through years of teaching in the community and at Bawaka, and through writing and translating books for the Yirrkala Community School. She has also communicated this knowledge through weaving, painting and print-making and is a member of the National Museum of Women in Art. She established her family-owned tourism business Bawaka Cultural Experiences (BCE) and through this business shares her knowledge with tourists, including government staff in cross-cultural programs. Laklak received an Honorary Doctorate from Macquarie University in 2016 in recognition of her profound knowledge and her passionate commitment to cross-cultural communication and sharing of knowledge.

Ritjilili Ganambarr 

Ritjilili Ganambarr is the second eldest daughter, a Datiwuy elder and caretaker for Gumatj. She works hard on health issues in the community and is passionate about working with mothers and children – teaching and educating them that strong mothers create strong children. She is a weaver and writer/illustrator. She is a co-author of two books, Welcome to My Country and Weaving Lives Together and a book chapter for teachers on sustainability, and an illustrator of Nganapu Nguli Marrtji Diltjiyi (We Go Out to the Bush), a dual-language book written in Yolŋu Matha and English. Ritjilili works with her family’s highly successful Yolŋu owned-and-run Indigenous tourism business (Bawaka Cultural Experiences). She regularly travels to present workshops to non-Indigenous participants on Yolŋu culture and land and is currently co-authoring her third book.

Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs

Merrkiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs is a proud Yolŋu woman and leader from North East Arnhem Land. She has written 6 books. Her children’s books are written in Yolŋu Matha for use in primary schools as Walking Talking texts. She plays an important role in the bilingual education movement in Arnhem Land working with Yolŋu Elders to develop both-ways learning. She has developed a series of Yolŋu curriculum materials currently in use in Arnhem Land. She has also been an important voice for Yolŋu rights. In this capacity she has regularly appeared on television and on the internet. She is currently the Principal of Yirrkala  Community School. Her vision is that every child is appreciated, and that every child knows that dreams are possible.

Banbapuy Ganambarr

Banbapuy grew up at Guluruŋa. She is a bilingual student who completed her degree at Bachelor College through the Northern Territory University. Banbapuy  is now a senior Indigenous teacher at Yirrkala Community School. Her work as an author, artist, weaver, and teacher has allowed her to influence curriculum and teaching methods, conduct professional development for teachers at the school and to stand up and explain community needs and goals to Government Departments and Officers. She works closely with her family, supporting them in running a cultural tourism business and is currently working on the Collective’s third book – focusing on translating and interpreting the Songspirals.

Djawundil Maymuru 

Djawundil Maymuru is a Maŋgalili women, raised by a Gumatj elder. She is a Yolŋu mother and grandmother from the beautiful homeland of Bawaka in North East Arnhem Land. She is a co-author of two books, Welcome to My Country and Weaving Lives Together and is currently working on her third book. Djawundil works with Bawaka Cultural Experiences, a highly successful Yolŋu owned and run Indigenous tourism business. As a key member of the business, she works with visitors to Bawaka to share life at Bawaka with them, helping them understand and respect Yolŋu culture and land. She is a college graduate and a bilingual student, has been on the board of Laynhapuy Homeland Association and is currently on the board of Lirrwi Tourism Corporation. Djawundil has also been invited to share Yolŋu knowledge at conferences and seminars in New Zealand, Canberra, Sydney , Boston, Bellingen and Newcastle.

Sarah Wright 

Associate Professor Sarah Wright is a human geographer from the University of Newcastle. She has worked with community groups and NGOs for over 25 years in Australia, Mexico, Kenya, South Africa, Cuba and the Philippines. She has lived and worked in Cuba helping coordinate the urban food production education project in Havana and in the Philippines where she worked with a network of subsistence organic farmers. For the past 8 years, she has worked closely with inspirational Yolŋu women from northeast Arnhem Land and has been adopted into the family at Bawaka homeland. She has written over 65 refereed books, articles and conference papers.

Kate Lloyd

Associate Professor Kate Lloyd is a teacher, researcher and academic developer at Macquarie University. She specialises in tourism-as-development and learning through participation and has expertise in cross-cultural research in Australia and Asia. She has experience doing research and working with government and community organizations in Vietnam, Lao PDR, PNG and northern Australia. Through innovative collaborative research with her colleagues Sarah Wright and Sandie Suchet-Pearson, she is currently working with Indigenous communities in North East Arnhem Land to explore opportunities that tourism can offer in seeking self determination.

Sandie Suchet-Pearson 

Sandie is an Associate Professor in Human Geography at Macquarie University in Sydney. Her research and teaching experiences over the last 20 years have been in the area of Indigenous rights and environmental management. She’s worked on Cape York Peninsula on community development in the context of a major mining operation, examined the strategies used by Indigenous peoples and local communities to assert their rights in wildlife management in Canada and southern Africa, and her current work focuses on Indigenous self-determination in the context of cultural tourism in North East Arnhem Land, northern Australia.

Lara Daley

Lara is a research fellow in Human Geography at the University of Newcastle. Her research engages Indigenous-led geographies and ongoing colonisation in urban and semi-urban Indigenous/settler colonial contexts. She is a member of Yandaarra and the Bawaka Collective, two Indigenous-led collaborations focusing on Indigenous sovereignties and Indigenous-led ways of caring for Country. Lara has been collaborating with the Gay’wu Group of Women since 2016 and was placed in the family as sister to Djawundil’s children in 2021.