Reconciliation Action Plans are about taking good intent and turning it into action.
The Black Lives Matter protests that have erupted across the globe have caused loads of Australians to rethink the issues affecting Indigenous communities.
The health, wealth and employment gaps between Indigenous Australians and the remainder of the inhabitants are well known, however the protests created new urgency to do something about them.
In July, the Australian authorities unveiled new Shut the Gap targets including reducing Indigenous incarceration rates.
For organisations that feel the urgency act there is one apparent solution – a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).
In 2006, Reconciliation Australia launched RAPs as a way for organisations to incorporate strategic reconciliation initiatives as a part of their business plans. The purpose of a RAP is to create significant opportunities for your organisation to actively support and recognise Indigenous Australians. Like many initiatives, reconciliation is a process that can evolve as you and your organisation start to take action.
RAPs are broken down into 4 maturity ranges that replicate the place organisations are in their reconciliation journey. They’re: Replicate, Innovate, Stretch and Elevate. Every has a corresponding RAP type organisations can pursue. For instance, the Innovate level is for organisations that already understand the place they can improve on Indigenous points and have begun taking action to actively address them.
The first step for all organisations is to find out its maturity level. “Contact the RAP staff at Reconciliation Australia and find out which stage you will start at,” says Anthony. “The RAP team will send you a template that will define what you could do. There are some fundamental obligatory actions required by Reconciliation Australia reminiscent of celebrating national Reconciliation Day and growing knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. After that, it’s concerning the modifications you may make.”
Because quite a lot of organisations will start on the Replicate stage, this guide will outline the pillars you’ll want to establish to start your reconciliation journey.
Research
This is where it all begins.
It will probably assist to look into why RAPs are so necessary as well as the present points dealing with Indigenous people. Reports such as Close the Gap can provide context to your RAP and would possibly provide help to with the next step.
Secure help
Part of a profitable RAP is establishing support for reconciliation initiatives across your complete organisation. In most cases this needs to start on the top.
“Most frequently I discover that if people are introduced with the info, they pretty quickly get on board with desirous to be part of the reconciliation movement,”
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are three per cent of the population. They will’t do the heavy lifting in terms 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 issues, the Reconciliation Australia 2018 RAP Impact report found. This can have a move-on effect. It makes workers more engaged with their community and so they often choose to donate to, or volunteer with, Indigenous organisations as a result.
A RAP additionally solidifies your organisation’s commitment to creating 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.
Establish a working group
The subsequent step is to kind a working group that will oversee the entire RAP process. This group will have to be made up of assorted representatives from all sectors of your organisation.
The group is accountable for planning and implementing the RAP, so it might want to consist of members who have some actual energy to make changes in the organisation, and members who understand it from a coverage and culture perspective.
Lastly, for the RAP to be really successful, you’ll need involvement from members who work with customers or purchasers, so that people outside your organisation understand you are trying to make a difference.
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