Overview
Pama Futures supports Cape York people to lead the decisions that shape their own communities. For too long, policies and services have been designed for communities rather than with them. Pama Futures helps shift that balance by supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to organise local priorities, strengthen decision-making structures and engage directly with government.
As Cape York’s regional model for the national Empowered Communities initiative, Pama Futures does not make decisions or negotiate on behalf of communities. Its role is to walk alongside local people, helping them build the capability, confidence and structures needed to speak with a strong voice and hold power in their own hands.
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Funding assessed by Pama0
New jobs created0
Forum attendeesWhy it Matters
Across Cape York, funding, programs and services can be difficult for communities to understand and influence. Decisions are often made through separate systems, departments and funding streams, making it harder for local priorities to be heard clearly or acted on in a coordinated way.
Pama Futures helps address this by supporting communities to establish Joint Decision-Making and local partnership structures. These structures bring community voices together, create greater visibility, reduce waste caused by duplication and poor consultation and give local people a seat at the table for decisions about services that affect them.
What we are doing
Pama Futures currently works across seven targeted communities, Aurukun, Hope Vale, Wujal Wujal, Mossman Gorge, Northern Peninsula Area, Lockhart River and Kowanyama. We work alongside local people as a facilitator, helping communities organise priorities, build shared structures and make their own recommendations.
Since 2018, nearly $38 million in funding has been channelled through Joint Decision Making in Cape York. This makes it one of the most successful Empowered Communities regions in Australia and a strong example of communities shaping investment around local priorities.
Stories
