Stronger Culture, Healthier Lifestyles

The health disparity and social disadvantage between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in NSW is a major public health concern.

Compared with their non-Aboriginal peers, Aboriginal children aged 5-16 years are 1.4 times more likely to be overweight or obese, exceed screen time recommendations on weekdays and engage in unhealthy eating habits.  

This project offers a unique after-school program that encourages Aboriginal children to connect with their culture and focuses on using culturally relevant activities chosen by the local Aboriginal community to promote healthy lifestyles and educational outcomes.

“This is the first program of its kind where connection to culture is the focal point to improve children’s healthy lifestyle behaviours and build confidence in who they are.” says Chief Investigator, Dr Rebecca Stanley.

Through ongoing consultation and collaboration with Cullunghutti Aboriginal Child and Family Centre, local community Elders, Aboriginal children and their parents and caregivers, the researchers and research partners have developed an after-school cultural and activity program with a focus on cultural connectedness, healthy lifestyles and educational outcomes. The program provides children opportunities to learn local Aboriginal culture, connect to Country and engage in activities that promote physical, social, emotional and spiritual health.

This idea has evolved from the lack of success of previous disease prevention programs and a growing consensus that programs should be more culturally appropriate and incorporate activities that strengthen connection to culture through cultural practices, knowledge and expressions, which is fundamental to Indigenous health and wellbeing.

The ten week pilot program was launched in Ulladulla in 2016, and expanded to Nowra and Culburra in 2017-18. These local areas were found to have the greatest need, and had strong support from the community for children to learn about who they are by connecting with their culture. Each week the children partake in activities such as bushwalking, Aboriginal games, art and crafts, discovering bush tucker and bush medicine, as well as learning the local language and dances.

Participation in this after-school cultural program aims to increase Aboriginal children’s cultural connectedness, improve educational outcomes and healthy lifestyles, and support the foundations for a healthier lifestyle now and into the future.

In the media

• NSW South Coast Aboriginal after-school pilot program helping kids connect with culture
• Unique program helps Aboriginal children to connect with their culture

This multi-component afterschool program brings together researchers in social sciences, health sciences and humanities and social inquiry (specifically Indigenous studies) to transform lives of Aboriginal children living in disadvantaged areas of the Illawarra region in a positive and motivating way.

Dr Rebecca Stanley is a Post-doctoral Fellow funded through a NSW Health Early-Mid Career Fellowship in Early Start and the School of Health and Society. Her current research focuses on children’s physical activity and sedentary behaviour and developing and testing culturally appropriate practices in afterschool settings to support all children to develop healthier lifestyles. She will contribute to the design, implementation and evaluation of the program and consult with local Aboriginal communities and children.

Dr Anthony McKnight is an Awabakal, Gumaroi and Yuin Man and is in the School of Education, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities. His research focuses on the importance of Aboriginal Country in Aboriginal knowledge systems and processes in teacher education and research. Dr McKnight’s role will be to advise on appropriate cultural practices and assist with interpretation of research outcomes.

Dr Yasmine Probst is an NHMRC TRIP Senior Research Fellow of the School of Medical, Indigenous and Health Sciences, Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health. Her research focuses on dietary assessment methodology and food composition and the application of technology to such processes. Dr Probst’s role in the team will be to advise on dietary assessment, healthy snack choices and to supervise the dietetic honours student.

Dr Gabrielle O’Flynn is in the School of Education, Faculty of the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities. In her research, Gabrielle explores the place and meaning of health, wellbeing, beauty, food and physical activity in people’s lives.  More recently, Gabrielle’s work engages with more-than-human perspectives to consider how our subjectivities and experiences are shaped by/through nature and non-human entities. In addition, Gabrielle’s work takes a strengths lens to shift and critique individualised, moralised and deficit focused Western meanings health and wellbeing.  

Dr Sarah Tillot is a lecturer in the School of Medical, Indigenous and Health Sciences, Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health. Sarah has qualifications in Health and Education, with a particular focus on early intervention and prevention measures that promote wellbeing. Sarah’s PhD examined the interpersonal and  cognitive constructs of resilience in children using appropriate pedagogy and is now exploring this concept in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.  

This project is working towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals: