Innovate RAP Endorsed
We are extremely proud to announce that our Innovate RAP has been endorsed by Reconciliation Australia!
The purpose of the Innovate RAP is to implement reconciliation initiatives, and from what we can tell, we are the only built environment design practice in Australia to be endorsed at this level.
Our Innovate RAP last for two years, and in that time, we have committed to the following major initiatives:
_Formalise cultural protocols we observe when visiting and working with First Nations communities. This document will be developed in such a way that it can be modified according to local context.
_Implement an education program that can be taught in remote schools to enhance students’ understanding of the built environment.
_Continue to offer pro or low-bono services to First Nations organisations for work of community benefit.
_Continue to contribute 1% of revenue to The Fulcrum Fund, which we established with the goal of funding projects in First Nations communities across Australia.
_Appoint a Cultural Governance Adviser to guide our approach to practice and project development.
In developing our Innovate RAP we had the opportunity to strengthen our Vision for Reconcilation:
TheFulcrum.Agency respects the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and acknowledges their long, continuous spiritual connection to their lands. We recognise that the taking of these lands has come at a significant cost to the culture and wellbeing of First Nations peoples and to an acceptance of our shared destiny
TheFulcrum.Agency is committed to using our skills in the built environment to build a reconciled Australia, where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures are foundational to our national identity and embraced by our institutions.
Our vision for reconciliation in Australia is one in which Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians live together as equals, enjoying the same benefits of health and well-being, the same opportunities for education and employment, and the same dignity of recognition and respect. It is vison for a country that acknowledges the pain of its colonial past while striving for a shared and optimistic future.
Our vision is led by all of our staff and is guided by the cultural authority of our clients and the communities with whom we are privileged to work. This shared work is motivated by a commitment to social justice and a desire to redress systemic racism and structural inequality.
Daily Practice
In our daily practice, we create opportunities for First Nations peoples to actively participate in the development of our cities and our regional and remote communities. We do this in several ways:
Strategy: we provide strategic advice to Indigenous communities seeking to navigate local planning systems; and to non-Indigenous businesses looking to incorporate a First Nations perspective into their building initiatives.
Community Co-Production: we insist that First Nations communities remain in control of the decisions that affect their lives and are at the forefront of the decision-making process.
Research: we partner with First Nations researchers, communities and leaders to inform an evidence-based understanding of the relationship between the built environment and health and well-being.
Built Environment: we draw on our skills in strategy, co-production and research to design places and spaces that care for Country on projects that directly improve the quality of the built environment in remote communities and our regional and metropolitan centres.
We are a small business that maintains an ambitious approach to employment practices. We foster a work environment that mentors emerging Indigenous creative practitioners and promotes ‘on Country’ cultural training for our staff. Our governance structure is overseen by First Nations experts in business and the built environment.
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