Reconciliation Action Plans are about taking good intent and turning it into action.
The Black Lives Matter protests which have erupted across the globe have caused numerous Australians to rethink the problems affecting Indigenous communities.
The health, wealth and employment gaps between Indigenous Australians and the remainder of the inhabitants are well known, but the protests created new urgency to do something about them.
In July, the Australian authorities unveiled new Close the Hole targets together with reducing Indigenous incarceration rates.
For organisations that feel the urgency act there may be one obvious solution – a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP).
In 2006, Reconciliation Australia launched RAPs as a way for organisations to incorporate strategic reconciliation initiatives as part of their enterprise plans. The intention of a RAP is to create meaningful opportunities for your organisation to actively assist and recognise Indigenous Australians. Like many initiatives, reconciliation is a process that will evolve as you and your organisation start to take action.
RAPs are broken down into four maturity ranges that mirror where organisations are in their reconciliation journey. They’re: Reflect, Innovate, Stretch and Elevate. Every has a corresponding RAP type organisations can pursue. For instance, the Innovate level is for organisations that already understand where they can improve on Indigenous issues and have begun taking action to actively address them.
Step one for all organisations is to find out its maturity level. “Contact the RAP group at Reconciliation Australia and find out which degree you will start at,” says Anthony. “The RAP crew will ship you a template that can define what you want to do. There are some primary compulsory actions required by Reconciliation Australia similar to celebrating nationwide Reconciliation Day and growing knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. After that, it’s about the adjustments you possibly can make.”
Because a lot of organisations will start at the Mirror stage, this guide will define the pillars it is advisable establish to start your reconciliation journey.
Research
This is where it all begins.
It might probably help to look into why RAPs are so necessary as well as the current points going through Indigenous people. Reports reminiscent of Shut the Hole can provide context to your RAP and would possibly allow you to with the next step.
Secure assist
A part of a successful RAP is establishing help for reconciliation initiatives throughout all the organisation. In most cases this must start on the top.
“Most often I find that if persons are introduced with the details, they beautiful quickly get on board with eager to be a part of the reconciliation movement,”
“Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons are three per cent of the population. They will’t do the heavy lifting by way 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 points, the Reconciliation Australia 2018 RAP Impact report found. This can have a flow-on effect. It makes employees more engaged with their community and so they usually select to donate to, or volunteer with, Indigenous organisations as a result.
A RAP also solidifies your organisation’s commitment to making a culturally safe work environment, 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 following step is to form a working group that can oversee your complete RAP process. This group will have to be made up of various representatives from all sectors of your organisation.
The group is answerable for planning and implementing the RAP, so it might want to encompass members who’ve some actual energy to make modifications within the organisation, and members who understand it from a policy and culture perspective.
Lastly, for the RAP to be really profitable, you’ll need involvement from members who work with prospects or clients, so that individuals outside your organisation understand you are trying to make a difference.
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