AIATSIS Research Program

AIATSIS is the premier national, multidisciplinary research institution focusing on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.  It has special mission to mobilise this knowledge and increase understanding of Indigenous cultures and societies within Australia and internationally.

AIATSIS has responsibility for a multitude of research programs and services and engages in numerous partnerships with research institutions and Indigenous regional alliances, communities and individuals.  The research activities of AIATSIS are conducted by the Research Section and the Native Title Research Unit.  Research projects are primarily carried out by research fellows, who are experts in their fields of study and practice.  AIATSIS aims to offer an ideal research environment, increasingly for early-to mid-career Indigenous scholars.

Its wide-ranging program includes work on:

Indigenous social and cultural wellbeing

• Indigenous health and wellbeing

• education and cultural transmission

• Indigenous language and cultural expression

Indigenous country and governance

• Indigenous governance and government

• Indigenous country management

• native title and traditional ownership

Undertaking research

The Research Program employs a core number of visiting research fellows to carry out research and advise the Institute’s Council on research matters. It employs visiting research fellows who undertake special research projects approved by the Council. The Native Title Research Unit, a special unit within the Research Program, addresses pressing research needs arising from the recognition of native title.

Promoting research

The range and diversity of AIATSIS research publications reflect the diversity of research staff interests and of the audiences for which they are produced, including Indigenous communities, academic bodies and government agencies.

The Research Program actively disseminates the results of its research through peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed publications and reports, the Institute’s website, and presentations at seminars, lectures, workshops and national conferences.

Facilitating research

The Institute also makes funding available to individuals and organisations through the research grants program; it provides training, facilities and support for Indigenous trainee researchers, and visiting and honorary scholars. In addition, the program commissions research projects and conducts work jointly with other organisations.

Contact Us

For further information about AIATSIS staff and their research.

Site Map

A site map for the research program website.