LINKZ - Bringing Communities Together

Linkz Incorporated is a not for profit organisation that has been set up to establish connections and partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians at both a local community level and also on a broader scale. Our identity is firmly based on the notion that individual humanity is inextricably bound to others and so in order to be effective we must join together.

By establishing Linkz between communities we aim to build a widespread sense of pride in the strength, diversity and value of Australia’s Indigenous culture.

Linkz believes that this can be achieved by:

Providing opportunities for personal development through volunteering and engagement with children, young people and their communities across Australia
Supporting the relationships and networks that are established between volunteers and their host communities
Utilising the ‘ripple effect’ to encourage and support volunteers to share their experiences with the broader community
Increasing the frequency and quality of positive interactions and learning’s between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians

NEWS

Award-winner looks forward to forming links with Indigenous Australia

October 2, 2009

At the Essendon Football Club (EFC) awards ceremony earlier this week, 23-year-old Jen Bashford beamed as she accepted the Ron Evans Leadership Grant. The grant aims to develop leadership skills amongst members of the community. Jen will use the $10,000 grant to fund her December trip to Wadeye, seven hours drive from Darwin. There she will lead a team of volunteers running holiday activities for Wadeye's youth.

Jen is one of the forces behind Linkz Incorporated, a not-for-profit organisation established in 2008. Linkz aims to build connections and partnerships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians at both a local community level and also on a broader scale. The organisation's identity is based on the notion that individual humanity is inextricably bound to others and so in order to be effective, Australians must join together.

Having applied for the grant through the EFC-affiliated Windy Hill Netball Club, of which she is President, Jen has an extensive history of volunteering. When asked what had motivated her to get involved with Linkz, Jen replied, "I am passionate about doing what I can for other people and think I have the responsibility to do this given the opportunities I have had. Australians need to learn about the realities of Indigenous history and the strong culture that exists in aboriginal communities. I really believe that through education we can see an eradication of poverty across the world".

The EFC has partnered with Wadeye and Jen was part of a group that visited the community in 2008. Following that visit, Jen and Linkz CEO Shona Cools established their own partnership with Wadeye, running the Linkz pilot program there at the beginning of the year. Of that opportunity, Jens says "it certainly set us up really well for the Linkz program. The EFC supplied sporting equipment and we made some really important connections in the community. I can't wait to get back up there."

Jen (far left) and the team in Wadeye