About

Communities and locations 

The communities and other locations, referenced throughout the RIFIC website, are locations derived from the Australian Government Indigenous Programs & Policy Locations (AGIL) data set. The AGIL locations are referred to as Indigenous communities on RIFIC and can refer to a range of different types of locations (see description of AGIL data set below).

Because the AGIL locations are not the only locations where Indigenous Australians live, the RIFIC location database has also been complemented with one location for each local area in the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) State Suburbs (SSC) data set. The SSC locations are referred to as Other locations on RIFIC.

The inclusion of both the AGIL and SSC locations means that meaningful local place names from all around Australia can be found through the search. Many locations have several alternative names. The inclusion of many of these in RIFIC’s List of communities means that the number of entries in that list is greater than the number of locations. When a location name of interest cannot be found through the text search or browsing the List of communities, try clicking on the location in the Search on map and select a corresponding region that way. Suggestions for additional locations, or location names, that should be included in RIFIC are very welcome and can be submitted by clicking the FEEDBACK tab.

Australian Government Indigenous Programs & Policy Locations (AGIL) data set

The AGIL data set is available from the data.gov.au web site with the following description:

This dataset has been developed by the Australian Government as an authoritative source of indigenous location names across Australia. It is sponsored by the Spatial Policy Branch within the Department of Communications and managed solely by the Department of Human Services.

The dataset is designed to support the accurate positioning, consistent reporting, and effective delivery of Australian Government programs and services to indigenous locations.

The dataset contains Preferred and Alternate names for indigenous locations where Australian Government programs and services have been, are being, or may be provided. The Preferred name will always default to a State or Territory jurisdiction's gazetted name so the term 'preferred' does not infer that this is the locally known name for the location. Similarly, locational details are aligned, where possible, with those published in State and Territory registers.

This dataset is NOT a complete listing of all locations at which indigenous people reside. Town and city names are not included in the dataset. The dataset contains names that represent indigenous communities, outstations, defined indigenous areas within a town or city or locations where services have been provided.

State Suburbs (SSC)

State Suburbs are an approximation of the officially recognised boundaries of suburbs (in cities and larger towns) and localities (outside of cities and larger towns). More information about the State Suburbs can be found on the ABS Web site.

The Other locations on RIFIC are the geographic midpoints of the SSCs. These midpoints are presented as the location of each suburb or locality in the RIFIC maps.

Acknowledgements

The Indigenous Group at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the custodians of this land. We pay our respects to Elders, past, present and emerging custodians of country throughout Australia.

We thank all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities and individuals across Australia who told us that they need access to data that is collected by governments and that is relevant to them and their places, to help them with local planning and decision making. The creation of the Regional Insights for Indigenous Communities website (RIFIC) is our response to this need. 

We thank the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO), the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and the Department of Health for their help with the organisation of national workshops held across Australia on earlier versions of the current website. We thank all of the people from  Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, Empowered Communities and Primary Health Networks, who provided valuable advice at these workshops.

We thank the Coalition of Peaks, NACCHO, the Indigenous Data Network, the Lowitja Institute, the Australian National University National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, the Department of Health, and the National Indigenous Australians Agency. Consultations with them resulted in significant enhancements and refinements to the website.

We thank Linda (Nungjingi) Huddleston for the artwork and graphic design, Wayne Quilliam and Robert Jones for the photographs, and Meyne Wyatt for being the voice on the navigation videos.

This website was mainly funded by the Department of Health Indigenous Health Division.

Artwork story

The artwork used throughout this website was created by Linda (Nungjingi) Huddleston.

Linda belongs to the Gurindji, Malngin, Mudpurra, Ngardi, Walpiri (Northern Territory) and Wiradjuri (New South Wales) peoples. Linda is a renowned Aboriginal artist who has been creating dot paintings for over 20 years.

Artwork	Description
	People and communities The circle in the middle is the community and the surrounding ‘U’ shapes are the people.
	Culture and language This artwork represents people sitting around the campfire sharing culture and speaking in Aboriginal language. The circle in the middle is a campfire and the surrounding ‘U’ shapes are the people.
	Education and work This artwork represents the journey of digging tracks.
	Health risk factors This artwork represents kidney disease dialysis.
	Health conditions This artwork represents that heart disease is common among Aboriginal people.
	Disability This artwork represents people with disability.
	Life expectancy and mortality This artwork represents the sacred tree of life.
	Health services This artwork represents a main office and health services. The circle in the centre represents the main office and the surrounding dots are the different health services available.
	Mothers and babies (Birth–1 year) This artwork represents women sitting around with their children, with the ancestors protecting them. The circle in the centre represents a meeting place or a home, the large ‘U’ shape are the mothers and the small ‘U’ are the children. The surrounding dots are the ancestors.
	Children (1–14 years) This artwork represents children, the ‘U’ shape are the children.
	Adolescents and youth (15–24 years) The circle in the centre represents a youth centre and the ‘U’ shapes are the people.
	Adults (25–49 years) This artwork represents adults growing.
	Older people (50 years and over) This artwork represents adults reaching retirement.
	Access data This artwork represents footprints gone walkabout.
	Glossary The goanna represents a totem; every tribe has a totem.
	Technical notes This artwork represents tracks on the sacred tree
	Data sources This artwork represents a message stick going from tribe to tribe.
	Abbreviations This artwork represents kangaroo prints, people and mountains.
	Data availability This artwork represents hands with a heart meeting place.
	Help This artwork represents didgeridoo and clapsticks.
	Updates This artwork represents the boomerangs meeting place.

Suggested citation

Website

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [insert year of latest update]. Regional Insights for Indigenous Communities. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed [insert date].

Webpage

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare  [insert year of latest update of webpage]. Regional Insights for Indigenous Communities: [insert title of webpage, e.g Culture and language]. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed [insert date].