Education and employment outcomes for young Indigenous people in the Dandjoo Darbalung program have received a $180,000 boost from four corporate leaders in the Western Australian mining industry. AngloGoldAshanti Australia, Barminco, Independence Group (IGO) and Sandfire Resources have joined forces to provide an investment in the program of $45,000 over three years.
IGO’s Company Secretary and Head of Corporate Affairs, Joanne McDonald, responded to a request for support by the College and was the driver behind the partnership .
“This was a perfect opportunity to reach out to others within our industry to see if they would be interested in taking a collaborative approach to community investment. AngloGold Ashanti, our joint venture partner at Tropicana, Barminco our mining services provider at Nova, and Sandfire our neighbour in the Fraser Range region, it made sense as we all have operations in remote locations where many of the students in the program come from. It was through the power of collaboration that we saw an opportunity to make a significant impact.
“We are so excited that we have been able to finalise the agreement and help the program expand and be able to assist more students. I think this serves as a great example for our peers in the mining industry to find more ways to collaborate on programs that bring shared value – together we can make a huge difference,” Ms McDonald added.
Fiona Crowe, the Head of St Catherine’s College strongly advocates this approach, “This program is making a fundamental difference to young Indigenous people from regional and remote communities. Supportive partnerships such as this enable us to grow the program and provide the depth of academic and pastoral support which ensures real success. Higher graduation rates and secure employment for Indigenous students are our shared objectives!”
