NOVA PERIS FOUNDATION
Mission
The Nova Peris Foundation is a not for profit organisation that is committed to empowering Aboriginal people to achieve life excellence though healthy nutrition, clean water and opportunities to participate in sport, education, health, spiritual wellbeing and cultural activities.
Vision
Making Aboriginal Communities filled with opportunities and choices.
Our Projects
The Nova Peris Foundation (NPF) will support communities to be self determining. We are implementing micro business enterprises and food sovereignty technology systems to provide social and economic pathways for remote employment and social benefits in Aboriginal communities:
The custom-designed greenhouses provide a secure food source that can withstand volatile weather. Producing an abundance of nutritious food will also enable the community to create a circular economy, further enabling community development.
* Laundry Facilities
* Infrastructure (shop front / spaces) to support micro business enterprises.
* The Nova Peris Foundation has partnered with two key partners, Food Ladder & Aboriginal Investment Group;
Food Ladder is an organisation that has developed these innovative and sustainable food technologies. Together we will provide the training and ongoing support with the local community to ensure the greenhouses are a success.
Aboriginal Investment Group (AIG) will assist with the installation of their remote laundries facility and have also provided support to the Nova Peris Foundation by way of Governance Management and Business Support Services. Together with AIG, it is our long-term vision that with the installation and investment into micro-businesses in our Aboriginal communities and the support we can give, will create economic growth and independence for Aboriginal people.
FOUNDATION GOVERNANCE
The Nova Peris Foundation is governed by a strong multi-talented Board with a passion and commitment to empowering Aboriginal people and their communities.
The Board of Directors have extensive professional networks.
Nova Peris OAM OLY MAICD
Nova is a descendant of the Yawuru & Gija people of the East and West Kimberley, the Gagudju and Iwaidja people from West Arnhem Land. Nova was a Young Australian of the Year and also has an OAM and OLY to her name. She is the first Aboriginal Olympic Gold Medallist and the first Northern Territorian to win Olympic Gold; a Commonwealth Games dual Gold Medallist and the only person in the world to make back-to-back summer Olympic Games finals in two different sports; Hockey and Athletics. Nova has done extensive work in the community since retiring from sports and has held many important positions throughout Australia within Aboriginal Affairs. She was the first Aboriginal woman to sit in the Federal Parliament as a Senator for the Northern Territory and is a member of the Institute of Company Directors.
Dr Kris Rallah-Baker
Dr. Kristopher (Kris) Rallah-Baker, a Yuggera / Biri-Gubba-Juru man, is Australia’s first Aboriginal Ophthalmologist. He works closely with Indigenous communities providing quality eye health care they may not otherwise receive. Diabetic related eye disease and cataracts are the two most common causes of preventable and potentially reversible blindness within Indigenous communities and absorb a significant amount of Kris’ clinical time when working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. During his registrar training in Queensland, Kris had the opportunity to work with the Fred Hollows Foundation in Darwin, work which took him into remote communities across the Top End. Following the completion of his College exit examinations, he was awarded the Fred Hollows Foundation Fellowship, which saw him work in Alice Springs and surrounding communities and at the Pacific Eye Institute, based in Suva, Fiji. Kris is the current president of the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association (AIDA).
Emeritus Prof. MaryAnn Bin-Sallik AO
Professor MaryAnn Bin-Sallik is a proud Djaru Elder from the East Kimberly who spent most of her life in Darwin. She became a registered nurse at seventeen, turning her mind and path to academia in her mid-thirties. MaryAnn‘s long and distinguished career has been marked by impressive and varied achievements. She was the first Aboriginal person to graduate as a registered nurse from Darwin Hospital; to be employed full-time in the higher education sector in Australia; and the first Aboriginal person to gain a Doctorate from Harvard University. MaryAnn is passionate about Indigenous participation in higher education. Her involvement in government, university and community advisory and review groups has greatly influenced education and equity policies for Aboriginal Australians. On her retirement in 2008, MaryAnn was made an Emeritus Professor of Charles Darwin University, in recognition of her decades of academic service and her contribution to the advancement of Indigenous education, cultures and heritage.
Dr Stephanie Trust
Dr Stephanie Trust is a descendant of the Gija and Walmajarri people of the Kimberley region, Western Australia. From humble beginnings, Dr Steph is a prominent and widely respected woman of The Kimberley. Dr Steph is the Principal GP of the Wunan Health and Wellbeing Centre based in Kununurra, East Kimberley. In 2020, Dr Steph has been leading a team of health professionals deal with COVID-19, while overseeing the construction of a state-of-the-art medical facility for wholistic patient care. Dr Stephanie is a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and, until recently, was the Medical Director at the Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services Council in Broome. She is a Board member of the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association, the Kimberley-Pilbara Medicare Local, and the Kimberley Stolen Generation Aboriginal Corporation. Dr Stephanie is also a Cultural Mentor and Advisor for Western Australian General Practice Education & Training Ltd.
Peter Jess
Principal of PJA Accountants, Peter commenced practice as a Chartered Accountant in the late 1970’s. He has broad based exposure to an incredibly wide range of industries covering fields such as primary production, manufacturing, construction, retail, graphic design, sports related services and body corporate services to name but a few. Peter has represented clients the world over and is a pioneer in the field of personal representation for sporting identities, actors, and professionals with a clientele of high-profile coaches and athletes. Peter was a co-founder of the AFLPA’s Education and Training Board and was instrumental in setting up the Agents Accreditation system in the AFL. As a business owner, Peter Jess takes pride in knowing that he can and does make a positive change to the world we live in. Peter does this by supporting a number of community and charity organisations throughout the year. This support is not just monetary – Peter regularly and happily contributes his time and energy to each of these organisations throughout the year
Damien Meredith
Chief Operating Officer for Kia Australia with a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), International Finance from Griffith University. Damien is a down to earth person that knows that his first task is to sell cars now, which will then provide the foundation for future developments. Damien is passionate about giving back to the community and supporting NGO’s.
Dr Jeff McMullen AM
Journalist, author and filmmaker for over fifty years, Dr Jeff McMullen AM has been a foreign correspondent for Australian Broadcasting Corporation, a reporter for Four Corners and Sixty Minutes, anchor of the 33-part issue series on ABC Television, Difference of Opinion and host of forums on National Indigenous Television. Recent documentaries have focussed on the human rights of Australia’s First Peoples, the impact of the Northern Territory Intervention on Aboriginal wellbeing and the pattern of chronic illness taking many lives. Articles and speeches on the global pattern of chronic illness, Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, malnutrition and other conditions of poverty impacting maternal and infant health, the links between low birthweight and renal illness, education as a preventative health measure and new approaches to wellness can be found at www.jeffmcmullen.com.au
