Gunawuna Jungai (GJ) is proud to announce it has been awarded $900,000 over three years through the Queensland Justice Reinvestment Grant Program to deliver the Doomadgee Early Intervention Peacemaking Initiative, a community-designed initiative that will now be community-led, strengthening early intervention, family support and local leadership to help prevent conflict before it escalates into violence, offending or involvement with the justice system.
Developed through extensive community engagement and informed by Gunawuna Jungai’s Justice Reinvestment work over recent years, the initiative reflects the priorities identified by the Doomadgee community itself. It will support respected local leaders to work alongside families, Police and service providers to identify concerns early, strengthen relationships and improve community safety through culturally appropriate pathways.
The initiative represents one of the first major community-designed priorities to move from planning into implementation through Gunawuna Jungai’s Justice Reinvestment work. It demonstrates that when communities are genuinely supported to identify their own priorities, they can develop practical solutions that governments have the confidence to invest in.
The project will establish the Doomadgee Early Intervention and Peacemaking Initiative, support the development of a dedicated Women’s Group, strengthen community conflict resolution and build long-term community systems that enable local people to resolve issues earlier and more effectively.
Gunawuna Jungai Chief Executive Officer, Massimo Zaini, said the funding represented an important milestone for both the organisation and the Doomadgee community.”This investment recognises what the community has been saying for several years; that the best solutions to our challenges are those designed by the community, for the community.”
“Too often, people only become involved once situations have reached crisis point. This initiative is about creating pathways for trusted local leaders to support families earlier, helping resolve issues before they escalate into violence or police involvement.”
The initiative builds upon years of work undertaken by Gunawuna Jungai alongside Traditional Owners, Family Groups, community members, government agencies and research partners. Rather than replacing Police or existing services, it is designed to strengthen partnerships and provide earlier, culturally appropriate pathways that help prevent situations escalating to the point where enforcement becomes necessary.
The project will be implemented over three years and will include:
Gunawuna Jungai Board Chair, Athol Walden, welcomed the Queensland Government’s investment and said it recognised the value of solutions developed by the community.
“This funding is a strong endorsement of community-designed solutions. It recognises that local people understand their own challenges and are best placed to help shape practical solutions that work for our community,” he said.
“We’ve already seen encouraging outcomes when local cultural leadership and Police have worked together to identify issues early and support families before situations escalate. This investment allows us to build on that foundation.”
“This is an investment in the people of Doomadgee. It’s about giving our community the opportunity to lead, strengthen our families and build a safer future together.”
This project complements Gunawuna Jungai’s broader work to strengthen self-determination, improve community governance and support locally led solutions to complex social challenges in Doomadgee.
While the initiative has been designed specifically by and for the Doomadgee community, it also has the potential to provide a practical example for other remote and discrete Aboriginal communities across Queensland seeking to develop their own community-designed approaches to early intervention and peacemaking.
Funding acknowledgement:
Funded by the Queensland Justice Reinvestment Grant program as part of the Queensland Government.