Hope For Health - Arnhem Land
Nonprofit Organization Management - Galiwin'ku, Northern Territory, Australia
Hope For Health - Arnhem Land Employees
Hope For Health - Arnhem Land Details
The Hope for Health program (HfH) is a Yolngu-led initiative based on Elcho Island that aims to change the experience of health in the community through acknowledgement of the interconnectedness of Aboriginal health and wellbeing with land, kinship, culture, and ancestry. The program was developed by Yolngu Elders, and long-time local residents in response to the health crisis in Indigenous communities in NE Arnhem Land. It is overseen by the HfH steering committee of senior Yolngu community members.HfH incorporates traditional Yolngu knowledge and practices with mainstream approaches to health, nutrition, and lifestyle. HfH aims to encourage bilateral sharing of knowledge and values; encourage reciprocity and mutual support; and create the potential for role models within families and the community, with flow-on benefits for children.HfH focuses on transformative experiences that aim to improve the health of participants through healthy lifestyle experiences, along with providing the skills and knowledge to help maintain healthy behaviours.HfH has achieved significant results for participants in the past, empowering intergenerational change. This year (2022) HfH is the focus of a study commissioned by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) with the goal of providing evidence needed to confirm effectiveness, understand factors that underpin sustainability, and support scaling up of the project across remote Aboriginal communities, as well as potential inclusion of aspects of HfH in mainstream health services. It will also provide important insights into the interactions between nutrition and exercise, metabolism, and inflammation in Aboriginal Australia
