There have been a number of well-intentioned media and communications programs rolled out by the Australian Government in recent years that have imposed one-size-fits-all solutions onto remote Indigenous Australia. I will look at a number of these programs - including NBN, digital switchover, Indigenous television and the National Jobs Package - and describe the impact of the delivery model for remote Indigenous people.

Psychological First Aid (PFA) has emerged internationally as the crisis intervention of choice in the wake of critical incidents, trauma and mass disaster. The literature abounds with PFA definitions, its applicability and usefulness. However, a systematic review of PFA conducted on behalf of the World Health Organisation (Bisson & Lewis, 2009) identified considerable debate regarding how best to respond to the psychosocial needs of people affected by traumatic events and critical incidents.

The Central Australian Youth Link Up Service (CAYLUS) is a regional substance misuse prevention project based at Tangentyere Council in Alice Springs. Now in its eleventh year, CAYLUS has been involved in the development and rollout of Opal fuel as a supply reduction measure to counter petrol sniffing, and in the implementation of community based youth development programs to improve quality of life for young people in Central Australia. In this seminar, Tristan Ray will discuss the influence of qualitative research in the work and direction of the service.