Technology on Country
Sustainable Livelihoods
The CfAT Ltd. Technology on Country program (ToC) supports Indigenous communities with all aspects of implementing environmentally and culturally appropriate infrastructure and technology that helps to maintain a connection to country, live on country, look after country and culture, thrive on country, and develop sustainable livelihoods on country.
Many Indigenous people in Australia still live on country in large and small remote communities, and CfAT Ltd. has been an industry leader in working with Indigenous peoples on country to develop and build appropriate technologies that are affordable, durable, and easy to operate and maintain since the 1980’s.
CfAT Ltd. continues to develop, lead and manage a number of projects under the Technology on Country program, which is supported by the technical knowledge and expertise held by our award-winning, 100% Indigenous-owned engineering company Ekistica, as well as a range of other knowledge partners.
“Some of us never left our country; some of us walked back to our country during the Homelands Movement from the 1960s onwards; and some of us are still fighting to get back on our country. All of us work hard to continue our connections to Country with limited support.
Many of us live in larger remote communities, and some in very remote homelands and outstations. Over recent times, Indigenous rangers and land and sea management programs have emerged to play a strong role in enabling our people continue to connect to and live on country. This has allowed us to create meaningful jobs that help us look after our culture and traditional knowledge by also looking after our land and sea country.”
Technology Focus Areas
CfAT Ltd.’s Technology on Country program is broken down into the following technology focus areas:
- Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
- Shelter, Housing and Buildings
- Information and Communications Technology (ICT)
- Transport and Mobility
- Planning, Livelihoods and Engagement
Project Types
Research and development
Directing and creating the knowledge and appropriate technology that Indigenous people need on country.
Capacity building
Training and transferring the skills required to benefit from and self-manage appropriate technology, while building the skills to appraise and appropriate technology.
Applied technology
Project managing the delivery, construction, installation, and implementation of appropriate technology on country.
Projects
Mobile Hotspots
The CfAT Mobile Phone Hotspot is a one-user-at-a-time facility to extend mobile coverage in fringe areas with poor coverage. The dish is aimed at the nearest or most suitable mobile tower, and because of its large receiving area, the dish captures more signal than the phone’s built-in antenna, as it focuses this stronger signal down to the cradle top where the phone sits. The user simply places their phone on the cradle and waits for a few seconds for signal to appear. The phone can be used in loudspeaker mode, or as a personal hotspot.
Hotspots are ideally suited for extending coverage to remote area settlements, roadside rest areas, truck stops, tourist locations and strategic road junctions; in short any important location that is currently outside the footprint of mobile coverage. Hotspots will work equally well with Optus, Telstra or Vodafone signals, and with 3G, 4G or 4GX, provided there is already a very weak signal at the location of interest. A rule of thumb indicator is that text messages can occasionally be received or sent from that location.
Bush Hardy Products
CfAT Ltd. has delivered a wide variety of Bush Hardy Products to remote locations over many years. Bush Hardy products are custom designed and engineered to best suit remote living. These products include:
- Ablution Blocks, Pit Toilets
- Rubbish Bins and Waste Cages
- BBQ Pits, Drum Ovens and Fire Drums
- Bough Shelters and other Outdoor Meeting Places
- Bush Telephones
- Campfire Guards
- Benches, seats and tables
- Beds
- Woodchip Heaters
- Washing Machines
- Wicking Beds
Olkola Cultural Knowledge Centre
CfAT have been proud to be a partner in supporting the Olkola Aboriginal Corporation (OAC) in the design and construction of their vision for the Olkola Cultural Knowledge Centre (OCKC) on country. To be as sustainable as possible the site will be powered by solar, uses local dirt to create rammed earth walls and will be supplied by rainwater collected from the rooves of the buildings.
The project had its genesis in 2019 when CfAT facilitated a partnership between Monash University and the OAC to develop the initial concept designs. Over the following years this partnership expanded to include a team of over 20 gradate volunteers and engineering company ARUP who agreed develop detailed designs for construction entirely probono.
This impressive cast of supporters and their assistance lead the project successfully securing funding from the QLD government for the first prototype stage of the build.
Healthy Country Planning
Healthy Country Planning is a process based in traditional knowledge that follows an international standard for conservation planning. The process involved many workshops with Traditional Owners to build the content of plans for how they want to look after country, culture, people and business.
Project outputs result in community groups having a clear vision and strategic plans for managing traditional homelands. Good planning, led and owned by traditional owners, is critical to enabling people to benefit economically, socially and culturally on their own terms, from their homelands.
Bicycle Repair Stations
Bicycle maintenance stands have been specifically designed for the Australian outdoor environment. It allows for on-the-spot bicycle repairs and is ideal for installation on cycle trails, bicycle parking facilities, or in any location that has high bike traffic.
The stations consist of a a robust repair stand with tools including tyre levers, screwdrivers and spanners all attached to the stand by steel ropes with swivels for ease of use.
They also include a pump with pressure gauge, steel top plates to cover and protect the repair tools and the pump is bolted to concrete to ensure stability.