Reflections
Diverse expertise strengthens governance at ANROWS
By Dr Tessa Boyd-Caine
Estimated read time: 2 minutes
NAIDOC Week recognises the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. For ANROWS, it is also an opportunity to highlight the importance of First Nations leadership in shaping our work.
This commitment is reflected in the appointment of First Nations leader Craig Rigney to the ANROWS Board.
Craig brings extensive experience in frontline service delivery and strong community connections to ANROWS’ national role in building evidence, translating research into practice, and supporting the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children.
While governance is often discussed in terms of oversight and compliance, it also plays a critical role in how organisations respond to evidence, navigate complex systems, and focus on outcomes.
“Good governance is essential to ensuring ANROWS can make a strong strategic contribution to ending violence against women and children. The Board supports a clear focus on connecting evidence, anticipating emerging challenges and delivering impact.” – Joan Fitzpatrick, ANROWS Board Chair
Embedding First Nations expertise in governance
ANROWS recognises that addressing violence requires diverse perspectives, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and lived experience.
“Aboriginal women and men bring different lived, cultural and community knowledge to this work, and both are needed in shaping responses to domestic, family and sexual violence.” – Professor Dawn Bessarab, proud Bard/Yjindjarbandi woman, ANROWS Board Director
Violence does not affect all communities equally. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people experience disproportionate impacts, shaped by intersecting factors including racism, stigma and structural inequality. Despite this, their expertise has often been overlooked.
ANROWS is committed to strengthening First Nations leadership through both its research agenda and Board composition. This includes a focus on two-way learning and working in partnership with communities to ensure evidence reflects lived realities and supports practical change.
“For ANROWS, embedding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership in governance helps ensure research is grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing, culturally safe practice and the realities of communities.” – Professor Dawn Bessarab
Strengthening the national response
Ending violence requires a comprehensive approach: supporting victim-survivors, strengthening prevention and improving responses.
There is growing recognition of the need to better understand people who use violence, including how systems respond and what interventions are effective. Evidence in this area is still developing, particularly in relation to behaviour change programs and emerging challenges such as online misogyny.
To respond effectively, ANROWS draws on a broad mix of expertise, including research, lived experience and frontline practice. Strong governance and a diverse Board support this work by ensuring evidence is relevant, accessible and focused on impact.
“I am proud to join the ANROWS Board to offer an Aboriginal cultural lens to this work and to help make research and outputs more accessible, practical, and user-friendly for the communities that need them most.”– Craig Rigney, proud Kaurna and Ngarrindjeri man, ANROWS Board Director
Looking ahead
Australia has made progress in preventing and responding to violence against women and children, but significant challenges remain.
Strong governance will continue to play a key role in guiding ANROWS’ contribution, supporting better connections between evidence, policy and practice, and helping to identify where further effort is needed.
This moment calls for institutions that can respond to complexity and bring different forms of knowledge together to support meaningful change.
Dr Tessa Boyd-Caine
ANROWS CEO
Media contact:
Emmagness Ruzvidzo,
Media and Communications Manager, ANROWS
E: Emmagness.Ruzvidzo@anrows.org.au
M: 0468 322 800
About ANROWS
Australia’s National Research Organisation for Women’s Safety (ANROWS) was established by the Commonwealth, state and territory governments under Australia’s first National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children (2010–2022). As an ongoing partner to the National Plan, ANROWS continues to build, strengthen and translate the evidence base that informs the current National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children (2022–2032).
With more than 150 research projects led, commissioned or contributed to, ANROWS delivers targeted evidence to inform practice, policy, and systems reform. We engage closely with victim-survivors, communities, service providers, governments and researchers to ensure our work reflects lived experience and supports collective action.
ANROWS is a not-for-profit company jointly funded by the Commonwealth and all state and territory governments. We are a registered harm prevention charity and deductible gift recipient, governed by the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).