The Role

The Government Relations Advisor leads Gayaa Dhuwi’s day-to-day government relationship management, supporting the Director, Policy and CEO to maintain productive, strategically important relationships across Commonwealth and state/territory government portfolios relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health and suicide prevention.

The role is responsible for coordinating government engagement activity, tracking policy developments, managing correspondence and briefings, supporting ministerial and departmental engagement, and ensuring the organisation has timely intelligence on relevant government processes. The Advisor works closely with the Director, Policy and the Senior Policy Analyst and Policy Development Lead to connect government intelligence to policy work, and with the Director, Reform on reform-related engagement.

This role requires someone with strong relationship skills, sharp situational awareness of the government policy landscape, clear written communication, and the confidence and professionalism to engage directly with senior government officials. They will understand that government relations is as much about sustained presence and credibility as it is about individual interactions.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead Gayaa Dhuwi’s day-to-day government relationship management, maintaining productive working relationships across Commonwealth and state/territory health, mental health and Indigenous affairs portfolios.
• Coordinate ministerial and departmental correspondence, briefings and meeting preparation, ensuring the CEO and Director, Policy are well prepared for government engagements.
• Monitor government processes, consultations and policy developments relevant to Gayaa Dhuwi’s mandate, and provide timely intelligence to the Director, Policy and CEO.
• Maintain a current stakeholder map of relevant government contacts and relationship status.
• Lead or support Gayaa Dhuwi’s sector engagement activity in coordination with the Director, Policy, including engagement with peak bodies, sector networks and coalition mechanisms.
• Support the development and management of partnership agreements with government and sector organisations.
• Support Gayaa Dhuwi’s engagement with the Coalition of Peaks and related national mechanisms.
• Represent Gayaa Dhuwi in government and sector forums as directed by the Director, Policy.
• Contribute government relations intelligence and stakeholder context to policy development work led by the Senior Policy Analyst and Policy Development Lead.
• Support the preparation of ministerial briefings, government submissions and correspondence.
• Assist with funding proposals and grant applications, particularly in relation to government funding bodies.
• Undertake other duties as required.

Selection Criteria

1. Demonstrated ability to work respectfully within an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership organisation, including understanding of culture, self-determination, community control and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership.
2. Demonstrated understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health and suicide prevention, including the policy and government context relevant to this work.
3. Demonstrated experience in government relations or stakeholder engagement, including building and maintaining relationships with government agencies and representing an organisation in government forums.
4. Demonstrated ability to monitor and synthesise government policy developments, prepare briefings and correspondence, and provide timely, clear intelligence to senior leaders.
5. Demonstrated written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to produce high-quality briefings, correspondence and stakeholder materials across a complex multi-portfolio government landscape.

About Gayaa Dhuwi

Gayaa Dhuwi is the national peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention. As a members based, community-controlled organisation, we are governed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander experts and peak bodies.

Our vision is the highest attainable standard of social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Our role is to lead and advocate for systemic change that places the voices, strengths, and needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples at the centre of national policies and reforms.

We work in a fast-paced national policy and reform environment where priorities can shift quickly in response to government processes, parliamentary inquiries, sector developments, member priorities, emerging evidence, and national reform opportunities. As a result, our team needs to be made up of individuals who can understand complex policy and service systems, work respectfully within an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership and organisations, and produce high-quality work across social and emotional wellbeing, mental health, and suicide prevention.

Gayaa Dhuwi’s work is long-term with progress often requiring sustained advocacy, careful relationships, strong evidence and the ability to keep work moving over time. People who thrive at Gayaa Dhuwi are steady, thoughtful, organised, respectful, clear in their communication and able to maintain perspective while working on issues that matter deeply to our peoples and communities.

Eligibility

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are encouraged to apply for this opportunity under section 51 of the Equal Opportunity Act 1984.
• Applicants must be an Australian citizen or have permanent residency status pending the granting of Australian citizenship. All successful applicants for the position will be asked to complete pre-engagement checks including national police check and a working with vulnerable people check.

A position description is attached.