Eighty women from different Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nations around Australia will be in Canberra from November 26-28 for a series of workshops to learn more about the Australian political system.

Rhonda Radley went to the Straight Talk as a participant in 2013 and has since been invited back as a facilitator first in 2016 and now again in 2018, and said the experience is “life changing”.

“I think for a lot of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women it can be hard to stand up and challenge what is the normal but this program empowers women to understand how they can make a difference,” Ms Radley said.

“For me going as a participant was a life changing experience because surrounded by strong women I found my voice and decided I wanted to help other women in my community.

“After I went to the Straight Talk program the first time I was inspired to come back and start the Djiyagan Dhanbaan Strong Sister movement in our area and since then it has grown so much.”

She said the program was about women building their capacity to create change.

“When we go to Canberra we go into Parliament House and actually see how laws are made and have conversations with politicians,” she said.

“In my time we heard from Julia Gillard and Penny Wong and it was really inspiring to hear what they had to say.

“We also do a lot of work around goal setting so that the women can really think about what they want to see happen in their communities and build a plan to make that happen.

"I hope those the fear of the unknown and potential trauma of the past come and have that fear dissipated and they leave with more knowledge and feel empowered to go out and make a difference.”

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