Research

The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) is the peak national research institution on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. AIATSIS has responsibility for a multitude of research programs and services, manages world class collections of cultural and research material, houses the Aboriginal Studies Press and engages in numerous partnerships with research institutions and Indigenous communities.

AIATSIS was established in 1964, its functions are set out in its enabling legislation, the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Act 1989 (Cth). Over the last 40 years AIATSIS has established itself as Australia's premiere Indigenous research institute. In the recent divestment of the Indigenous Affairs portfolio, AIATSIS was relocated to the Education, Science and Tourism portfolio.

The Research Program conducts a wide range of research projects in health, regional organisation and governance, social organisation and expressive culture, education and contemporary issues, intellectual property, history and family history, language and society, archaeology and cultural tourism, native title and agreement making.

The Native Title Research Unit, located within the wider Research program, aims to provide ongoing monitoring of outcomes and developments in native title; independent assessment of the impact of policy and legal developments; longitudinal research and case study research designed to feed into policy development; ethical community based and responsible research practice; theoretical background for policy development; recommendations for policy development; and policy advocacy designed to influence thinking and practice.

The quality, independence and ethics of the research of the Native Title Research Unit is subject to the oversight of the Native Title Research Unit Advisory Committee, the AIATSIS statutory Research Advisory Committee and the AIATSIS Council.

For more information on the direction of NTRU research, see Research Themes.