Episode 4. Prof Pat Dudgeon on being a pioneer in Indigenous mental health and wellbeing.

Professor Pat Dudgeon (she/her) is a Bardi woman from the Kimberley region of Western Australia.  She was the first Aboriginal person to qualify as a Psychologist in Australia in 1985, and since then has had a long and distinguished career as a leader in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing, Indigenous suicide prevention, decolonising psychology education and practice.  Pat is the Director of the University of Western Australia’s Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention and was the head of the Centre for Aboriginal Studies at Curtain University for 17 years. She was a founding Chair of the Australian Indigenous Psychologists Association and a founding board member of Gayaa Dhuwi Proud Spirit Australia.  Her list of achievements and publications is far too long for me to list but hopefully this gives you a taste of Pat’s role as a pioneer in Indigenous psychology and mental health in Australia.  Anita was honoured to have this conversation with Pat, who generously talked about her experience of studying and creating change in psychology, about self-determination, and also about the Working Together book which celebrates it’s 15th anniversary this year (downloadable for free here). Pat spoke to me from Whadjuk Noongar country in Perth, while I was on Wurunjeri woi-worrung country in Melbourne.