In Wiradjuri, it’s respect: ‘Yindyamarra’

Respect is central to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples society: Respect for our Elders, respect for Aboriginal laws, languages and culture, respect for our lands, waters and resources that sustain us, respect for the animals that are our brothers and sisters, and respect for the cycle of life.

This series honours the oldest continuous living culture on planet earth – seeking to inspire the generations, in particular Indigenous youth, through the sharing of knowledge and the lived experience of Indigenous Peoples.

As they are released, episodes of Yindyamarra will appear below. 

About Dr Virginia Marshall

Dr Virginia Marshall is a Wiradjuri Nyemba woman, practicing lawyer and legal scholar. She is a Research Fellow at the School of Regulation and Global Governance with the Australian National University. She was the ANU inaugural Indigenous Postdoctoral Fellow at the School of Regulation and Global Governance and the Fenner School of Environment and Society. She is a practicing lawyer and in demand as a Keynote Speaker and Panel Member. A lifetime member of the Golden Key International Honour Society for scholarly achievement. She is recognised as a Distinguished Woman Scholar by Canada’s University of Victoria BC.

Virginia is a Deputy Chair on Australia’s Committee on Aboriginal Water Interests to refresh the National Water Initiative Mark 2. She is Chair of the ANU Indigenous Advisory Group and a member of the ANU Human Research Ethics Committee; Co-Chair of the ANU Indigenous Cluster with the Institute for Climate, Energy and Disaster Solutions; Climate Change Authority Board member and Research Associate and Board member of the ANU Australian Studies.

Virginia won the WEH Stanner Award for her doctoral research thesis ‘A web of Aboriginal water rights: Examining the competing Aboriginal claim for water property rights and interests in Australia’ and published as ‘Overturning Aqua Nullius: Securing Aboriginal water rights’, a seminal book on Aboriginal water rights and the foreword by the Hon. Michael Kirby. Virginia’s former roles include Senior Legal Officer with the Australian Law Reform Commission, criminal defence lawyer with Legal Aid, Associate and Researcher at the Federal Court Sydney and Executive Officer of NSW Government’s Aboriginal Water Trust. Virginia contributes to the COP events and the UN Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples meetings at COP26 Glasgow, COP27 Egypt and COP28 in Dubai.

Virginia is Lead Chief Investigator (Lead CI) with an ARC Discovery Indigenous Grant (2022-2024) ‘Barriers and Pathways to the development of Indigenous traditional medicines’ to ‘ unlock the significant, untapped potential for Indigenous Australians to benefit from the development of their traditional medicines regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration in Australia.

View Virginia's ANU research profile and full biography.

Produced on Ngunnawal Ngambri Country by Dr Virginia Marshall and the ANU Media Studio, in partnership with the Australian Studies Institute at the Australian National University in Canberra.