Co-Chairperson Peter Windie

Peter is a Thudgari man who played an integral leadership role in his people’s native title determination in 2009.

Peter lives in Gascoyne Junction and is a well respected community leader is the region. He is chairman of the Windi Mia Aboriginal Corporation, which is currently pursuing possible tourism and pastoral ventures in the Yamatji region.

Peter is passionate about country and how deeply Aboriginal people are spiritually connected to the land.

Deputy Co-Chairperson Roy Bellotti

Roy is a Malgana man who has lived and worked in the Gascoyne region all his life.

Roy has deep connections to the world heritage listed Shark Bay area, where his grandmother and father were both born. He enjoys the outdoors and regularly camps, hunts and fishes on his country.

He has been a member of the Yamatji Region Executive Committee since November 2004 and YMAC’s Chairperson since February 2008. Roy is well known in the community for his leadership capacity and ability to unite people.

Director, Paul Baron

Paul is a Baiyungu man and a member of the Gnulli native title claim. He is the general manager of the Baiyungu Aboriginal Corporation, which is involved in development and land holdings in the Coral Bay area, including Cardabia pastoral lease.

Paul lives in Carnarvon and is a keen fisherman, but also enjoys hunting and camping in his spare time. Being on the board at YMAC is important to him because he believes that full recognition of traditional ownership provides Aboriginal people a base for building strong communities and enterprises.

Director, Ben Roberts

Ben is a Thudgari man who lives in the coastal town of Carnarvon.

Ben was instrumental in assisting his community have their native title recognised in November 2009.  Thudgari people have now established an Aboriginal Corporation called ‘Wyamba’ to administer their business, which Ben is currently involved with.

Ben enjoys fishing, camping and visiting country with his children and grandchildren.

Director, Nora Mallard

Nora is a Yamatji woman who lives in the coastal town of Carnarvon. Nora is passionate about her Aboriginal heritage and culture and enjoys sharing her knowledge with the younger generation.

Director, Susan Oakley

Susan is a Malgana woman who is very active in Carnarvon community life. She is the acting Chair of the Carnarvon Aboriginal Congress, a body set up to address the needs of the community, and is part of the Carnarvon Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation. She also gets involved as an umpire for local sports teams.

Co Chairperson Mrs Eaton

Mrs Eaton is a Njamal woman from the eastern Pilbara region and in 2009 was named NAIDOC’s female elder of the year.

Mrs Eaton has been involved in health programs for Aboriginal women and children, care for the elderly and has completed studies at the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education in Darwin.

Mrs Eaton’s driving force is to ensure that younger generations learn strong culture and law from their elders.

Deputy Co-Chairperson Natalie Parker

Natalie is a Nyiyaparli woman from the central Pilbara region who is well known in the community for her leadership capacity.

Natalie represents her community on the board of the Gumula Aboriginal Corporation, Gumula Enterprises Pty Ltd, Meta Maya Aboriginal Corporation as well as being the first female co-chair of Yamatji Marlpa Aboriginal Corporation (YMAC).

Natalie’s enjoys camping on country and spending quality time with her grandchildren. Her aspirations for the future include improvements in health, education and economic opportunities for Aboriginal people, and to see recognition of culture and a strong future for all.

Director, Nora Cooke

Nora is an Ngarla woman who played an integral role in her people’s native title determination in 2007.

Nora enjoys the bush life in the Pilbara, including fishing, camping, cooking and hunting. Nora has an in-depth understanding of bush medicine and provides advice to people seeking bush medicine treatments. She also practices her culture by teaching several Aboriginal languages and running cultural awareness training at mine sites and the Wangka Maya Language Centre.

To Nora, country means to live freely on the land, gathering food and hunting.

Director, Darren Injie

Darren is a Innawonga man from the central Pilbara and Hamersley Ranges.

Darren has been involved in Aboriginal advocacy since childhood, attending his first Land Rights protests while in highschool. In addition to his work for YMAC and the Innawonga Native Title Group, Darren is involved in Gumula Corporation and is a Director of Ngarda Foundation. Darren works to ensure Traditional Owners benefit from wealth generated through mining on traditional country in the Pilbara. His vision is to see his people gain economic prosperity through participation in the mainstream economy.

Director, Toby Smirke

Toby is a Jurruru man who speaks the Bunjima language of the central Pilbara. Toby is an expert horseman who has worked and run several large stations throughout the region, including Cooline and Strelley Pastoral Station.

Toby has extensive bush skills and is an expert on the flora, fauna and cultural knowledge of his country.

He would like to see his country preserved for future generations and significant sites within it, such as the Kenneth Range, protected and jointly managed.

Director, Selina Stewart

Selina is a Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) Traditional Owner and a devoted mother and grandmother.

Selina grew up in Carnarvon and Port Hedland and currently resides in Perth. She has spent ten years working to gain native title recognition for her community and has fond memories of learning about her country from her father and grandmother.

Her drive to serve her community is inspired by her father, who was actively involved in native title and made sure his daughters could continue in his footsteps.