Anthropologist

Anthropologist – Living Cultures

Location: Perth with regular travel throughout the Pilbara Employment Type: Fixed Term Contract for 2 years on fulltime basis

Help Preserve and Protect Yinhawangka Living Culture

Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation (YAC) is seeking an experienced and passionate Anthropologist to join our Living Cultures team.

This is a unique opportunity to work alongside Yinhawangka Traditional Owners, Elders, the Senior Anthropologist, and community members to preserve, document, and protect cultural knowledge for future generations through the development and stewardship of the Yinhawangka Living Cultures Database.

Working under the guidance of the Senior Anthropologist, you will play a key role in documenting and managing culturally significant knowledge and supporting the curation of the intangible Living Cultures metadata of the Yinhawangka community across the Pilbara region.

This position offers the opportunity to contribute to a long-term cultural legacy by ensuring that Yinhawangka knowledge, language, stories, traditions, and cultural practices are respectfully documented, preserved, and managed in accordance with Yinhawangka cultural protocols and aspirations.

If you are committed to ethical anthropological practice, Indigenous Data Sovereignty and working respectfully with Aboriginal communities, we would love to hear from you.

About the Role

As the Anthropologist – Living Cultures, you will:

• Support the day-to-day management, updating, and quality control of the Yinhawangka Living Cultures database.
• Support the management of digital collections in accordance with appropriate cultural protocols, ethical standards, and best-practice guidelines.
• Assist with digitisation and long-term preservation of cultural collections.
• Support the recording, cataloguing, and organisation of cultural materials, including family histories, photographs, audio-visual content, and documents.
• Maintain high-quality metadata and archival records.
• Apply culturally appropriate protocols when managing sensitive information.
• Work closely with Elders and community members to ensure cultural integrity is maintained.
• Travel regularly throughout the Pilbara to participate in community meetings and on-country activities.
• Contribute to continuous improvements of Living Cultures database system.

You’ll work directly with Senior Anthropologist, Yinhawangka Elders, families, and members to record, protect, and strengthen Yinhawangka knowledge and connection to Country.

  About You

To be successful, you will have:

• Qualifications in Anthropology, Visual Anthropology or a related discipline 
• At least four years’ experience working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
• Demonstrated understanding of Aboriginal cultural protocols and ethical research practices.
• Experience managing digital collections, archival systems or cultural databases.
• Knowledge of metadata standards and digital preservation practices.
• Excellent organisational skills with strong attention to detail.
• Outstanding communication and relationship-building skills.
• A respectful, collaborative and culturally responsive approach to your work.
• Ability to travel on country and other regional sites as required

Essential Requirements

• Current unrestricted Western Australian Driver’s Licence.
• National Police Clearance (or willingness to obtain).
• Working with Children Check (or willingness to obtain).
• Australian working rights.
• Ability to travel regularly throughout the Pilbara, including remote communities.

Why Join YAC?

At Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation, you’ll become part of a dedicated organisation committed to protecting Country, preserving culture and supporting the aspirations of the Yinhawangka People.

We offer:

• Salary: $100,000 – $120,000 + super + salary sacrificing
• 1 extra week of annual leave + paid shut down period during Christmas up to 2 weeks
• $300 annually paid towards your fitness and health
• Flexibility to WFH for up to 2 days a week 
• Meaningful and rewarding work that creates lasting cultural impact.
• A supportive and collaborative team environment.
• Opportunities to work directly with Traditional Owners and community members.
• Professional development and ongoing learning opportunities.
• Regular travel to Country and the Pilbara region.
• Opportunity to embed cultural knowledge and leadership within a growing Aboriginal organisation.
• Work that truly matters, driving groundbreaking projects and strengthening Yinhawangka culture, history, and self-determination for decades to come.

Apply Now

Apply via Seek with your CV and a cover letter addressing the Key Criteria and outlining why you’d like to work with the Yinhawangka People.

For a confidential discussion, contact: HR@yinhawangkha.com.au

Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation strongly encourages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to apply.

Applications will be assessed as they are received, and YAC reserves the right to close the advertisement early should a suitable candidate be identified.