Maranguka Community Hub proudly acknowledges the award of a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) to our Founder and Executive Director, Alister Ferguson, recognising his long-standing service to the Aboriginal community of Bourke.
The honour reflects Alister’s leadership in driving community-led change and strengthening Aboriginal decision-making through Maranguka, Australia’s first major Justice Reinvestment and Collective Impact initiative.
Under Alister’s leadership, Maranguka has become a nationally recognised model for Aboriginal-led governance and systems change. This includes strong support for the Bourke Tribal Council, which provides cultural authority and community guidance, and leadership in shaping national initiatives such as the Justice Reinvestment movement and the Partnerships for Local Action and Community Empowerment (PLACE) initiative, now part of the Stronger Places, Stronger People program.
A key focus of this work has been improving outcomes for children and young people through the Growing Our Kids Up Safe, Smart and Strong strategy. By aligning services, schools, families and agencies around shared goals, Maranguka has helped strengthen community safety, improve service coordination and support better long-term outcomes for Aboriginal families in Bourke. The OAM recognises Alister’s lifelong commitment to ensuring Aboriginal voices, culture and lived experience remain at the centre of solutions that are locally led and built to last.