Improving cultural awareness and capability

Developing pathways and opportunities for Aboriginal people

WaterNSW has a great opportunity to work with Aboriginal leaders and communities and work towards eliminating Indigenous disparity.

We are proud to have made our first public commitment to better engage and build relationships with First Nation communities across the state through the development of a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), launched in March 2022.

Our RAP demonstrates our commitment to improving cultural awareness and capability of our staff and contractors.

It also commits us to developing pathways and opportunities for Aboriginal people, and we’re excited to welcome Braydon Wickey to WaterNSW.

A young Aboriginal man from St Helens Park in Dharawal Country, Braydon joins us a Maintenance Officer at our Kenny Hill site.

Braydon2
Braydon Wickey, Wiradjuri man

Read what Braydon has shared with us about himself:

I’m Braydon Wickey, my mob is Wiradjuri in Central NSW and Bundjalung country around Ballina NSW. I’m from St Helens Park in Dharawal Country.

I’m currently employed as a maintenance officer based at Kenny Hill in the Macarthur region.

I have great memories and connections to water. Gaagal (Water) is one of our totems in Bundjalung. I’ve also spent many times fishing along the south coast of NSW and being in my uncle’s boat fishing with him. Through school I attended Aboriginal based camps in Narooma and Wreck Bay mission, where I have been able to build my knowledge and skills of traditional cultural systems.

My responsibilities at work can vary; one day I can be doing landscape maintenance around the depot and areas along the upper canal. The next day I could be working with generators and cabling to change heights in control gates along WaterNSW infrastructure.

This traineeship was a great opportunity to work in my local area and a great stepping stone for advancement in my career. Getting to know the way the business operates and how the water storages work, has been a real eye opener and I look forward to learning more.

Seeing Warragamba Dam for the first time last week was fantastic. I’m really enjoying learning more about how the dams operate and it’s a great team environment to work in.

I’ve learnt that the business has a strong safe work ethic, so learning about workplace procedures and pre-starts has been good.

I would definitely encourage others to work for WaterNSW, as I now know how good it is to work for this corporation.

Its vitally important for young Aboriginal people to be given these opportunities. I see first-hand members in community that would love to be given these opportunities.

It’s just unfortunate how roles like mine don’t appear more often as it’s a great opportunity to get on your feet and working.

This role is a really good head start for me and a chance for further career progression.

Related links

In the flow

Published date: 24 November 2022

WaterNSW acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands and waters on which we work and pay our respects to all elders past, present and emerging. Learn more