Engaging Indigenous economy: debating diverse approaches.

Tran, Tran ; Barcham, Clare

Engaging Indigenous economy: debating diverse approaches Will Sanders (ed.) 2016 ANU Press, The Australian National University, Acton, 328 pp, ill., map, 23cm, ISBN 9781760460037 (pbk)

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Engaging Indigenous economy is a collection of essays and papers that reflect upon the ideas, career and life work of Professor Jon Altman. Drawn from a conference of the same name held in 2014, the collection of essays critiques, reflects upon and presents the diverse potential of one of the key elements of Altman's thinking to date--the ways in which 'difference' has been perceived, ignored and debated within the context of Indigenous engagement with economic spaces.

The book is organised into four main parts--discussion of Altman's hybrid economy, from its origins, gaps and manifestations; discussion of the 'state' and its construction of Indigenousness within it; discussion of practical and policy examples of Indigenous entrepreneurship and engagement; and the final section of the book, which provides some personal reflections by Scambary, Nieuwenhuysen and Altman himself upon Altman's career and the impacts of his work.

The authors of the volume share their perspectives with varying focal points based on their own research and interactions with Altman's work and with him as an individual--bringing robust debate and discussion to the table, as well as personal accounts of friendship. The writing is clear and critical, provoking thought and generating questions about the personal motivations of each of the authors--many of whom have not been afraid to mix their personal and intellectual reactions to Altman's work.

Sanders provides a rich introduction to the volume, highlighting not only the context and contents of the book but also the role of the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, Altman's relationship with the organisation and the need for 'serious theorists of difference in Australia' (p.10). In the next chapter, Altman's PhD student Buchanan discusses the major influences on Altman's work and the evolution of his hybrid economy, while Gregory traces these ideas in a different form, focusing on gaps in Altman's hybrid economy. De Rijke, Martin and Trigger offer a critical account of how on country work is not highly skilled and is commonly low-waged, a potential limitation to the hybrid economy.

Peterson discusses the viability of Altman's proposal as a basis for policy and warns against placing too much emphasis on cultural difference, preferring to focus on the value of Altman's work in generating thought among government and policy makers. Curchin questions whether the hybrid economy can effectively resolve the tension between 'Indigenous cultural dispositions on the one hand and the attitudes and priorities underpinning market society on the other' (p.66), and Riphagen points to a loss of relationships to country and people in her case study of Maruku Arts.

Woods takes an alternative perspective and points to the value of Altman's work in celebrating and bringing empirical legitimacy to cultural activity. Similarly, Muecke and Dibley point out that there are broader values at play that are not considered by the conventional economic space, and note that 'Altman's conceptual-cum political innovation is in expanding and diversifying what counts as economic activity in remote Australia and considering how such activity cuts across the sectors of the market, the state and the customary' (p.149).

The second part of the volume places the work of Altman and others within the context of neoliberalism and the guardian state. Bielefeld offers a sobering account of income management and the surrounding conceptual and policy-based justifications of its effectiveness and legitimacy --presenting a collective narrative of 'ongoing colonialism' (p.l.S6), while McCallum and Waller reflect upon how this enterprise has been supported in the media. Kowal demonstrates the difficulty in navigating the postcolonial context and its tendency to focus on difference. Terrill argues that Aboriginal land reforms have also been dominated by neoliberal rhetoric--although they are better characterised as paternalistic due to the decision-making power of the government within the reforms.

The third part explores Indigenous land tenure, housing, small business and the Aboriginal Benefits Account (ABA)--areas that prescribe differential treatment of Indigenous people. Wensing suggests that reform to the Crown tenure system is required to ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are able to benefit from their land. Crabtree explores a diversity of housing models utilised by Indigenous peoples and Pollack's discussion of the ABA raises similar issues to those that existed in Altman's 1985 review of the ABA (or Aboriginal Benefit Trust Account, as it was then known). McGrath provides an account of the impact of native title on labour and economic activity, while Collins et al. examine Indigenous small business. These examples illustrate the importance of avoiding the creation of difference or exclusion by overemphasising Indigenousness.

Indigenous groups are working to counter dominant narratives through establishing their own pathways for economic engagement. For example, the Yawuru have established their own social housing enterprises in the Broome area in much the same way that the Masig traditional owners 'weave together the customary, state and market sectors of their local econom[y]...to deal with the caprices of weather, fish stocks and markets' (p.107). Jacky Green (in a paper co-authored by Kerins) shares his perspective of the capricious and fatiguing nature of Indigenous policy formation and the way in which communities feel bullied into accepting pre-formed development proposals.

The volume could be strengthened by the inclusion of more Indigenous writing on how entrepre-neurship is best perceived or achieved. In the three years since the original discussions contained in the book, there have been changes in how Indigenous communities and peoples have begun to assert political or legal autonomy and are now seeking to benefit from their hard-won native title and other land-based rights and interests. Some groups are seeking to develop their own tourism enterprises, build roads and teach in language. Others are busy caring for country (and seeking funding to continue to do this). These roles, as Altman notes, have their place in today's economy.

The volume provides a rare invitation to reflect on how ideas of Indigenous Australia have formed and what these ideas mean in the present and future, and, in its honesty and openness, invites us all to be critical of the current worldviews of Indigenous Australia that we have been presented with. As a book of thoughts and ideas, there is more than enough to provoke a reaction not only to Altman's work but to how it has inspired and infuriated alike. In this space, we are asked to examine how difference is conceptualised and accounted for with the book bringing critical questions of legitimacy, validity and economic participation to the forefront.

REFERENCE

Altman JC 1985 Report on the review of the Aboriginals Benefit Trust Account (and related financial matters) in the Northern Territory land rights legislation, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Reviewed by Tran Tran and Clare Barcham, AIATSIS, <[email protected]> <[email protected]>