Pathways to Community-Led Language Work

The Pathways to Community-Led Language Work Project is about building opportunities for communities to take the lead in language revival and maintenance. Through hands-on workshops and tailored traineeships, the project creates space for people to explore their language, develop new skills, and produce resources that make language more visible and accessible.

Workshops and training activities focus on practical outcomes—producing language resources, identifying community language assets, and supporting trainees to build confidence in their own abilities. By taking part, community members not only strengthen their own connection to language but also gain experience that can open doors into future careers in education, media, the arts, or as Aboriginal Language Workers.

This work directly supports the MLT’s Strategic Objective Goal 5: Aboriginal Language Worker Training and Employment, by creating pathways for Aboriginal people to build careers in language work. Over the past four years, the program has supported six trainees to complete their traineeships and move into roles in language revitalisation and related fields. Some have gone on to work in native title, media, education, and community projects—carrying forward the skills and confidence they gained through the Pathways program.

Guided by linguists, experienced language workers, and media professionals at the MLT, trainees have contributed to language revival efforts with Kokatha, Wirangu, and Ngarrindjeri languages, and to language maintenance with Yankunytjatjara and Pitjantjatjara languages. Their contributions have resulted in valuable community resources, new approaches to language learning, and inspiring projects that combine language with art, music, radio, film, and digital media.

At its heart, Pathways is about more than just training—it’s about creating opportunities to engage in language in a way that is tailored to personal interests. Each trainee’s journey shows the creativity within community-led language work in South Australia.