Land, culture, rights and self-determination: foundations of Indigenous health

Abstract

This issue of the MJA is the second of this year with a specific focus on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health. It includes three articles that were originally selected by the Guest Editors for the NAIDOC week Special Issue, which was published in July, 2025.^{1, 2} We were in the fortunate position of having too many accepted articles for that issue, so we are delighted to now publish them, alongside other articles on Indigenous health that went through regular MJA editorial processes.

Two of the articles previously selected are research articles: a study by Alasdair Vance and colleagues evaluates Elder-governed cultural therapy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people with mental health conditions,³ and Karrina DeMasi and colleagues describe the development of an Aboriginal women-led maternal and child health model when cardiometabolic complications are experienced in pregnancy.⁴ The third article is a perspective from Paul Gray and colleagues that discusses the need to move towards epistemic pluralism, cultural safety, and critical reflexivity in Australian psychology.⁵ Together, these articles reflect the depth and strength of Aboriginal and Torres Islander-led research and community, strength-based approaches. These values are also reflected in the other articles of this issue, which demonstrate a huge diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander research and critical thought, ranging from voluntary assisted dying in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory, to exploring the need for meaningful partnerships in health and medical research grant applications.

This issue was timed for the 18th anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples — an important international resolution. The editorial for this issue reflects on the Declaration and, despite endorsing it, the failure of successive Australian governments to incorporate it into national law. As the editorial concludes “The 18th anniversary of UNDRIP is a historical marker but serves as a powerful call to action. It reminds us that health is inextricably linked to human rights, self-determination and cultural integrity”.

The cover for this issue of the MJA features an image of Mer Island in the Torres Strait. Sophie Pitt, who authored the editorial, explains the how this image calls us to recognise the links between the escalating climate crisis, Indigenous rights, and health, as it represents “both a celebration of the enduring connection to Country and a reminder of what can be lost” (Box).

For this issue, as for the previous NAIDOC week issue, we are very grateful for all the expertise and wisdom generously provided by the Guest Editors, and the care they took in assessing and selecting papers for these two Indigenous health issues.