Tom Calma

Dr Thomas Edwin "Tom" Calma, AO (born 27 December 1953 in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory^[1]) an Australian Aboriginal elder of the Kungarakan people, a human rights and social justice campaigner, is the sixth Chancellor of the University of Canberra since 2014.

Prior to his appointment as chancellor, Calma served at the Australian Human Rights Commission as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner from 2004 to 2010 and as Race Discrimination Commissioner from 2004 until 2009. Named as the 2013 ACT Australian of the Year for his service and commitment to the Indigenous community as an advocate for human rights and social justice, Calma's traditional lands are south west of Darwin and on the Coburg Peninsula in the Northern Territory. For over forty years Calma has championed for the rights, responsibilities and welfare of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. He has been involved in Indigenous affairs at a local, community, state, national and international level and worked in the public sector focusing on rural and remote Australia, health, education, justice reinvestment, reconciliation and economic development.^[2] Calma was one of the key advocates for the Close the Gap campaign.^[3]

Biography

Born in Canberra, between 1995 and 2002 Calma represented Australia's education and training interests as a senior diplomat in India and Vietnam;^[1][4] and in 2003, he served as Senior Adviser of Indigenous Affairs to Senator Amanda Vanstone in her capacity as the Minister of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.

Calma served as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission from 2004 to 2010 and as the Race Discrimination Commissioner from 2004 until 2009.^[5] During this time the Social Justice Report 2015 called on Australian governments to commit to achieving equality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the areas of health and life-expectancy within 25 years and advocated embedding a social determinants philosophy into public policy around health, education and employment in order to address Indigenous inequality gaps.^[6] This report laid the foundation for the Close the Gap campaign; a collaboration of some 40 Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian health and human rights groups.^[3]

Calma chaired the Close the Gap Steering Committee for Indigenous Health Equality since its inception in March 2006 and retired as Co-Chair of the Steering Committee in 2010. The Close the Gap Campaign has effectively brought national attention to achieving health equality for Indigenous people by 2030.^[7] In addition to the Close the Gap for Indigenous Health Equality Campaign, Calma has played a pivotal role in the establishment of the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples, the development of the inaugural Indigenous suicide prevention strategy and the Justice Reinvestment strategy.^[4] Calma is Co-Chair of Reconciliation Australia,^[8] Chair of the non-profit organisation, Ninti One,^[9] and the Cooperative Research Centre Remote Economic Participation and Patron and Chair of the Poche Centres for Indigenous Health Network.^[10]

In 2008, Calma delivered the formal response to the government's national apology to the Stolen Generations.^[11] In March 2010, Calma was appointed National Coordinator Tackling Indigenous Smoking to lead the fight against tobacco use in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.^[4]

On 1 January 2012 he was appointed Deputy Chancellor of the University of Canberra. Calma took up his appointment as Chancellor of the University of Canberra on 1 January 2014, and was formally installed at a ceremony held at the National Press Club on 20 February 2014. Calma is the first Indigenous male to hold the position of chancellor of an Australian university;^[3] with Pat O'Shane being the first female.^[12] During his acceptance speech Calma discussed the importance of education as a “vaccination against poverty” and the critical role universities play in making Australia “healthier, fairer and wealthier”.^[4]

Honours and awards

In 2012 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for distinguished service to the Indigenous community as an advocate for human rights and social justice, through contributions to government policy and reform, and to cross cultural understanding.^[13] In 2013 he was named the ACT Australian of the Year 2013 for his service and commitment to the Indigenous community as an advocate for human rights and social justice.^[3]

On 15 February 2011, Calma was awarded an honorary doctorate of science from Curtin University in recognition of his work, advocacy and leadership in Indigenous health reform and Indigenous affairs.^[14] On 20 May 2010, Calma was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Charles Darwin University in recognition of decades of public service, particularly in relation to his work in education, training and employment in Indigenous communities.^[15] On 16 April 2014, Calma was awarded an honorary Doctorate of the University from Flinders University in recognition of his work, advocacy and leadership in Indigenous health reform.^[16] In November 2014, Calma was awarded the Indigenous Allied Health Australia Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his lifelong dedication to improving the lives of Indigenous Australians.^[17]

In 2007 Calma was named by The Bulletin magazine as the Most Influential Indigenous Person in Australia; in 2008 he was named GQ magazine’s 2008 Man of Inspiration for his work in Indigenous Affairs. Calma was named by Australian Doctor Magazine in 2010 as one of the 50 Most Influential People in medicine in Australia.

References

External links

• Calma, Tom; Office of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner (22 November 2005). Social Justice Report 2005 (PDF; 8.76 MB). Sydney, Australia: Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission.