Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa (KJ) is a Martu organisation – Martu are the traditional custodians of a vast area in the Western Desert of the Pilbara. KJ was created by Martu 15 years ago to preserve Martu culture; to build a viable, sustainable economy in Martu communities; and to build realistic pathways for young Martu to a healthy and prosperous future.

In 2020, KJ commissioned Social Ventures Australia (SVA) to consult with Martu and to produce two reports. The first would identify a distinctively Martu set of criteria or outcomes that they believed were the most significant for them and then evaluate KJ’s 10-year performance against those outcomes. 

The second would identify a set of Martu values specifying the manner in which they wanted organisations working with them to operate and, again, assess KJ’s performance against those values.

The first study therefore examines what KJ does – the impact of its work in areas of concern that Martu regard as having priority. The second study examines how KJ operates – whether it works with Martu in accordance with the values that they espouse.

These reports represent a significant step in Indigenous program and organisational evaluation. Martu determined the evaluative criteria. Martu led most of the consultations. Martu assessed KJ’s performance.