This article looks at constitutional and contractual resolutions to central-local relations, looking to see in what ways each approach could benefit the power and autonomy of local councils. Sir Geoffrey Palmer and Andrew Butler recently released their draft constitution for New Zealand, which joins a rich body of work on the subject of constitutional reform...

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were not given a voice in the convention debates of the 1890s, which led to the drafting of the Constitution in 1901, and few were able to vote for it. This Discussion Paper sets out some of the different options for change and outlines some of the issues to...

2016 Garma Festival Theme: The Land is our Backbone - 40th Anniversary of the Aboriginal Land Rights Act. This year's Garma Festival made some important progress on a number of issues which go to the heart of Indigenous well-being.

‘Constitutional recognition’ has emerged as a dominant language through which Australians now debate what is owed to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by the settler state. But what is it?

The Australian Greens believe that: All citizens have the right and the responsibility to participate in and to equally access the processes of government. An egalitarian democracy requires that all people are treated equally. The Constitution must recognise the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia's first peoples and their rights as owners, and...