The Indigenous Literacy Foundation does more than distribute books. It champions culture, connection and confidence through storytelling.

When Cause/Affect was invited to work on rebranding ILF, we knew it had to reflect the heart of their work — not just what they do, but why they do it.

We know that literacy and storytelling opens doors and spans generations. It’s central to culture, to community, and to empowerment.

 became the brand’s new creative foundation.

From stories from thousands of years old, to stories that haven’t even been written yet, the common thread in ILF’s story is keeping young minds engaged.

Through a combination of exploration, expression, and emotion, our stories are a bridge to another place, a future not yet written, and a past that grounds us and gives us our sense of self.

When a story feels like home, it opens the door to learning, identity and imagination. Literacy becomes more than a skill, it becomes a way of knowing, of belonging, of stepping into the world with pride.

This project was shaped by many hands. We worked closely with the ILF team and three remarkable artists — Wanirr, Rose and Ruby — who all came through ILF programs. Their artwork and input helped ground the visual identity in lived experience and cultural integrity.

We’re proud of what we created together. But more than that, we’re proud to support an organisation that continues to open up space for First Nations stories old and new to be shared, celebrated and passed on.

#BePartOfTheStory #ReadingOpensDoors #CauseAffectStudio #ILF

Work that Works: Indigenous Literacy Foundation Rebrand

Christmas can be a tough time for families and people in many ways, as well as the impact of waste into landfill and excessive consumerism. Instead of another sh*t gift, consider giving for the eco not the ego, its a much better way to celebrate the spirit.

Here are 5 ways to give a sh*t, not a sh*t gift:

Donations as a gift to a favourite cause or charity so they can keep giving back to what matters mostall year round.


Indigenous Literacy Foundation's cards feature artworks from budding illustrators from Vincentia and Fitzroy Crossing Communities. When you purchase a card, you’re gifting a donation that contributes to givingculturally relevant books to children living in remote Australia.


> Give the gift of reading here for as little as $20


For anyone that can show a receipt of $20 or more donation to any charity, we will send an archive Christmas card with the donation & message to a nominated recipient. Email 

Give back to the MVPsof our communities,connect withyour local orgs to see how you can help!


We are organising our community’s Christmasand seeking donations for gift cards as giftsfor elders, email 

Local Indigenous Health and Social Services

Connect to your local Indigenous health or social organisations to see how you can donate gifts or gift cards to the local elders. In Brisbane, we know Kambu (Ipswich) are taking gift cards for their elders.

Make sure all ourkids get gifts this Christmas by donating to the many toy drives run over the nation! There are so many great local toy drives run by shopping centres, daycares, schools, hospitals, youth orgs and children charities. Here are some suggestions for Brisbane mob:


Local Meanjin mob run their Annual Christmas Toy Drive working alongside communities, day cares centres, parents and families who are spreading love and care with our precious children. You can contribute by posting or dropping off gifts,gift cards via email or Pay It Forward via Shopify.


Qld Children’s Hospital Foundation are bringing joy to children in hospital with a special gifts for Christmas, birthdays, good and bad days all year round. 


> Check out their page the Amazon gift list or handmade gift optionswhich you can drop or deliver direct to the hospital

Help out families in need this Christmasthrough hamper andessential appeals. All families deservea Christmas, and there are lots of local communities running hamper appeals to get involved:


The last Christmas I had with my mum was packing hampers! An iconic Brisbane tradition is Micah’s annual ChristmasHamper appeal! If you'd like to donate grocery items directly, their office will be accepting donated goods from 25th November - 16th December 2024. And then join in the funpacking and delivering to nominated Brisbane families.


Every year, Share the Dignity partners with Bunnings on the‘It’s in the Bag’ campaign. Bags of essential items are given to women domestic violence refuge. You can pack an adult, teen or mum & bub bag to help someone in need for Christmas.


> Sponsor or fill up and donate a bag here

Big celebrationscan equal big waste 30% higher than the rest of the year.Here are ways to be consciousfor our Countrythis Christmas...

To wrap Christmas gifts, Australians use more than 150,000 km of wrapping paper during the festive season. That’s nearly enough paper to wrap around Earth’s equator four times! (Source: CSIRO)



Instead try: fabric to wrap gifts instead, reuse old wrapping paper, reuse gift bags, scraps of paper, scrap daycare/school artwork (we know how much they bring home!), or just put unwrapped presents in a Santa sack!
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Most of us love buying gifts, but 275,000 tonnes or $921 million worth are set to go to waste, and most likely land fill, wasting money,and adding to plastic pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and the climate crisis. (Source: The Australia Institute)



Instead try: (our giving list) donations, gift cards, giving back to people in need, gifting experiences, homemade presents, local handcrafted gifts, or just give one really bloody good gift *mic drop*
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There is no Australian data of the # of artificial Christmas trees purchased each year. However, 10 million trees are purchased United States, with nearly 90% shipped from China, increasing carbonemissions and resources. (Source: @commonsearth)



Instead try: buying real trees that are farming them the right way, or just purchase one really deadly plastic tree to lasts you a lifetime!
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Thinking previous on the stats on giftwaste, think of all the waste from thoseplastic, cheap Christmas decorations!



Instead try: my family tradition is to only buy one really special decoration every year, my mums collection has been handed down to me - everything from hand beaded baubles to one-off wonders!
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Gluttony seems to go hand in hand withChristmas lunch, but it's estimated nearly 7.6 million tonnes of food across the food supply chain ends up aswaste every year. (Source: CSIRO)



Instead try: Meal planning, only buying enough food for those you need to feed, planning leftovers for the next day.

And remember, the spirit of Christmas is for the eco not the ego, so give back in ways that are better for the spirit.

Tis' for the Spirit

In design, “universal” has often been synonymous with “good.” Universal design claims to be inclusive, creating solutions that work for everyone. The problem with universal design is that believing we can target ‘everyone’ means operating with generalising assumptions that mean certain demographics are marginalised or ignored. We also see a homogenisation of the world in which cultural nuances are flattened or erased entirely. Furthermore, the lens of universal design concerns the worldview of just one person - the designer - and overlooks the contributions of the users involved.

Pluriversal design directly opposes the universal. Pluriversal design begins with the premise that there are many worlds, many ways of being, and many systems of knowledge, all co-existing simultaneously. In acknowledging this, it becomes clear that no single worldview can hold all of the solutions. 

Pluriversal design de-centres the designer as the ‘expert’, or the main source of ‘truth’, and instead re-frames the designer as ‘facilitator’ or ‘researcher’ of the needs and desires of the users in question. While universal design operates from an “idealist” point of view, pluriversal design situates itself within the reality of the specific design context (Leitão, 2020).

Universal design perpetuates “the mythology of the designer as genius” (Soulellis, 2017), while pluriversal design acknowledges the autonomy and contextual knowledge of the people it designs with.

To see this in practice, let’s imagine a small, community-based organisation that requires a visual identity. Ideally, this organisation would like to have a dedicated, in-house designer working on their communication materials, but the reality is that creating this role is beyond the limits of the organisation’s budget. The visual identity will therefore by various, ‘non-designer’ members of the team. To undertake this project from a pluriversal perspective means acknowledging the technical abilities of the organisation’s team, and designing a visual identity that is accessible to them. In this example, the pluriversal designer prioritises inclusivity and ease of use, over complex visual systems or aesthetics that might demonstrate the ‘exceptionalism’ of the designer’s work.

Because the professional field of design emerged during the Industrial Revolution (Leitão, 2020), concepts of universality carry heavy legacies of capitalistic, heteropatriarchal and colonial thinking. Pluriversal design is a rejection of this. 

Pluriversal design creates space for typically marginalised communities to create their own representations and platform their own needs, leading to meaningful and unique design outcomes that counter dominant cultural forces.



 is a French-Belgian network of typographers who research and design post-binary fonts: i.e., fonts featuring bespoke glyphs and ligatures that transform the otherwise gendered words of the French language into gender-neutral alternatives. For example, the French words “Le” (masculine) and “La” (feminine) may be written with a unique glyph created from e+a, concealing the traditional gender and inventing a new form of French communication that is ‘beyond’ gender. The collective shares their fonts in an open source library, and has released gender-anarchist versions of well-known typefaces such as Baskerville and Open Sans. BBB challenges dominant norms by “introducing non-binary glyphs into the normative places where knowledge is disseminated”, as well as creating communication systems for French-speaking queer people to authentically represent themselves.

How can we learn from organisations such as BBB in order to disrupt traditional design modalities? Operating within a pluriversal design framework allows us to see the nuances that exist even in a seemingly universal system such as an alphabet, and the unique outcomes that people can create when they are platformed as part of the design process. 

As designers interested in social impact, we should consider the ways in which we can shed off the universal thinking of our formal educations and wider industry, and instead move towards pluriversal design practices. 

By embracing pluriversal design, our work will be more meaningful, more unique, and more impactful for the communities we work with.

From Needs to Desire: Pluriversal Design as a Desire-Based Design

Designing Beyond One World: Introducing Pluriversal Design

 Remotely (currently in Italy), from Meanjin (Brisbane)

I found design after a few years at uni studying Sociology and Studies of Religion. In the end, I craved a more hands-on discipline, but those studies were fascinating and I think about them all the time. I did my degree in interaction design, and completed my thesis with an interactive installation artwork. I landed a graphic design job out of uni, and it all just kind of clicked into place since then. Outside my work as a designer, I also have my own artist practice, mostly using collage, drawing, video and live programmed visuals.

multi-disciplinary creative/very creative person

. I was raised by a visual art teacher and a music teacher, and our family home was full of music, art, sewing, woodworking, electronics … they even designed and built the house themselves! 

I am a curious person and nothing feels off-limits. I figure if I can see it, I can learn how to do it. I am always trying new techniques, mostly just to understand the process, even if I never touch it again.

What was the last thing that inspired you?

On a recent trip in Argentina, I fell in love with the hand-painted lettering across local businesses, buses, and trucks. Hand-painted lettering is a labour of love and breathes so much life into the city. I’ll always gravitate towards the analog - I’m quite romantic in this way. I love to see the human touch in the design.

Community is very important to me, and I feel motivated to work on projects where I feel like I can authentically represent the project and its audience.

How do you approach a new project, from concept to execution?
I love to nerd out on research, and situate the concept in a historical or cultural moment. Once I get started on the visual, I encourage myself to play loosely with ideas, as it’s quite common for me that I find something I like by accident. I really love a methodical execution stage, getting in a flow rolling out all of the design, and seeing the whole thing come together.

Are you a headphones on or off type worker?

I am constantly listening to podcasts. The Blindboy Podcast is my favourite. Every now and then I select a random mix from NTS radio, so you might just find me listening to techno or some ambient field recordings.

Does inclusivity and accessibility factor into your designs?

I was introduced to visual accessibility when I started working at Cause/Affect. I can’t believe accessibility wasn’t a core component of my university studies. I now feel a sense of responsibility to make sure my designs are accessible - it’s a small effort that can make life easier for a lot of people.

Some jobs give me the opportunity to teach my clients some aspects of visual design. When a brand identity goes onto Canva, for example, I love the opportunity to sit with a client and show them some basics that can help them feel good about what they’ll create. I also think that many of my clients have great taste but just lack confidence or technical skills - I love it when I feel like my role is as a conduit of their ideas, rather than an outsider ‘expert’.

Another inclusivity topic that interests me is the development of gender-inclusive typefaces, which are particularly relevant for French-, Spanish- and Italian-speaking contexts. A well-known example is the use of the letter ‘x’ to end a world as an alternative to the strictly male or female binary (as in, the use of “Latinx” rather than “latina”). Typographers are investigating unique characters to replace this ‘x’, reimagining language with gender inclusivity as the default.

What challenges have you faced as an emerging designer/creative, and how have you overcome them?

As an emerging creative, I have found it difficult that many entry level positions require designers to have a skill set even beyond design - content creation, social media management, video editing, 3D animation … It puts a lot of pressure on creatives to diversify, diversify, diversify, until you forget what you wanted to do in the first place! Having a variety of skills is great, but I think there could be more support to train in those supplementary skills on the job, or the opportunity to split the role and collaborate with others who have the skills you need.

In the same vein, what frustrates you about the industry right now?

I find it frustrating that pay rates are kept really opaque between freelancers. There is a sense that money is something personal - but at the end of the day, the more that we communicate with each other and share resources, the more we can make sure that our work is valued by clients and there is no race to the bottom. I try and support my peers by talking openly about money, and speaking frankly with clients when discussing the budget.

Personal values and industry demands can sometimes cause friction.

I always felt intimidated by the idea of joining a design agency with twelve hour days, sleepless nights, and burnout-inducing deadlines. 

After just a few years as a designer, I became cynical of the idea that this “initiation” is a necessary step towards success. I think it’s toxic. Personally, I’ve learnt that I prefer to work at a slower pace, prioritising projects that are close to my heart, and working relationships based on mutual respect. Once I lose time for myself, my community, and my art practice, I get burnt out and I can’t make great work anyway. 

I can’t find much creative stimulation if I don’t have time for myself, my community, and my art practice.

 Maybe ‘success’ will look a little differently for me than I imagined at uni - but my life and work will be richer with the space I’ve made for travel, relationships, and art.


Future/People: Riley Towers

 Design student @ QCA, emerging designer, freelancer

I grew up surrounded by nature, and from an early age, I was drawn to art and the natural world. My parents were both artists, and their parents before them, but they were traditional artists, while my own art practice involved technology and the digital tools that were emerging during my childhood.

To be honest, it’s my personal ambition and desire to be the best that keeps me going. I have always pushed myself to do good, and even more, I’m always trying to do better than before. I love learning, and I love improving, and it’s these factors that fuel my drive for excellence.

I find I’m more often inspired by people rather than their work. 

Vincent Namatjira is someone whose inspired me recently. His practice involves creating caricatures of symbols of power, like politicians or wealthy business magnates. Some people call his work naïve, and others call it sobering, but Vincent says he ‘paints the world as he sees it,’

I think the thing that matters the most is finding what works for you and sticking to your guns. Many times in my life now, I’ve had people who try to push their way of doing things onto me, creative work or otherwise, and it can feel limiting and suffocating. In my work, I try to do things my way—sticking to what works for me, and respecting what works for other people, and because I work this way, I feel I can reach my full potential.

There’s a lot happening around the world right now — what are some social causes that drive you?

I think there’s a growing trend towards mindful and inclusive thinking, especially in all areas of design. 

As a legally blind person myself, I know well what bad design that excludes people looks and feels like, so for my part, I try to ensure that every design I create is equitably accessible for anyone and everyone.

The most important part of my process is coming up with an idea, and so the ideation for that idea is often where most of my effort goes. On the other hand, there’s nothing I love more than to finally jump into making and creating the final outcome, which is the point where most of my time goes.

I would definitely say I’m both. When I’m thinking or focusing, I need absolute silence with no distractions of any kind, but when I am creating work that I am already set on what’s happening from Point A to Point B, then my headphones will be on full blast—usually to Gorillaz or Fleetwood Mac.

Yes—1 in every 4 people is visually impaired. That’s a lot of people, and yet things like CAPTCHA’s and rigid user interfaces still present barriers to many of these people. I try my best as a designer to include these people, as often when design is inclusive, everyone wins.

Reflecting on the current state of the design industry, how could it change for the better?

I think that the most reductive part of the creative industry is the equating of experience to value. There’s no good reason that a junior graphic designer should be paid less than that of a senior designer for the same amount and quality of work. In my career, I always want to firmly ensure I am paid equally for my own level of work, and in doing so, I hope I can encourage others like me to do the same.

The creative industry is perhaps the most populous and oversaturated industry to delve into. It’s difficult to stand out and present new skills and ideas in a field dominated with practitioners of all sorts of varying ability. I think designers need to be taught how to enter the creative industry just as much as how to thrive within it, or else they will fall flat, and fall hard.

It’s no secret that design and the arts can be very elitist, encapsulating the hoarding of knowledge and the perceived superiority to other artists.

This has been true for time immemorial, but I think this is quickly changing now that art is becoming more educated and more openly practiced by more people. As someone who wants to be an educator myself, I want to be a part of making art more accessible.

Can you discuss a project that significantly impacted you?

I recently had the pleasure of creating this year’s Indigenous Broadcasting Report layout. This project was especially important for my growth as a designer, as I learned many different skills involving typesetting and layout design, but more importantly, I was first exposed to many inclusive design practices, like pdf tagging and alt text, which have now become fundamental considerations for me when designing any project.

I have always told myself that I will not do something I’m not proud of. So far, I have only engaged with people and with work that I knew would align with my core values as a person and designer. 

This might hamper my career, but I would rather that than to know that didn’t stay true to my values.


Future/People: Juha Kinnunen

It’s no longer enough to simply provide a good ol’ fashioned product or service. Today, the transaction has moved beyond the material world and into the emotional multiverse.

It’s not just a case of providing a product or service, it’s about selling a feeling.

So, with today’s brand culture built around embodying the values of consumers as much as the brand itself, it’s also ripe for activism.

Historically, activism has been confined to the political and social spectrum. These days though, driven by expectations from socially-conscious consumers and younger generations, brands are increasingly being forced to take a position on socio-political issues to be drivers for change.

But the question remains: how much positive change are they actually affecting, or is it all just smoke and mirrors?

To be fair, brands can be forgiven for living in a constant state of analysis paralysis. Do nothing and risk being perceived as complacent and out of touch, or take a stand on an issue and get accused of indulging in virtue-signalling.

It can be challenging to distinguish between a brand’s true values and performative gestures. Are they genuinely committed to their stated values, or just trying to appear impressive?

Consumers today are as savvy and intuitive as they’ve ever been. In a modern world, brands that chase clout without genuine intent are quickly singled out and forced to atone for their sins.

However, the real issue is the collateral damage they leave behind. More often than not, that’s the cause or people they’re purporting to champions of.

When brands align with social causes, there’s always a risk of it feeling performative if steps aren’t taken to be real about intentions. Empty gestures and hollow promises are easily seen through, especially when a brand’s actions don’t match its words.

The good news though, is that brands genuinely have the ability to make a difference.

When they support progressive movements in an authentic way, they bring attention to important issues and help drive real change. But it’s not enough to just jump on the bandwagon.

 back this up too. Brands that genuinely live by their words and values in an authentic way will make stronger and more positive relationships with their audiences.

If a brand is viewed as more authentic in the eyes of a target market, it will be significantly more trusted than brands with the opposite perception. But with more trust comes a greater responsibility to fulfill their brand promise — and breaking this promise can result in irreparable damage.

To truly make a difference though, brands need to understand and find allies within the movement they champion, encourage alignment internally with stakeholders and employees, engage with it authentically, and show a real commitment and advocacy to the cause.

This means doing more than just adding a hashtag to a social post; it’s taking real action for real change.

With authenticity being a crucial factor, brands must ensure that their support for social causes are consistent with their audience, internal practices and long-term commitments.

Brands need to live their values from the inside out, as credibility to stand for change.

Are your social change initiatives aligned with your stakeholders, employees and audience? Transparency is key for authenticity.

Social change is made through a collective approach, not in the marketing department. Collaboration is key, and working with other communities around the cause, can help drive real change.

Brand involvement can bring much needed visibility and resources but they need to be aware of their potential of overshadowing the movements they are trying to support, and risk doing a disservice, or worse, take it backwards.

When a brand steps into a social issue, it can sometimes divert attention away from the grassroots organisations and activists who have been working on the ground for years.

Don’t feel completely pressured to take a stand on every issue with your brand. Focus on the right cause for you, and lock in for the long game.

Knee-jerk reactions to social issues can lead to brands looking opportunistic, jumping from one issue to the next without a genuine long-term commitment.

Engaging in progressive movements means facing scrutiny and criticism, but it also offers the chance to learn, grow, and make a lasting impact. Authenticity, consistency, and a genuine commitment to the cause are crucial.

Brands absolutely have the power to be catalysts for positive change. All it takes is for the humans behind the logo to align their values and be true to their cause — and importantly, their audience.

Brand activism: a force for good or looking good?

Cause/Affect is the beginning of an exciting new chapter.

We all want to leave our mark on the world. But passion is nothing without purpose.

With everything we do, we’ve always tried to strike the right balance between head and heart. We see the bigger picture, and we see the potential in pushing things to a better place.

Our passion leads us to big ideas, and now we have a platform fit-for-purpose to bring them to life. The timing is right for us to evolve. Our brand is changing to better reflect our intent, beliefs and values as a creative studio.

In short, if change is inevitable, we want it to be the right change.

At the heart of this repositioning is the drive to align our values with our appetite for meaningful action.

We’re still a First Nations-led multidisciplinary creative studio doing all of the things you would expect a multidisciplinary creative studio to do, but our aperture has been widened to a point where we can now see the potential of ushering in real impact with the tools and talents we have at our disposal.

For us, it’s about affecting meaningful social impact through considered, insight-led creative solutions. We have the passion, and we’re crystal clear about what our purpose is: bringing about better outcomes for people and more connected communities.

We’ve always operated organically within the social impact space, but we’re now moving into a more active phase in bringing this to life. Our goal is to always be ready to amplify causes where we can see potential for change.

Practically, this looks like less
hoping and more doing.

We firmly believe that every problem, no matter how big or small, has a solution — it just needs the right people with the right skills to tease it out first.

We’ve seen this in practice in the work we’ve delivered right up to this moment. From working with Cancer Australia spreading awareness about the importance of screening among First Nations communities, to creating materials to empower vulnerable young people interpret complex court processes.

The end goal here? Empathetic, inclusive, and impactful outcomes.

Led by Waanyi and Kalkadoon woman Keisha Leon (Thomason), Cause/Affect is the product of years of professional experience on both sides of the fence and a deeply informed cultural vantage point.

This means Cause/Affect will continue to deliver agency levels of service within a highly collaborative and personalised environment with our in-house team and diverse external network of experts.

Our services are evolving too, with a greater focus on brand strategy and user experience complementing our existing design, illustration and artwork skills. Here’s a rundown of what we offer:

First Nations artwork and creative direction

Are we live? Absolutely! Cause/Affect is up and running and taking new briefs right now.

We’re deep into rolling out a number of projects with clients from the social services sector, with real potential for big and lasting impacts.

 if you have a project you’d want to talk to us about (no matter what stage it’s at) or if you want to get involved in bringing social impact projects to life in your own way and time.

n the meantime, stay connected with us through our 

, and keep an eye out for new projects and updates over the coming weeks and months.

We’re just getting started. But there’s plenty more to come.

Welcome to Cause/Affect — the evolution from Leon Design

 Living at Kurilpa Point, (West End) Magan-djin. Yuggera and Turrbal Country.

 Wagiman with kinship connections to Gulumerridjin (Larrakia) people. Ancestral connections to Borroloola Gulf of Carpentaria region.

I always was a drawer since a really young age. I would sit in my school library when I was about 8 or 9 practicing drawing from books and learnt to draw through tracing. I continued learning to draw consistently during my teens and into my early twenties. During Covid I decided to enrol in a Bachelor of Fine Arts at QCAD, (now Bachelor of Visual Arts) before switching into the CAIA degree after taking the Indigenous Art and Protocols subject. During my time studying my grandmother was encouraging me to explore more about my Aboriginal identity and through CAIA I delved deep into my family history and the archives, which in turn fuelled my developing art practice.

I think for me it is just innate. I tried briefly before I enrolled in Arts to study a Bachelor of Science, and I was not able to engage with the degree the way I do with Visual Arts. I can’t imagine doing anything else with my time. I don’t know if I could truly put words to it.


I think the 11th Asian Pacific Triennial that just showed at QAGOMA. There are so many innovative First Nations and BIPOC artists that were shown. Especially Zhang Xu Zhan’s stop motion animation 

 which was quite inspiring to me. I am fascinated by artists who explore the idea of moving image as a form of Indigenous storytelling. It’s interesting to see how Zhang Xu brings in this idea of cross-cultural encounters and fables. Esecially how he represent them in this anthropomorphic way where the creatures in the animation such as foxes or ‘

’ is revealed to the audience that they are actually sculptures of performers in elaborate costumes.

And then Zhang Xu pulls from this highly specific cultural practice that is ceremonial in nature of crafting Joss paper houses, and through reworking this practice creates a unique form of puppetry that just totally transforms the work. It has really fuelled so many ideas for me going forwards, as I explore temporal drawing strategies to tell my own Indigenous ancestors' stories.

My big motivators are connecting with Mob through my artwork. I have been fortunate to have been able to establish my kinship connections further because of the way my arts practice has fed into my research into the National Archives of Australia and Territory archives and vice versa. And I just really want to keep doing that! Looking into my ancestry is important to me as I think it’s good to develop a sense of belonging and understanding of who you are and where you have come from. My ancestors have important stories and because historically I feel as though their agency may have been taken away from them, its important for me to tell their stories but through my own lens.



There’s a lot happening around the world right now –

what are some social causes that drive you?

I’m really invested in amplifying voices of Indigenous and BIPOC artists and creators, as well as other marginalised communities. I like to think art has a powerful ability to open a space where conversations that may be difficult or challenging to have, can occur. I tend to talk about my own ancestors in my work as it relates to my own experiences more rather than talking for other people. I also like to think others can relate to a sense of shared experience.

Probably being informed by other artists first and foremost, seeing shows like I mentioned the APT. Doing research into the archives or re-visiting my family history journals that we started in CAIA and identifying certain stories about my ancestors that are of particular interest to me. I then usually mind map ideas, journal out my thoughts and start sketching. I’m not always very good at keeping sketchbooks and while I usually begin in a sketchbook, I seem to expand out to singular sheets of paper that I sometimes stitch back together into artist books. I refine motifs and imagery before taking them into the darkroom as hand drawn negatives that I place on top of silver gelatin sheets and expose to UV under the enlarger. Or I use the motifs as a starting point to establish a sequence of animations.

Definitely I am a headphones on type person. And probably a mix between Kendrick Lamar, Doechii and Tyler the Creator.

At this stage as an emerging artist I don’t have an extensive experience exhibiting but I’ve been considering working into the public art realm because of it’s accessibility through location and possible large scale instillations that are both free to view and easily seen from a distance. But also, it is important for me in the future as I will be paying specific attention to the galleries, I want to work with whether they are accessible and inclusive. I think it goes without saying accessibility and inclusivity is important to create equity not just equality. But beyond that also ensuring that the spaces we engage with as creatives actions are speaking louder than their words. Or otherwise that they are not engaging with performative activism. I find myself always reflecting on this.

I think perhaps as I just sort of stated making sure actions speak louder than words and that the design industry and even creative industries beyond design is not engaging with performative activism. I think for example if you market yourself as being inclusive and accessible making sure that you are listening to community feedback, being open to being flexible and being open to criticism. The thing is nobody is perfect, but change does not happen without sincere reflection.

I think the biggest challenge for me is my health, I have POTS and Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and diagnosed with ASD. So I have physical challenges that impacts my ability to stand for long periods of time and mental health challenges that makes it sometimes difficult for me to get to exhibition’s or it can be challenging to plan ahead. I’ve had to work on finding a good GP and health care team that I see regularly and making sure that I am balancing taking care of myself and my practice as an artist. I think the biggest thing for me that I would like to see changed is the industry’s ability to be flexible, with deadlines or encouraging asking the artists they work with how they could make their environment accessible for them and then committing to making sure that happens.

There still seems to be this idea that exists that artists should perform unpaid labour, especially as emerging artists or students. I think regardless of experience there should be a base rate that is paid. The NAVA association of the visual arts is a great resource for referring to.

I think just graduating last year, it was the biggest body of work that I worked towards for the entire year and then installed as a more consistent and professional body of work. I got a lot of engagement with my work which I guess just told me I must be doing something right!

I think being able to compromise in a way where you do not feel undermined and undervalued. But also, being able to stand on your own two feet is important and something I personally challenge with that I am gaining confidence with over time, to be able to make sure I am asserting my beliefs. I often must weigh up what is worth my energy and what may not be and disregard the experiences that may not be for me. I think just having a dedicated support network of friends who you can check in with and get reflection and having community-based supports who will also hold you accountable is important.



Future/People: Chelsea Carkeet

A note from Keisha Leon, founder of Cause/Affect.

With the Voice just around the corner and knowing that silence never made history, I thought I’d share my personal take on the referendum…

And before you wonder/so there’s no room for doubt, I’ll be answering 

I favour the case for ‘yes’ because I’m a proud Waanyi and Kalkadoon woman AND an informed individual — Meaning, I recognise that past treatment of First Nations people was unacceptable.

Historically, biased constitutional laws, government inaction and a lifelong national ignorance has negatively impacted First Nations people

In the same breath, I also recognise that there’s a lot of commentary on the Voice and we’re all ‘short on time’. So before you vote — at a minimum — please do these two things:

Right now, the government makes all decisions for First Nations people. Yes we may have pre-existing advisory groups, but the government has the power to say who’s involved.

Recognising an advisory group in the constitution is the only people-first solution to this problem. Voting ‘yes’ gives First Nations people a seat at the table AND ensures decisions 

Hopefully this change will also recognise and mobilise more constitutional advisory groups, impact law and policy, better allocate funds and resources to First Nations people – particularly grassroots organisations and communities, and set the foundations for treaty and truth-telling.


Previously, the nation has told us that we’re nothing. That we’ll never amount to anything. That our history does not exist.

The stereotyping, misinformation and fear mongering narratives that are present within both history and the ‘no’ vote are an ugly reminder of the racism that our Australian identity is built upon.

Our nation hides behind mateship, fair-go and larrikins; living in purposeful ignorance to the genocide and trauma that is still perpetuated today. First Nations people are blissfully ignored and wilfully forgotten.

Establishing a Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice responds to the loud call for change. It helps us seek sovereignty in our own Country, empowers First Nations people and guides the nation through the first steps towards reform. Saying ‘yes’ to constitutional change paves the way for a better future.


We are resilient, we will continue to be resilient

Regardless of the outcome, we will continue to be resilient. Everyday I think of my family;

Who have pushed through adversaries to create better lives for their families.

Who selflessly honour culture in everything that they do.

Who put people, community and Country first, always.

If the result is ‘no’, continued ignorance and racism won’t stop us. It never has. If the answer is ‘yes’, we’ll seize the opportunity and affect positive change.


When I think of the future, I think of an Australia that my son is proud to be part of. A country free of racism where he can stand tall as a Waanyi & Kalkadoon man and make decisions for himself — which is a privilege 

What I don’t want is for him to be fighting the same fight in 30-50 years time.


I’m a pessimist and I don’t often believe things will change. Not because I don’t believe in change, but because all too often the world beats you down until you have no hope left and the nation reminds us that we’re standing alone.

Hope that this opportunity will lead to a change that I’ll get to see in my lifetime.

Hope that we have a better future to look forward to.

Whatever you vote, make sure you favour knowledge and conviction, not ignorance and influence.

And for the sake of my/our/First Nations people’s future — the one that you’re deciding on — don’t stand with those who want to see us erased.

The Voice

Change doesn’t happen on its own — it changes because of the people who want it to happen.


What excites me about this industry is that there’s always a new idea or perspective just around the corner. All it takes is a little curiosity, courage, and creativity.

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Future/People: Juha Kinnunen

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