Tyson Carmody’s King’s Narrative is forging a new direction for Central Australia

The founder of a landmark program taking men and children back to country and instilling cultural values in Central Australia says there’s one value critical to changing the status quo.

Tyson Carmody pulls few punches when talking about what needs to change for Aboriginal men and children in Central Australia.

“We don’t need to surround young people with mentors who are clean and polished, but people who make mistakes but who have changed because they want to see our community grow and develop,” the King’s Narrative managing director says.

“All of us, but especially children, thrive on feeling valued.

“As a community we need to provide a place where our children feel valued, it gives us our best chance of success.”

King’s Narrative – so named to reflect the form of therapy the service offers while paying homage to the term Aboriginal men, women and children use to refer to their elders – is steering Central Australian residents toward a respectful and meaningful life.

Through on-country camps and specialist programs run by only Aboriginal men for Aboriginal men and children, Mr Carmody is helping to change the conversation among people he says more often than not feel excluded or marginalised.

NT Australian of the Year finalist Tyson Carmody has experienced strong success with Indigenous communities through his business King's Narrative. Picture: Contributed

“These young people feel the constant negative energy of the town and they reciprocate,” he said.

“They want to feel part of this place and as members of our community, we have to role model that they are.”

At its core is cultural healing practices and learning.

“We support our men to find their true self in their culture; once you have hold of that, you have a better foundation to be able to look at your life, where the problem stories are, and invest in those stories,” Mr Carmody said.

“There has been a lot of individual men in the community reaching out asking for help which I think breaks down the stereotype of men holding it in.

“We see men do want to talk about their stuff, they need to feel respected in that space.”

Territory Families acting executive director Sasha Dennis says feedback from young people about Mr Carmody’s programs had been overwhelmingly positive. Picture: (A)manda Parkinson

Mr Carmody, a NT Australian of the Year finalist, said the demand for King’s Narrative’s services came from people across the Territory and interstate.

“The big highlight for me was the cultural revitalisation camp over four nights … where they do a lot of learning on-country, early learning and as a family,” he said.

“We teach in-language on-country.

“In particular, we held a camp for the men; we took the Elders out, the fathers with their sons – 20 men and young people all together – teaching the young boys their cultural dances.”

It allowed them to record their cultural songs to preserve them for future generations, and a practice King’s Narrative would hope to replicate in the future.

“We can’t afford to just do this once a year,” Mr Carmody said.

“Our old people are dying left, right and centre, and we’re aiming to do four or five, even more, camps a year.”

Territory Families, Housing and Communities deputy chief executive Sasha Dennis said the feedback from young people about Mr Carmody’s programs was overwhelmingly positive.

“Tyson is a strong, respected and proud Aboriginal man from Alice Springs and we have just seen the young children in detention or on bail respond to him a very positive way,” she said.

“In one of the sessions that Tyson delivers he talks about who these young people’s heroes are and what it is about their grandparents or brothers or uncles that inspires them.

“The focus is always on positivity and aspiration.”

Mr Carmody said his path was set, regardless of how the Australian of the Year Awards progressed.

“I’ve got a strong sense that I and other Aboriginal men in this town can make a difference and I’m owning that responsibility,” he said.

“Everything I teach these children is governed by culture which is how it needs to be for change to happen.”