- Location
- Alice Springs, Australia
- Sector
- Legal
- Salary
- $129,177.81 to $143,999.64 per annum
Program Manager – Community Peacemaking & Mediation
NAAJA is recruiting on behalf of the Apurte-le Mpwareme Partnership Governance Group (PGG) for an experienced program manager to co-manage the Apurte-le Mpwareme service.
Alice Springs (Mparntwe) | Full-time
$129,177.81–$143,999.64 per annum
Help establish a service that puts Aboriginal leadership and community priorities at the centre of resolving conflict and strengthening relationships.
- Access six weeks’ annual leave with 17.5% leave loading
- Access salary packaging and remote area benefits
- Receive relocation assistance of up to $4,000 and a $3,400 annual remote area allowance.
Help bring a shared vision to life
Apurte-le Mpwareme—Holding Together, Working Together—is a partnership between Tangentyere Council Aboriginal Corporation, Lhere Artepe Aboriginal Corporation and NAAJA.
Together, the partners are establishing an Aboriginal community-led Peacemaking and Mediation Service in Alice Springs. The service will support Aboriginal people, families and communities to address conflict, restore relationships and strengthen safety and wellbeing through culturally grounded approaches, with the aim of reducing contact with the formal justice system.
This is an opportunity to help build Apurte-le Mpwareme from its foundations, working alongside Traditional Owners, Town Camp leaders, families and communities whose cultural knowledge, authority and leadership will guide its development.
The opportunity
As Program Manager, you will work alongside a fellow Program Manager in an equal co-management partnership. You will bring complementary strengths and share responsibility for establishing and leading the service under the direction of the Partnership Governance Group.
Together, you will:
- Build trusted relationships with Elders, families, communities and partner organisations, ensuring cultural authority and community priorities guide the work.
- Lead and support a diverse team, building capability through supervision, mentoring and reflective practice.
- Strengthen peacemaking and mediation practice, supporting safe, culturally grounded responses to complex conflict.
- Turn shared priorities into an effective service, establishing operational systems, managing accountability and using community feedback to improve delivery.
NAAJA is the host employer and will provide employment, administrative and organisational support, while the service operates under the direction and governance of the PGG, comprising representatives from all three partner organisations.
What you will bring
You build trust, listen carefully and work respectfully across different cultural and professional perspectives. You can translate shared decisions into practical action while remaining accountable to community leadership.
You will bring experience in community-led or culturally grounded work, leading or supporting diverse teams, facilitation or conflict resolution, and establishing or strengthening services or initiatives.
We value experience gained through community leadership and cultural practice alongside professional experience. Knowledge of Central Australian communities, Aboriginal language skills, and experience in training or mentoring would also be valuable.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are strongly encouraged to apply. We value the cultural knowledge, community relationships and lived experience Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants bring.
What we offer
- Six weeks’ annual leave with 17.5% leave loading.
- Three weeks’ personal leave.
- Five days’ cultural leave, plus an additional two days for Aboriginal staff on request.
- $3,400 per annum remote area allowance.
- Up to $4,000 relocation assistance.
- Up to 12 weeks’ paid parental leave.
- Up to $18,500 in tax-free salary packaging, plus remote area salary packaging benefits through SMART Salary Packaging.
- $800 per year for personal wellbeing.
- A language allowance where a local Aboriginal language is spoken and utilised by the applicant as part of their duties.
Apply now
Download the application pack or obtain a copy from peopleandcapability@naaja.org.au.
Submit your resume along with a cover letter outlining your relevant experience and responses to the five screening questions in the application pack. Practical examples from employment, community leadership or other relevant experience are welcome.
For a confidential conversation about the opportunity, contact Sunaina Pinto on 0428 630 837 or sunaina@aazaadprojects.com.au
Early applications are encouraged. We will review applications on receipt. Applications close on Wednesday 18 November 2026.