Steve Kinnane

Steve Kinnane has been an active researcher and writer for more than 25 years. He has worked on community-based cultural heritage and development projects and lectured in Indigenous Studies, Sustainability and Australian History. His outputs encompass creative non-fiction and academic analysis published as books, book chapters, journal articles and audiovisual documentaries. He has completed numerous evidence-based research reports for community-based non-government organisations, government and statutory authorities.

Steve co-wrote and co-produced The Coolbaroo Club an ABC TV documentary, awarded the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Human Rights Award for the Arts, and collaborated with Lauren Marsh and Alice Nannup on the completion of When the Pelican Laughed, the story of Mrs Alice Nannup (Fremantle Arts Centre Press). His book, Shadow Lines was awarded the Western Australian (WA) Premier's Award for Non-Fiction 2004, the Federation of Australian Writer's Award for Non-Fiction 2004, The Stanner Award 2004, and was short-listed for the Queensland, South Australian Premier's Awards.

Select publications include editing the journal Westerly Issue 61.1,
the chapter 'History; a long, slow dance' for the Cambridge University Press book, Knowledge of Life (ed. Kaye Price), 'Finger Money; the black and white of stolen wages' (in collaboration with Judy Harrison and Isabelle Reinecke) for The Griffith Review Issue 47 (looking West), the chapter, 'Indigenous Australia' (in collaboration with Anna Haebich) for the, Cambridge History of Australia, and the chapter, 'Blood History' for the First Australians book accompanying the First Australians Television Series (SBS).

As well as working on independent community and research projects, Steve worked at Murdoch University, WA, lecturing in the Australian Indigenous Studies and Sustainability Programs (2002-2005); completed a Visiting Research Fellowship at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), Canberra (2005-2008), was Senior Researcher for the Nulungu Research Institute of the University of Notre Dame Australia (2008 – 2016), and Co-Curator of Aboriginal Exhibitions within the New Museum WA (2016-2020).

He has previously served on the AIATSIS Council, AIATSIS Research Advisory Committee, and was Chair of the AIATSIS Foundation. Steve remains an AIATSIS Foundation board member and is currently the Co-Chair of Indigenous Research at the University of Notre Dame, Australia; Research Coordinator for the Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Centre; a director of Magabala Books; an Editorial Board Member of the Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB) ANU, Section Editor - Indigenous Working Party of the ADB, and a PhD Scholar with the Research School of Social Sciences, ANU.

Common themes of this work have included; multi-layered narratives of diverse individual and collective community experience; cultural governance as a foundation of social capital for collective community development; questioning what constitutes sustainability for culturally and politically diverse peoples (especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples); and, the resonance of history in contemporary and evolving narratives of peoplehood.

Steve is a Marda Marda from Miriwoong country in the East Kimberley, and retains strong personal, familial, and professional connections between the Kimberley in the North West of WA, and Noongar country in the South West of WA.