Cherisse Buzzacott

Cherisse Buzzacott, is an Arrernte woman from Mparntwe (Alice Springs) with connection to Central Australia (Kaytetye, Anmatyerr) and S.A. (Arabunna). She grew up west of Mparntwe on Iwupataka Outstation, with strong connections to her community. Cherisse is currently employed with Children’s Ground (Ampe-kenhe Ahelhe) as the Head of Health and Wellbeing. 

As Chair of the Rhodanthe her role is to lead a working Board of First Nations midwives, providing scholarships to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander midwives and students. Cherisse has worked as a midwife across remote and urban clinical settings and sits on several national advisory committees related to women’s health, maternal health, midwifery workforce and miscarriage, and pregnancy loss.

What does NAIDOC mean to you?

NAIDOC for Cherisse is celebrating everything we are as First Nations people. This week gives us a chance to be unapologetically Black and to stand strong in our culture and practices which have endured many challenges since colonisation, so that we can move forward every day with pride and no shame about who we are, how we live and the experiences we share as a people. As well as the ability to celebrate our differences as many different language groups, connected through culture, land, song lines and Lore.