Tanya Koeneman is proud Dharawal, Jerrinjah and Wonnarua descendant, and a valued member of the Sydney Aboriginal community of La Perouse.
The last 25 years of Tanya’s career had a primary focus in cultural heritage and strategic land use planning, including regulation, protection, conservation, and management.
Tanya is currently an Assistant Secretary within the First Nations Partnership Division of the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts. Leading a Branch of First Nations staff, Tanya encourages authentic conversations that result in improved relationships and collaborative engagement.
Tanya’s recent role as Director of Healthy Country within Department of Planning and Environment (DPE), celebrated the establishment and development of strategic approaches to increasing the use of cultural fire management by Aboriginal people across NSW as well as exploring opportunities for the establishment of a NSW Aboriginal Rangers program. Both bodies of work are designed to facilitate Aboriginal people to care for Country in a way that responds to cultural obligations and the needs of Country.
Prior to this, Tanya’s team delivered outcomes relating to strategic improvement across the planning and environment sectors, Indigenous cultural intellectual property, Aboriginal languages and dual naming and Aboriginal economic land reform. Work also included a monitoring and evaluation approach that demonstrates meaningful outcomes to key stakeholders and delivery partners.
Tanya managed Aboriginal community land and infrastructure programs that developed planning tools, strategies and pathways that facilitated the rezoning, subdivision, and infrastructure upgrades to Aboriginal communities across New South Wales and enabled them to leverage greater economic, community and cultural use of Aboriginal land.
Tanya is passionate to see the development of a better cultural understanding and management approach which incorporates the knowledge, cultural authority, and stewardship of traditional owners with their involvement furthering their cultural, social, and economic aspirations as land owners and managers.