Jahna Cedar OAM is a Nyiyaparli woman from the Pilbara region of Western Australia. For the past 25 years she’s advocated for equal rights and reconciliation of Indigenous people. She is the founder of Jahna Cedar Consulting, Co-Chair of First Nations x, Deputy Chair of Lowitja Institute, and cofounder of Blak Angel Investors.
My first reflection would be when I was about six years old, helping my grandmother make big batches of meals at 4am. She was volunteering in our community at the time, and I helped her put the food into takeaway containers to give to the homeless. That morning, I saw first-hand the impact that my grandmother’s giving had in the community, and I’ve looked for ways to give back ever since.
When I was 11 years old, I sat on my first community board as a youth advisory member and today I’m passionate about using board roles to make cultural and corporate governance coexist. If it means I can impart knowledge or educate people who are on a similar journey, then that’s fantastic because when I’m in those boardrooms, we're breaking stereotypes one conversation at a time. Giving, to me, has never been transactional. It’s about relationships, and community.
For me, it's an inherent kinship responsibility that we have as First Nations people. It's not giving in the sense that a lot of people think of giving today. Reciprocity is different to charity - we give to show respect to our kinship obligations. I like to use my privilege to support people who may not have been as blessed with the same opportunities. It's about supporting those who may not, at certain times, have the capacity to support themselves. We don't give because we expect to receive something in return because naturally something is always returned. When I give, I'm receiving self-satisfaction, happiness, joy and energy simply by seeing how somebody else benefits. As a community, when we rise we bring others up with us. I love the feeling that giving gives me.
Much of what we do as women is invisible in giving. I do a lot of pro-bono hours through my consulting business - giving free advice, coaching or tool kits for frameworks. I also sit on non-renumerated boards, share knowledge and experience and take people on a cultural competency journey. In other spaces I'm simply a sounding board.
I also created a rugby association called Gur Wirimalpa Dreamtime Warriors, with my brother that uses sport as a mechanism to show how strong, healthy men, create healthy families and in turn healthy communities. It started as a way to bring men from the Pilbara down to Perth to play in big rugby tournaments that they wouldn't otherwise have an opportunity to participate in, but it's grown into this holistic wraparound support, and expanded to youth and women in sport. It's our five-year anniversary this year, and it’s something that we do voluntarily. Our first big sponsors were two Aboriginal businesses within the mining and construction industry and we’re lucky that they continue to give us ongoing support.
I also give to charity through philanthropy and financial investment.
I think my biggest learning has been to protect yourself first because you can't give to others unless you are completely whole. I’ve sometimes questioned the idea of ‘don’t give from an empty cup’ because as mothers, we constantly find ways to give. But I’ve learned that unless we are healthy and strong within ourselves, we’re not actually giving the best of us to anybody. So, protecting our physical, mental and spiritual health as the way for us to give the best of ourselves to others - this would be my number one learning.
You need to have an innovative approach; it can't be one-size-fits-all, because with 350 nations of First Nations people, the needs are different based on geography. You need to really go in and listen with heart, mind and ears. You need to hear what is being said on the ground about what is needed rather than thinking you have all the answers. When you allow a program to be codesigned with community, that investment upfront means that you're going to get a quality outcome because it's culturally grounded. I'm passionate about building culturally safe, thriving ecosystems for First Nations families, communities, and Aboriginal businesses that will continue to empower the next generation.
I work with a lot of community corporations and businesses who are struggling to find people to invest into their businesses long term. A six-month grant is only going to give them a short business life which doesn't provide job security and business sustainability. We need longer term investments to help us track impact. The barriers for Aboriginal businesses and community organisations to gain support is huge - we know that for every dollar invested into an Aboriginal business there is a $4.00 return on investment.
Unfortunately, when we work on Western frameworks, it's always about the financial outcome and we need to broaden our outcome reports to include social impact - you may not get a big financial return on your investment, but you may have saved lives, kept families together and imparted knowledge onto a group of people who now have an entrepreneurial spirit. There are so many opportunities for more funders and organisations to create a safe space for equity – because at the end of the day we're not asking for a hand up or a handout. We just want equity.
Too often, giving is framed around what’s lacking in our communities. But if you walk with us and listen deeply, you’ll see the strength, innovation, and legacy already there. Give in ways that honour cultural integrity – that are strengths-based, guided by First Nations leadership, and shaped with us, not for us.
I want to create systems that are going to outlast me. What are the transformational systems and frameworks that we need to change from the inside out and how are we going to create sustainable philanthropy approaches that can withstand and outlast any individual? We’ve got to be making an impact on the ground, and tailor the solutions with Indigenous voice at the forefront. I want to continue in the board governance space and mentoring the next generation. I recently established the Blak Angels Investment Network with two other colleagues so we can raise a new generation of entrepreneurs and future investors to create circular economies within our own nations that continually gives back. I've got a passion for women's leadership programmes and already do a lot in that space through voluntary work, but I want to grow that and hopefully inspire my children in the future to volunteer and to give.
Jahna Cedar OAM is a proud Nyiyaparli woman with ancestral ties to the Bardi Gija peoples. A recognised leader in leadership and governance, Jahna brings over two decades of experience advocating for equity, cultural integrity, and economic empowerment for First Nations peoples across Australia and internationally.
She has held executive and non-executive roles across the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors, championing strategic reform, Indigenous led innovation, and culturally safe leadership practices.
Jahna’s leadership approach is grounded in Indigenous knowledge systems and self-determination, ensuring cultural governance is not an add-on but central to decision-making. Through her consultancy, Jahna Cedar Consulting, she partners with boards, governments, and communities to strengthen two-way governance, embed truth-telling practices, and build culturally safe, inclusive structures. Her services span governance and leadership development, strategic facilitation, Reconciliation Action Plan implementation, First Nations advisory, and culturally responsive coaching and mentoring.
Jahna is an international speaker and TEDx presenter who has delivered keynotes at the United Nations in New York, SXSW in Austin, the Gathering of Nations in Albuquerque, and the Indigenous Women in Industry conference in Rotorua, Aotearoa (New Zealand). She is also a founding Blak Angel Investor, supporting First Nations entrepreneurship. Her leadership has been recognised with numerous accolades, including the Medal of the Order of Australia, the Telstra Businesswomen’s Award, and induction into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame.
Jahna continues to inspire and lead with authenticity, guided by the principle that strong governance must reflect the communities it serves, upholding culture, accountability, and collective leadership.
