Kado Muir | Chair
Kado Muir is a cultural leader, entrepreneur, artist, anthropologist, and Indigenous rights activist from the Ngalia dialect family of the Mantjiltjara language group in Western Australia. He advocates for First Nations language preservation, cultural heritage protection, and environmental justice.
He chairs the National Native Title Council and Wakamurru Aboriginal Corporation (PBC) and is a steering group member of the First Nations Clean Energy Network. A skilled negotiator, he champions First Nations equity in projects and promotes sustainable, community-based enterprises through his Wealth in First Nations model.
Kado regularly consults on Circular Economy, ESG, responsible investment, and technology adoption for cultural and environmental capital. He is also a business founder with interests in technology, fragrances, and ecosystem restoration.
Francine McCarthy | Deputy Chair
Francine is a Warumungu woman born in Tennant Creek who grew up in Alice Springs and on the Nauiyu Nambiyu (Daly River) Community. Today she is the Manager Native Title with the Central Land Council (CLC), holding this position for the last 8 years.
Throughout her time at CLC Francine has been an NNTC Board member, over two terms including that of Chair and Deputy Chair. She has a Bachelor of Applied Science, specialising in Cultural Heritage Management from the University of Canberra, is a member of the Northern Territory Heritage Council, and a member of three PBCs in and around Tennant Creek.
Francine brings a wealth of knowledge from Central Land Council including experience in operations of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 and first hand Native Title and PBC understanding in the central Australian context. She strongly supports Aboriginal peoples’ interests in access to and management of land, education, youth issues, housing, community advocacy and enterprise development.
Ned David
Ned David is a Kulkalaig man from Tudu (Warrior) Island in the Torres Strait.
Ned is the current Chair of several organisations in the Torres Strait, including the Gur A Baradharaw Kod (GBK)
Sea and Land Council, the Torres Strait Islanders Regional Education Council (TSIREC), and the Magani Lagaugal Registered Native Title Body Corporate.
He has extensive experience working in both government and private sectors, and a background in education, working with young people in Torres Strait.
Joshua Haynes
Joshua Haynes is a Yandruwanha Yawarawarka man.
He is Deputy Chairperson of South Australian Native Title Services, Chair of the Marree and Innamincka NRM Group and a Director of the Cooper and Eromanga Basin Aboriginal Executive Committee.
Melvin Farmer
Melvin is a Walakaja Elder who speaks Manyjilyjarra and Pintupi.
Melvin is a Director of Mungarlu Ngurrarankatja Rirraunkaja Aboriginal Corporation and is the former Chairperson of Jamukurnu Yapalikurnu Aboriginal Corporation.
Peter Windie
Peter is a Thudgari man who played an integral leadership role in his peoples’ Native Title Determination in 2009. He was also an applicant on the combined Thiin-Mah Warriyangka Tharrkari Jiwarli native title claim, determined in 2019. Peter lives in Gascoyne Junction in Western Australia and is a well-respected community leader in the region.
In early 2020, he was appointed Director of Pilbara Solar, a renewable energy company that develops commercial renewable energy projects aiming to create equity ownership for Traditional Owners. He is passionate about Country, and the depth Aboriginal people are spiritually connected to the land. Peter was re-elected as Yamatji Chairperson and YMAC Director at the 2022 Yamatji Annual Regional Meeting (ARM).
Tim Wishart
Tim Wishart is currently Acting Chief Executive Office of Queensland South Native Title Services (QSNTS) undertaking this role since 10 July 2023.
Tim initially joined QSNTS in August 2010, initially as a Senior Lawyer. In September 2012, he was appointed acting Principal Lawyer, and was confirmed in that role in March 2013 following an extensive national recruitment process. Admitted as a legal practitioner in December 1991, Tim’s pre-QSNTS work was primarily in litigation and commercial law.
Today with over 13 years of experience in native title practice and policy, Tim has been recognised as a leading native title practitioner by Doyle’s Guide and is a nationally accredited mediator. He also regularly presents papers on native title topics at specialist forums and has made significant contributions to policy discussion on a local, state, and national level.
Kenneth Stewart
Ken is a Wamba Wamba descendent with strong family ties to the Lake Boga area as a fourth-generation descendant. He is committed to maintaining strong connections to that place and playing a vital role in supporting Elders both past and present, who have generously shared their knowledge and insights particularly in areas of Aboriginal issues involving both Native Title and cultural heritage.
Bringing this invaluable experience to the NNTC board, in other professional roles Ken is Chair of First Nations Legal and Research Services, Chair of the Wiran Aboriginal Corporation, General Manager at the First Peoples of the Millewa-Mallee Aboriginal Corporation and a past member of the Victoria Aboriginal Heritage Council.
Patricia Laurie
Patricia is a Yaegl/Bundjalung woman from the Far North Coast of NSW. These are her grandmother’s Countries, and she also acknowledges her grandfather’s Countries of Gumbaynggirr and Walbunja Yuin.
A nationally accredited trainer and assessor, Patricia has set up and worked in various community-based organisations, bringing a heavy focus on compliance. A highlight of her career was speaking at the United Nations in both New York and Geneva on issues affecting Aboriginal people.
In addition to serving as a North Coast Councillor on the NSW Aboriginal Land Council, Patricia is Co-Presiding Member of the Aboriginal Cultural and Heritage Advisory Committee NSW; Deputy Chair of the Aboriginal Legal Service NSW/ACT; Co-Chair of the Cultural Heritage Council Australia/New Zealand and Member of the Commonwealth.
Kaylene Malthouse
Ms Kaylene Malthouse, a Malanbarra Yidinji/Nadagion woman from the Rainforests of North Queensland, born in Gordonvale 30kms southwest of Cairns. She has a unshakeable reputation for being a notable and passionate force in economically empowering Aboriginal people to build their own wealth from their lands.
After four years with the North Queensland Land Council as Chair, Kaylene was instrumental in applying her extensive knowledge of community engagement and native title to the council’s footprint. In 2024 she finalised a Cultural Brokering contract with Girringun Aboriginal Corporation in Southern end of the Rainforest Aboriginal groupings in North Queensland, working with nine Traditional Owner groups and the Representative Native title Body Corporations (RNTBCs) to establish Native Bush Food Orchards.
Currently, Kaylene is the sitting Chair of her local Elders group which engages the nine Traditional Owner groups in the Southern Tablelands region on the Atherton Tablelands playing a strong advocacy role across all key areas of Closing the Gap.