Hitnet Annual Impact Report 2015

Impact Report 2015

Co-creating knowledge to transform lives

Hitnet Impact Report 2015 | 2

Inside

Hitnet’s Nickeema Williams with her portrait of Carlea Flinders, at the opening of the State Library of Queensland’s A Thousand Words exhibition. Nickeema’s portraits explored Indigenous women’s connections to land.

Directors message 04

Our co-creators 06Issues we’ve tackled and communities we’ve impacted

08

Technology we’ve harnessed 12Making global footprints 14Our social business 18

Measuring our impact 22

The year that was 26Looking forward 26Our team 28Our partners 29Our clients 30

Inside

3 | Hitnet Impact Report 2015

Hitnet is an innovative Australian ‘Communication for Development’ company that produces rich learning media with and for those living on the wrong side of the digital divide – populations marginalised by culture, technology and distance.

Our vision is to build vibrant, healthy and digitally savvy communities engaged in the digital economy, all over the world.

By 2020, we aim to be improving the lives of 500,000 daily.

Our values

Open-hearted and open-minded.

Whether we’re working in a community or with one of our many partners, we approach all our interactions with an open-heart and an open-mind. We’re generous with our knowledge, ideas and connections, as our partners are with us.

Playful yet serious.

What we do is serious, and we take it seriously, but we also know how to have fun. The stories and information we share through our Community Hubs tackle serious problems with a playful approach, and that’s why they leave their mark.

Passionately inventive.

We’re wildly creative and inventive and we’re always searching for new ways to advance learning. When traditional and cultural knowledge take their rightful place alongside innovative learning, literacy improves and our work transforms lives.

Technologists at heart.

While technology is the backbone of our business, it’s also the key to unlocking the digital divide and to creatively engaging the next generation. Our Community Hubs are at the epicentre of interaction and connection, allowing us to spread the information that really matters to the remotest corners.

Committed to co-creation.

We don’t hold all the answers to the most challenging social problems. That’s why we’re dedicated to co-creating knowledge in each and every community in need. Together we identify the problems, and together we create the solutions.


What a year it has been at Hitnet! While we are so very proud of all that has been achieved in 2015, we’ve also been extremely humbled by the experiences and opportunities we’ve had and the incredible support we’ve received.

In our third year of operation, we’ve been able to take the business to the next level and start to make an impact in the communities we serve, locally and globally.

Our highlights have included an entrée into the international development world. In Laos, 50 years after the Vietnam War, unexploded bombs (UXO) are still claiming 300 victims a year. Our first project in Laos may see us co-creating and sharing knowledge that will empower young villagers with information about the dangers of UXO.

While in Southern India we’re starting work with Paadhai Trust, an NGO that is working with tribal people emerging out of the forests into the fringes of contemporary Indian society due to the logging of their habitat. To be involved in the co-creation of health and social information for these people, in their own dialect, is truly a privilege for Hitnet.

And closer to home, in Indigenous Australia we’ve been working to address one of the biggest issues facing our First People – diabetes. “It’s like a war zone out there, but without the bombs and guns,” said one of the Elders at the launch of The Diabetes Story in Cairns. Diabetes is responsible for 1 in 12 deaths in the Indigenous community and Hitnet is proud to be helping to turn this terrible statistic around.

Directors message

“Digital technologies are the enabler of education, business and communication. People who don’t have access to technology are being left behind and they’re missing out on being engaged in the digital economy. We want ubiquitous access for all.” Julie Gibson, Director, Business and Technology

Julie Gibson and Helen Travers


Even closer to home for Helen, was the devastation felt in the community of Manoora in West Cairns following the tragic death of eight children. Working with the Manoora Community Centre, we installed a Hitnet Community Hub to help address mental health issues and provide a place for young people to showcase their digital stories, music and photographs.

Balancing our higher purpose ‘to co-create knowledge to transform lives’ with the imperative of profit, is challenging. However, it is these projects and the relationships we’ve built over our three years as a social business that is sustaining us.

We are so grateful for the support of our Cairns Cultural Advisory Group (a group of smart, sassy Murri women), Nickeema Williams our Community Liaison Officer, the strategic advice of John Field, our Business Advisory Council in Melbourne, and the partnerships we’ve fostered with local universities, Ernst and Young, ASIC and many more. Without you, we couldn’t achieve our vision to improve the lives of 500,000 people each and every day.

Hitnet is fast becoming a company that is attracting the support and interest of clients, researchers, investors and funding partners alike. We thank you so very much for your ongoing interest and support and we invite you to share our message far and wide to help bring about equality and dignity to marginalised communities worldwide.

Julie and Helen

“Coincidentally, the very same people we work with through Hitnet, marginalised Indigenous peoples, are the very same ones that hold the wisdom to creating a healthy relationship with our environment. We want Hitnet to be a global vehicle that brings this wisdom in from the margins to the centres of power.” Helen Travers, Director, Creative Production

DIRECTORS MESSAGE


As an artist, designer and photographer from the Woorabinda community, I love working with my creative talents to directly address the issues facing Indigenous people. My goal is to empower people to take creative ownership and to find solutions to their own problems with the support of organisations like Hitnet.

That’s why I love working on the ‘My Place’ program with Hitnet. My role is to liaise with the communities to find out what content is most useful. I help source and trial content from across communities and I hunt down local content such as videos, music clips and photography for sharing on their Hitnet Hub.

So many of our young people have incredible creative talents and they’re great with technology. By producing their own content, it becomes more meaningful and it’s more likely to be shared and have an impact. There’s also the opportunity to bridge the generational divide through youth and elders working together to bring their Dreamtime stories to life. I see so many possibilities for motivated people in our communities to use our Hitnet Hubs for good and make a big difference to their family and friends.

Our co-creators

“If I had one wish for the Indigenous community of Australia it would be that each and every person would fully realise what they are truly capable of, and act on it. Our people could do anything if they had the appropriate support to make this a reality.” Nickeema Williams

Nickeema WilliamsCommunity Liaison Officer

“Working with Hitnet as a presenter is really important, because it identifies us as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It’s through our identity that we have the inroads and opportunity to relate to our people on Hitnet. People see me and they say, ‘Hey, I know you…’ [from Hitnet] but they can also see that I’m real.”Damon Leftwich, Dancer and Actor

Damon LeftwichHitnet Health Presenter


For a number of years I worked as a corporate volunteer with Australian Business Volunteers (ABV) in countries such as Laos, Cambodia, Vanuatu and The Philippines. ABV is an organisation that utilises the business skills of experienced Australians to help businesses in developing countries to succeed, grow and become sustainable.

I’ve witnessed firsthand the opportunities for a business like Hitnet in the international arena, so was intrigued and delighted to offer my advice and experience to Julie and Helen this year.

I believe the real future potential for Hitnet is not so much in the actual kiosk hardware, but in empowering communities to produce local, culturally appropriate content in their own language. This content will then be distributed through the internet, websites, apps and games via mobile devices.

I see this revolutionising the way people contribute to their local community through sharing their talents and knowledge thereby creating a vibrant, cohesive and healthy community.

“My vision for Hitnet is one of a dynamic network of training and implementation coordinators and facilitators across communities and cultures. Hitnet becomes a brand and a methodology that grows and evolves where everyone from farmers to nurses can contribute their knowledge to address social and health issues.” John Field

John FieldStrategic Advisor

OUR CO-CREATORS

“Hitnet has a strong message about health, vitality, happiness, awareness, about looking after your self. You only have one life to live. There’s only one of you in the world. There’s no one else like you, so you have to take care of yourself. Hitnet helps you do that.”Tamara Pearson, Dancer and Actor

Tamara PearsonHitnet Health Presenter


Hitnet is dedicated to providing culturally appropriate information to tackle the biggest social and health issues being faced by marginalised communities. In 2014, our mission was to personally reconnect with as many Australian communities in our network as possible, while in 2015 our focus has been on both local and international development.

Issues we’ve tackled andcommunities we’ve impacted

Diabetes

Education and motivation are the key to improving self management of diabetes. Working with consumers and health practitioners in Cairns and Melbourne in partnership with Diabetes Queensland, we produced The Diabetes Story, an easy-to-understand interactive module about this complex and debilitating condition. There’s a lot that people can do to prevent type 2 diabetes and to lessen its impact, including expectant mothers with gestational diabetes. In 2016 we will be creating The Diabetes Story app for easy access and sharing between mobile devices.

Parenting

Many Indigenous girls fall victim to a cycle of social dysfunction and unwanted teenage pregnancy. Facing parenting is a daunting prospect and helpful parenting information that they can relate to, isn’t always readily available. Young Parenting: A new beginning shows people what to expect and how to prepare for parenthood through real-life stories. Produced by ACT Health, this engaging series of videos was adapted by Hitnet for young people to view across our national digital platform.


Legal and Justice

Working with the Court Network (the only volunteer based organisation that supports court users) we launched two Hitnet Hubs in the Melbourne and Broadmeadows Children’s Courts. We developed three interactive learning modules aimed at helping new arrivals to Australia and young people who have had their first brush with the law. Julie worked closely with volunteers to show them how to use the Hubs effectively to educate their clients. We look forward to building our relationship with the 400 amazing volunteers who make up the Court Network in Victoria and Queensland, over the next few years.

Mental Health

This year we added two videos to the Stories for Keeping Strong series for beyondblue; Bangarra: Rekindling and Keep yourself Healed: Self-care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Workers. The stories bring new depth and breadth to tackling the debilitating effects of poor mental health and depression in our Indigenous communities.

Consumer Rights

Indigenous people living in regional and remote communities are one of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable consumer groups in Australia. Our respected partner, ICAN, reveals they often fall prey to unscrupulous used car dealers, payday lenders and door-to-door salesmen. Hitnet joined forces with the ACCC to adapt Know your Rights to educate people on how to make informed and safe consumer choices.

ISSUES WE’VE TACKLED AND COMMUNITIES WE’VE IMPACTED


Adelaide

Two new Hubs were installed in the Nunkuwarrin Yunti Aboriginal Health Services in Adelaide and Elizabeth. The Health Promotion Manager of these services was proud to launch two new My Place modules called Nunkuwarrin Yunti and Journey to Healing (a video on the Stolen Generation) giving the Hubs a strong local sense of ownership. While in Adelaide we met with the academic community to develop a research project aimed at improving the mental health and wellbeing of Indigenous youth through disrupting harmful online practices.

Manoora

Hitnet and the Manoora Community Centre came together in mid 2015 in a spirit of partnership to contribute to the process of community renewal following the deaths of eight children in December 2014.

Read Helen’s story on page 17 and how the Hitnet Hub is helping to heal the lives of this resilient and courageous community.

Left: Young people from the Manoora community making music and bringing new life into their neighbourhood.

These are just a few of the issues we’ve addressed and communities we’ve impacted in 2015. Read on to find out more.

Lung Cancer

In collaboration with Cancer Australia, we produced an interactive learning module called Our Lungs Our Mob to provide support to patients with lung cancer. We shared the very personal stories of people’s journey with lung cancer including the story of singer Archie Roach, to help dispel the myths and alleviate the fears surrounding lung cancer so that people will seek help early.


“It’s like a war zone out there but without the guns and bombs. There’s people with missing limbs, people who’ve lost their sight, men and women dying before their time and a growing army of people spending the last part of their lives hooked up to dialysis machines.” An Elder from the Cairns Community

This terrifying story was delivered at the community launch of The Diabetes Story in Cairns in November. The launch received unwavering support from local, state and federal politicians and health professionals who deal with a growing number of diabetes patients every day.

“I was at a conference last year where a Doctor from Malaysia spoke of the diabetes epidemic growing in Malaysia as well as globally,” says Patricia Elarde, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Program Manager for Diabetes Queensland. “It was made very clear to us that we’re facing a global Type 2 Diabetes epidemic. It’s a very serious issue in our Indigenous communities and it requires urgent attention.”

The Diabetes Story was produced through a Hitnet partnership with Diabetes Queensland. Its production involved ten Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community members, and health professionals from Melbourne and Cairns. The aim of the interactive module is to turn the complicated story that is diabetes, from medical speak into every-day people speak.

“We’re addressing the diabetes epidemic with a whole range of educational programs such as the work with Hitnet, face to face education and community programs, peer support and radio messages. We have a range of culturally appropriate approaches to reach our people,” said Patricia.

“The challenge in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community is that diabetes is often not talked about. It’s not the first priority, as often some people are dealing with other more urgent social and other health problems,” said Patricia. “We need to deliver strong preventative messages and stories, particularly to our youth The digital learning programs on the Hitnet Hubs will have a much higher interaction from young people, and are more likely to lead to further education with their families and friends.”

In 2016 Hitnet will be focusing on expanding access to this important information by producing an App version of The Diabetes Story, enabling it to reach a wider audience through mobile phones and tablets.

Education and motivation are the key to improving self management of diabetes. There’s a lot that people can do to prevent type 2 diabetes to lessen its impact. We need to change the terrible ending to the diabetes story in communities. We need to co-create a new story with a positive ending, one that people will be open to hearing and sharing and taking action on.

Interview from the field | Patricia Elarde

Diabetes


Technology we’ve harnessed

The year started with an important review of our technology roadmap with ThoughtWorks. It’s great to have their interest and support and it’s always inspiring to work with these switched on technology gurus!

While we’re continuing to redevelop our digital platform, it’s not happening as fast as we would like. We need vital investment to develop and to scale our technology to achieve our vision. This investment will include employing a full-time Technology Platform Manager to oversee the development that will bring our technology vision to life.

During the year, we worked with a University of Melbourne Masters student, Xuanli who created a prototype app to enable mobile users to upload their digital content to the Hitnet Hub. Investment funds would see this app being further developed and rolled out in 2016.

Much of our technology development work this year was focused on learning module usage reporting which is essential to inform clients on how each Hub is performing in terms of the content being accessed and how often it is being viewed.

Our Mobile Max outdoor kiosk designs have been fine-tuned as we do further market research in the Asia Pacific. It now comes in three versions – mobile (battery), solar and electric. A much-needed addition to Max will be the ability to recharge mobile phones so as to encourage people to interact with the Hub to upload and download content using their mobiles.


The Court Network is a unique court support service operating throughout Victoria and Queensland that launched in 1980. They are the only court-based service explicitly and solely concerned with the needs of court users. The network provides information, support and referral services through over 400 trained volunteers working to support victims of crime, litigants who have no support and adults and children who have been exploited and more.

Dr Melanie Heenan is the Executive Director of Court Network. She first came across Hitnet when a retired magistrate and Board Member, Brian Barrow, made her aware of the Hitnet Hubs. “The Board and I were captivated by the idea of finding a way to reach more court users than our volunteers could possibly support,” said Melanie.

After many months of careful assessment and negotiation with the courts, they were finally able to install their first Hub in the Children’s Court in Little Lonsdale Street in Melbourne. “The Hub has been purpose built for our users and we’ve installed content that is specifically suitable for new arrivals to Australia as well as youth that are dealing with the law for the first time,” says Melanie.

There’s a lot to learn on how to be adequately prepared for court. The Hub covers important information such as how to address the Magistrate, how to dress and what to expect for various offences from traffic violations to apprehended violence orders (AVO’s). Julie has been instrumental in training local volunteers on how to use the Hub and how to best engage court users so they can find information quickly and easily.

“It’s early days, as the Hub was only launched in November 2015. We’re really looking forward to our first report in 2016, to see just how well utilized and effective it is,” says Melanie. During any given year, the Victorian Courts may deal with over 160,000 people. In the last financial year The Court Network supported 3200 of these people.

“It’s been such a pleasure dealing with the Hitnet team. Julie and Helen helped us see the vision and they walked beside us the whole way. They’ve been a genuine partner in this venture. We see big opportunities to work with them to reach more people through the creation of apps and web content that can be disseminated more widely online and through mobile devices,” says Melanie.

Stories from the field

The Court Network


With all the excitement and hype around technology, it’s important to remember that it is not a ‘silver bullet’ when it comes to development programs. Technology is a great enabler and a cost-effective and attractive means to scale a program, however there will always be a need for ‘the human factor’.

International development researcher and technologist, Kentaro Toyama reinforces this message in a recent article in the MIT Technology Review1, ‘The fundamental error people make is that we should have the computer to be the primary instrument of education. It’s not clear to me why people seem to make that leap’.

Our international development work took a serendipitous turn this year (see Julie’s Laos story on page 20) to become an important part of Hitnet’s focus in 2015 and beyond. Global relationships were forged from our visits to Laos, Manila, Phnom Penh and Bangkok.

1 MIT Technology Review, April 2015, ‘Putting Technology in Its Place’: https://www.technologyreview.com/s/536701/putting-technology-in-its-place/, viewed 8 June 2015.

The Asian Development Bank

We attended the Asian Development Bank’s ‘Business Opportunities Fair’ in Manila as part of an Austrade mission, early in the year. ADB’s mission is to have Asia and the Pacific free of poverty. Reaching the poor however, is extremely challenging as the remote and hardest-to-reach people are illiterate, speak many different dialects and have little or no experience with technology. The ADB confirmed that Hitnet are the only social business globally, who are both co-creating and distributing social information effectively to these people.

The ADB have a vision for Hitnet Hubs to be installed at mobile phone tower sites that are proliferating throughout the Asia Pacific region. These sites are already a great attraction for local people who have previously had no access to power and network services. There is no limit to the opportunities for co-created and distributed content throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Making global footprints

“If technology is going to improve the lives of the world’s poorest, it must be grounded in a deep understanding of human behaviours and an application for cultural differences.” Bill Gates

This Lao child personifies the rich cultural life of his emerging country. While its economy is accelerating rapidly, Laos is still one of the poorest countries in the world.


ICT4D at Creating Futures

The bi-annual Creating Futures conference in Cairns saw Hitnet convening a Digital Creatives’ Hub with a focus on ICT4D (Information and Communications Technologies for Development). The event encouraged participants to think about communications technologies as being integral to community development.

They brought their expertise in technology solutions and experiences for low and middle-income countries, and came face to face with a diverse range of players from Pacific Island Nations, West Papua, PNG, Laos and India. The synergies that were observed between these regions of the world, planted the seeds for future collaborations involving new models of mental health care, all of which can be enabled and enhanced by new technologies.

2015 is memorable not only for the talented people it brought together in the ICT4D space, but because it provided a starting place for these potential collaborations into the future.

India and the Paddhai Trust

Recently we met with the Indian NGO, the Paddhai Trust, to start work on the establishment of a trial project in Southern India near Bangalore. The project is to bring much-needed health information to tribal people living on the fringes of contemporary society in remote villages in the Wyanad region.

These people are being forced from their homes through large-scale logging and many of them have never seen a school or health service before. With their own local dialect and no understanding of Hindi or Tamil, we are working on ways to co-create and distribute appropriate information in their own language via a Hitnet Hub.

The Asian Development Bank has a vision for Hitnet Hubs to be installed at mobile phone tower sites that are proliferating throughout the Asia Pacific region.

Conference participants entering the Digital Creatives’ Hub to experience the convergence of traditional Indigenous art and modern digital media.

MAKING GLOBAL FOOTPRINTS


Vientiane, Laos

During the year we had three trips to Vientiane to start to further scope out projects in the country. On our final trip we presented our work and learnt more about Technical Vocational Education and Training in the ASEAN region. We presented a Hitnet Hub to the Lao Youth Union in the presence of their Deputy Secretary General, the Australian Ambassador and a large media contingent. More recently, there was much interest and curiosity as these youth presented their own videos on the Hitnet Hub at their 7th Lao National Youth Congress.

The World Development Report

The recent launch of the World Bank’s ‘World Development Report 2016: Digital Dividends’ supports the importance of Hitnet’s work with marginalised people globally. Kaushik Basu, the World Bank’s chief economist, said: “It is an amazing transformation that today, 40% of the world’s population is connected by the Internet. While these achievements are to be celebrated, this is also an occasion to be mindful that we do not create a new underclass. With nearly 20% of the world’s population unable to read and write, the spread of digital technologies alone is unlikely to spell the end of the global knowledge divide.”

Hitnet’s work supports and spans many of the new Sustainable Development Goals including health, education, gender equality and women’s empowerment, infrastructure, and reducing inequality.

Sustainable Development Goals

The new goals were launched at the United Nations in 2015 and replaced the Millennium Development Goals. The 17 goals to transform the world in the next 15 years included 169 targets. Hitnet’s work supports and spans many of these goals including health, education, gender equality and women’s empowerment, infrastructure and reducing inequality.

The Australian Ambassador, John Williams, presenting the Lao Government with the first Hitnet Hub in SE Asia.


In December 2014, the hearts and minds of people across Australia were rocked to learn that a Cairns mother had taken the lives of her seven children and one niece.

The tragedy brought together the people of Manoora and the Manoora Community Centre was reopened permanently as the base for grieving residents. The centre which is staffed by various agencies and volunteers is now used for family meetings, youth activities, homework programs and as a drop off point for donations. The Centre has become a vital part of the social fabric of the neighbourhood once again.

Overseen by a dedicated Advisory Committee of elders and volunteers, their focus is now on offering young people the opportunity to get back into the workforce.

40% of the jobs we know of today will not exist in 20 years time. They’ll be replaced by jobs in the digital technology space. That’s why advancing the digital technology skills of youth in Manoora has been seen as an exciting pathway into employment. The Advisory Committee is creating a place of learning, inspiration and creativity for young people, one that is firmly focused on a better future.Queensland Health funded a Hitnet Community Hub for the Centre. The Hub has become the cornerstone for digital creative projects. It provides access to information about mental health and services, and offers a place for young people to showcase their own digital stories, music and photographs.

Wonderful initiatives such as Songs of Murray Street are creating a rich source of material as talented musicians work with local kids and their families to produce a CD of memorable songs combined with photos to display proudly on their Community Hub.

We’re also working together to attract digital media trainers and exciting new technologies like 3D printers so that youth can engage in the world of ‘digital making’, coding and open-source hardware.

And a group of older women from the neighbourhood who visit the Centre regularly, have been so taken with what they’ve seen on the Hub and the digital confidence they’ve gained from using the Hub, they’ve asked the Committee to organise computer lessons for them all. They want in!

Live performances, pop up cafes, free community shops and most importantly, a memorial event called ‘Celebrating Family’, have helped people grieve and come through a most difficult year. There’s a feeling that people may now be ready to connect and heal together as they move towards the culturally significant ‘tombstone opening’ that will take place after two years.

The team at Hitnet feel privileged to play a small part in the healing journey of the Manoora community.

Stories from the field | Helen’s story

The Manoora Community


Our social business

We remain committed to continuing our growth as a ‘for-profit social business’ and making a positive impact on humanity and the planet.

Certified B Corporation

B Corps are certified by the global nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. Hitnet is proud to be a founding B Corp in Australia. In 2015 we recertified and were pleased to receive the ‘Race to the Top Award’ from B Lab ANZ for our increase in score from 94 to 108 (the largest increase for any ANZ company.) To become a Certified B Corp, a business needs a score of 80 or above on the B Corp Impact Assessment.

As part of this assessment we achieved the highest Platinum GIIRS rating (Global Impact Investing Rating System), that will stand us in good stead when we seek impact investment. GIIRS ratings provide investors with rigorous, comprehensive and comparable ratings of a company’s social and environmental impact.

The B Corp community has proven to be a valuable source of connections to other like-minded businesses that can help us achieve our vision. Through the community we’ve been introduced to the Ernst and Young Sustainability Division who are assisting us with our ‘investment readiness’. We were also introduced to fellow B Corp, Three Sista’s, a social business dedicated to providing affordable transitional/crisis accommodation and employment in Cairns.

This year we’ve made a pledge to assist in building a community of B Corps in Cairns – so watch this space!

Julie with Olivia Muiru, Global Partner Manager for B Lab (top) and being presented with the ‘Race to the Top’ award by Alicia Darvall, Executive Director, B Lab Australia & New Zealand.


Community and Culture Advisory Council, Cairns

In November 2015 we held our first Community and Culture Advisory Council meeting in Cairns. The council is made up of strong feisty Murri women, including Janet Guthrie from Three Sista’s, in order to address how Hitnet will achieve our social mission and how to improve our overall impact.

This small and diverse group of creative thinkers and innovators is experienced in Indigenous health and development and new media and social enterprise. We presented our current strategic thinking to the women and were rewarded with thoughtful debate and fresh ideas to shift Hitnet closer towards our vision.

Business Advisory Council, Melbourne

Our Business Advisory Council in Melbourne supports us with the pointy end of business in the areas of finance, law, strategy, governance, marketing and sales.

This year we held two very important council meetings to review our business vision and plans for the company moving forward through 2016 and beyond. The council has been with us almost since the inception of Hitnet and they are committed to providing the very best service and advice to help us make the social impact we desire.

It’s so important to have these advisors working with us. They are part of our culture of good governance at Hitnet. The talented people who help us to achieve our vision – from Cairns to

Melbourne, the voices of our advisors are valued and heard.

OUR SOCIAL BUSINESS


Stories from the field | Julie’s story

Our work in Laos“We need Hitnet in Laos” my friend Tammy said to me over coffee one afternoon in Melbourne. She explained that Laos will be joining the ASEAN Economic Community at the end of 2015, and that the Lao people need to be educated around economic, social, civic and health issues to enable them to leverage this opportunity. I could feel the sense of urgency in her voice and the passion she felt for these people she had been living and working with for the past 12 months as a board member of AustCham Lao.

So in March this year we headed for Vientiane, the capital of this small land-locked south-east Asian country of 7 million people. We quickly learnt that Lao people have a strong history of oral story telling, are adverse to reading and text, and have low levels of literacy and education. They love soap operas and drama, and are keen to learn English. The idea of the Hitnet Hubs distributing locally co-created information was well received by the Government, local mining companies, and local NGO’s. With over 200 NGO’s in Laos, there is the opportunity for Hitnet to ‘value add’ to existing community development projects.

We visited the COPE Visitor Centre where we were educated on Laos’ war time history, particularly with the Vietnam War where over two million tons of ordnance were dropped with up to 30% failing to explode. Consequently around 25% of the country’s villages are contaminated with


Stories from the field | Julie’s story

Our work in Laosunexploded ordinance (UXO), and more than 50,000 people were killed or injured as a result of UXO accidents from 1964 to 2008. There have been approximately 300 new casualties annually over the last decade with 40% of total casualties being children. COPE was created in response to the need to provide UXO survivors with the care and support they required, namely by way of orthotic and prosthetic devices.

Hitnet is part of an upcoming five year program of work with World Education Laos to co-create a ‘choice and consequence’ story to empower young villagers with information about the dangers of UXO, and for this vital information to be distributed through local village Hitnet Hubs and mobile.

We learnt that due to low wages and lack of education, human trafficking is an ongoing problem with young people being unscrupulously lured to neighbouring countries like Thailand where they are met with sexual and labour exploitation. Hitnet has had preliminary discussions with local NGO’s to provide Hitnet Hubs at border crossings to provide much needed information for young people leaving and returning to Laos. This information will warn them of the potential perils in Thailand and will provide them with opportunities for education in Laos.

Young people (60% of the population) have identified the lack of employment opportunities in Laos as a concern. Stakeholders have identified that the main challenge in employment for young people is the lack of demand for vocational education, with preferences for university programs. For example, the Lao Youth Union has 11 Provincial VET Training Centres established to help address the problem of unemployment, but does not have enough young people enrolling in the courses.

So how do we motivate young people to want to use the centres? How do we work with them to create a vision of their future that sees them prospering from the benefits of technical training? Hitnet is able to assist with this motivational change process by co-creating knowledge with Lao youth and distributing by our digital platform.

We have had three productive trips to Laos this year, and like my friend Tammy quickly became enamored with the Lao people, their spirit, culture, humour and of course, food! We would be honored to be involved in such important work in this country, and feel that Hitnet is able to help educate the Lao people.


Measuring our impact

National Network

Hitnet had 40 Community Hubs in operation in 2015, with this number increasing to 50 in 2016. There were almost 35,000 purposeful uses or 900 uses for each Hub on average, with the number of uses per Hub higher than previous years reflecting the continuing engagement with the interactive learning content. The ‘My Place’ community modules are a drawcard to the Hubs that leads to further use of the other learning modules.

The usage figures show a relatively even split between male and female users, except in urban Community Hub sites where it is skewed (76% male, 24% female) by Correctional Centres. Around 60 to 65% of users identified as being either a teenager or child.

Urban8 Hubs

6,372 purposeful usesFemale: 1,506 (24%)Male: 4,866 (76%)

Regional17 Hubs


Remote15 Hubs


Elder: 472 (7%)

Adult: 2,115 (33%)

Teen: 3,013 (47%)

Child: 772 (12%)

Elder: 1,306 (8%)

Adult: 4,188 (27%)

Teen: 6,244 (40%)

Child: 3,805 (24%)

Elder: 1,201 (6%)

Adult: 3,612 (28%)

Teen: 5,045 (39%)

Child: 3,207 (25%)

2015 – Halls Creek

Total purposeful sessions for all modules

2,410

Module Purposeful sessions %

My Place – Halls Creek 631 26

Kaiyai Girl 299 12

Hep C 239 10

Lockhart Bush Tucker 201 8

Know Your Rights 187 8


Total purposeful sessions for all modules

1,409


Kaiya Girl 231 16


Health Heroes 109 8

Condoman 107 8

Sexual Health 107 8


Total purposeful sessionsfor all modules

2,413


Kaiyai Girl 279 12


Community Stories 146 6

Condoman 144 6

Sexual Health 142 6


MEASURING OUR IMPACT

My Place modules on Hitnet Hubs

We’re committed to fostering a greater sense of community ownership by empowering people to develop their own personalised content. We were delighted to appoint Nickeema Williams, a talented artist and young Murri woman, as our Hitnet Community Liaison Officer. Nickeema has a gift for working with young people, connecting communities and bringing local content to life via the My Place modules being launched across the network. We couldn’t have done this without the assistance of volunteer, Damala Scales Ghosh who set up the systems and procedures to manage our archiving and work flows.

The ‘My Place’ modules contain local community videos (up to 12) and were introduced onto the Hitnet Hubs in June 2015. Below is a sample of sites showing how they are attracting the community to use the Hubs for further engagement.

2011ABS Data

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

populationFemale Male

Median Age

379 174 206 22

Total purposeful sessions

Averagepurposeful use

In use Elder Adult Teen Child Female Male

2015

1,2348 minutes

4 secs

165 hours48

minutes126 306 471 331 596 638

2014

8647 minutes42 secs

110 hours 49 minutes

110 239 322 193 466 398

2013

1,3405 minutes40 secs

126 hours 40 mins

128 318 519 373 744 594

A Hitnet Hub has been in use at this remote site in northern Western Australia for over six years. Although the Hitnet Hub is now coming to the end of its life, the Hub has been serviced and maintained by Hitnet over the past six years to ensure it is available for use. The following usage statistics support that it continues to have good engagement in this community, particularly with the introduction of the ‘My Place’ module in 2015.

‘My Place’ accessed Total modules accessed Elder Adult Teen Child Female Male

Halls Creek, WA 631 2,410 38 143 219 231 290 341

26% 6% 23% 35% 37% 46% 54%

Warburton,Gibson Desert, WA

338 890 46 86 97 109 201 137

38% 14% 10% 11% 32% 59% 41%

Pormpuraaw, Cape York, QLD

278 1,401 14 145 63 56 93 185

20% 5% 52% 23% 20% 34% 66%

Profile of a Hitnet Hub: Yura Yungi Health Service


Of 2,100 Hub users who engaged with this survey, 1,400 respondents went on to answer the following questions.

Q1: What kind of Hitnet stories do you like best?

Games 165True life 161None 105Music video 104Made up 63Comic books 57Straight facts 53Animations 34

Conclusion: A clear majority of Hub users would like to interact with games and true-life stories. Music videos are well received while other formats of information presentation are popular with about a third of users. The least popular by a considerable margin is animation.

Q2: Which of these would you like to know more about?

Maths and science games 102Health 94Jobs and training 77Cultural stories 72Boarding school 63None 58Stress and hard feelings 52Community news 44

Conclusion: Hub users want to interact with maths and science games first, with health information a close second. They are interested in information about jobs and training, and cultural stories. Insights into boarding school and stress are of considerable interest, while few want to know about community news.

Q3: What don’t you like about the Hitnet Hub?

Nothing 139Where it’s placed 68It’s hard to use and understand 68Not enough stories in language 56Not private enough 44Information isn’t culturally suitable 41Information doesn’t interest me 29

Conclusion: Most Hub users responded by saying there is nothing they don’t like about the Hitnet Hub. About half of that number don’t like where it’s placed and say it’s hard to understand and use, while others say there are not enough stories in cultural language.

Fewer again say that it’s not private enough and has information that isn’t culturally suitable. A small minority say that the information on it doesn’t interest them.

Q4: If you own a mobile phone, what do you do on it the most?

Play games 125Use Facebook, Air G or Divas Chat 91Take photos 63Search for music 60Search for information 47Download Apps 42Check emails 38None 37

Conclusion: Most respondents to this question are using their mobile phones to play games and use social media. A significant number are using them to take photos and search for music.

Less popular functions include searching for information, downloading Apps and checking emails, while a small group report that they do none of these things on mobile phones.

Tell us what you think: An onscreen survey for users of the Hitnet Hubs. This will inform future content development and the devices we distribute to.


Dr Scott McQuire is the Associate Professor and Reader at the School of Culture and Communication at the University of Melbourne. He was the supervisor of a pilot research project established by the Melbourne Networked Society Institute which funded researchers Richard Dean Chenhall, Kristen Scott and Emma Kowal to assess the user practices of our Hitnet Hubs.

“We were delighted to be undertaking this research as we’d become aware of Hitnet and the great work they are doing nearly two years ago,” said Scott. “We’ve been focusing on research in networked societies and how we scale up connectivity to solve social issues particularly in Indigenous communities, so this research was a perfect fit for us.”

The aim of the project was three-fold:

1. To assess current user practice around Hitnet kiosks and understand why some installations ‘work’ and others don’t.

2. To consider how similar facilities might be adapted to meet the evolving and diverse needs of Indigenous people in an NBN environment.

3. To investigate if, and how, digital technology such as smart phones could be usefully integrated to improve and broaden access and usability of content.

“Using an analysis of routinely collected usage data by Hitnet, participant observation in communities, and

interviews with 18 stakeholders and elders at three remote sites in Kununurra in WA, and Napranum and Pormpuraaw in Queensland, we came up with insights and recommendations on how Hitnet can best scale to solve social issues,” said Scott.

“It’s good that there’s something there that teaches children and women to speak up... speak up, and don’t keep it hidden.” Community member referring to family violence.

The findings of this research have affirmed four key opportunities:

1. To transform the kiosk network into Community Hubs, as a place where content is disseminated through mobile digital devices.

2. To empower locals to co-create their own content for the Hubs (although there was some concern on how this content would be approved prior to uploading it.)

3. To connect technology to local programs so Hubs can also become a local notice board for things like employment opportunities and local events.

4. To consider how smart phone applications and social media can be integrated into the Hubs as a way for information to be shared more freely.

If you’d like a copy of the research report and to discuss the findings in more depth, please contact Julie or Helen.

Interview from the field | University of Melbourne

Dr Scott McQuire


The year that was January

Strategic planning for 2015

Write the Hitnet Impact Report for 2014

February

Work with TDi to review our strategy and Business Model Canvas

ThoughtWorks review the Hitnet Technology Roadmap

March

ADB Business Opportunities Fair, Manila

First visit to Vientiane, Laos. Present at Aust Chamber of Commerce lunch.

April

ACCC ‘Know Your Rights’ interactive learning module was distributed across the Hitnet digital platform.

May

Creating Futures Conference with Digital Creatives’ Hub convened by Hitnet

June

Uni of Melbourne MNSI Masters Student works with Hitnet to develop prototype of mobile app for community content upload.

Julie asks Malcolm Turnbull (then Communications Minister) an important question on the ‘digital divide’ via the OurSay platform.

July

Attend Broadband for the Bush conference in Darwin for the first time.

Digital Storytellers workshop Melbourne

August

Nickeema joins our team as the Community Liaison Officer

Work with Ernst and Young in Melbourne on our IIRF application

September

Hitnet re-certifies as a B Corp, increasing their score from 94 to 107 to claim the B Lab ANZ ‘Race to the top’ award.

Present at Electronic Media & Health Forum, Alice Springs

October

Follow up visit to Vientiane.

Fact-finding trip to Bangkok and Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Installation of 4 new Hitnet Hubs around Australia, and distribution of ‘Young Parenting’ interactive learning module to the Hitnet digital platform.

November

Launch and distribution of ‘The diabetes story’ with Manoora community, Cairns, and launch of the Hitnet Hub at the Children’s Court with the Court Network in Melbourne.

Community & Culture Advisory Council held in Cairns.

Business Advisory Council held in Melbourne.

December

Cancer Australia ‘Our Lungs Our Mob’ distributed across Hitnet digital platform.

Exhibit at TVET conference, Vientiane, and present Hitnet Hub to Lao Youth Union, Vientiane


Looking forward

If 2015 was a year of opening international doors and increasing the awareness of the work we are doing closer to home in Australia, 2016 is the year of consolidation and expansion.

This is the year we intend to take our last three years as a ‘for-profit social business’ to a whole new level of investability and scalability. We’ve done the hard work and we’re ready to take it to the next stage.

We understand how to scale and what resources we need and we’re ready to make it happen. Most importantly we have the unwavering support and commitment of the communities we wish to serve.

Our aim in 2016 is to consolidate and expand our business model to double our impact. To make it happen, we need investment. Can you help us on this journey?

We have four key priorities this year.

Technology developmentTechnology is the backbone of our business and it’s the key to bridging the digital divide. Our technology goals in 2016 are two-fold; to launch Mobile Max (battery, solar and electric) into communities and to distribute content via mobile apps and the web using WiFi hotspots turning the ubiquitous touchscreen kiosk into a true ‘Digital Hub’.

Investment readiness to scale HitnetIn 2015 we’ve aligned ourselves with smart minds to address knowledge gaps with the next step to become ‘investment ready’. This will involve developing an infrastructure framework in consultation with our advisory councils and partners. Importantly this will include how we will measure impact (both quantitatively and qualitatively) for our potential impact investors. In 2016, we’ll take this framework to the market to seek investment. We’ve done all the groundwork to bring our work to life on a large scale and we’re excited at the prospect of partnering with investors who share our

vision to further our impact.

Consolidating AustraliaAnother core focus for 2016 is to stabilise and grow our network in communities throughout Australia. Our goal is to ensure these Hubs are populated with powerful locally created content such as My Place stories to ensure the Hubs become a vital part of the fabric of each

community.

Going globalWe have now established important connections in Laos, India, Thailand, Papua New Guinea and The Philippines. Our vision in 2016 is to bring projects in Laos and India to life and to scale our work with the support of local NGOs, governments and funding partners.

We thank each and every contributor, supporter, client, partner and community member that has made a contribution to Hitnet. Your ongoing support and encouragement has given us the impetus we have needed to ‘keep on keeping on’ to do this important work. Here’s to a fabulous year in 2016 for us all!

Helen Travers and Julie Gibson


Julie Gibson – Director, Business and TechnologyJulie is a ‘technologist at heart’ having spent many years in a Corporate IT role before joining Hitnet. She manages the operations of Hitnet from the finances, to B Corp certification to the management of technology platforms and product development. Julie is passionate about bridging the digital divide and the creative use of technology to scale and further Hitnet’s social impact.

Helen Travers – Director, Creative ProductionHelen has been a part of Hitnet since 2001 alongside Founder, Dr Ernest Hunter. After evaluating a pilot project using touchscreen kiosks in two Indigenous communities, she became committed to bringing Hitnet to the market. Helen leads the creative and content production side of the business, the collaborative research projects and marketing and communications.

Dr Ernest Hunter – FounderDr Hunter is a medical graduate who trained in psychiatry and public health in the US. He has been working in Indigenous Australia since the late 1980’s and has spent most of the last 25 years engaged in research and clinical care, with the last 18 years as a Regional Psychiatrist in remote communities in Cape York. He initiated the touchscreen kiosk pilot project in 2001 and continues to provide valuable support and advice to Hitnet.

Our team

Nickeema Williams – Community Liaison OfficerNickeema joined Hitnet in 2015 to take on the vital role of liaising with communities to bring the My Place modules to life. As an artist, designer and photographer from the Woorabinda community, her creative talents are being well used to address the issues facing Indigenous people. Her passion is to empower people to take creative ownership and to find solutions to their own problems with the support of organisations like Hitnet.


Our Melbourne-based touchscreen kiosk manufacturer continues to innovate and deliver our Hitnet Hubs. We like to sup-port local manufacturers while overseeing the kiosks’ production.

As a software company that advocates for positive social change in the world, ThoughtWorks generously provided support for the inaugural Digital Creative’s Hub, convened by Hitnet at the Creating Futures 2015 conference in Cairns.

Joel Cranshaw and his legal team continue to provide general counsel for us, and offer strategic advice through their participation in Hitnet’s twice-yearly Advisory Council.

Peter Stone’s robust technology solu-tion for our Mobile Max kiosk really took shape in 2015. We’re now ready for the prototype build and production in 2016.

In our 9th year of partnership, Visual Obsession produced interactive learning modules and videos for use on Hitnet Hubs and is now developing interactive content for use on mobile devices.

Bernie Woodland and his accounting team take a genuine interest in the work we do, and guide and support our growth as part of the Business Advisory Council.

Sam Stainsby continues to provide reli-able service and support to our servers and their software – the crucial backbone of our technology platform.

GVM are working collaboratively with us to create innovative digital learning solutions for Indigenous Health Workers including an online training course on lung cancer.

Through the B Corp community we’ve been introduced to Ernst and Young’s Sustainability Division who are assisting us with our ‘investment readiness’.

Evan Wyatt meanwhile, assists with the support and maintenance of the national network of Hitnet Hubs.

Carolyn’s marketing and writing talents, combined with her ongoing commitment to Hitnet, saw her actively participate in our Advisory Council meetings in Melbourne in 2015 and author this latest Impact Report.

Troy Haines & Damian Zammit convene a co-working space that allows Helen to have a home office and benefit from the experiences and connections available to her within their community of entrepreneurs.

We have a newly formed partnership with the team at HumanIT who monitor and support the national network of Hubs, ensuring their availability is maximised.

VICKI FORBESVicki is the communications specialist responsible for Hitnet’s beautiful branding and the visual production of our annual Impact Reports.

Hub Melbourne’s shared office and coworking space provides us with an office in the CBD and opportunities to develop valuable long term partnerships.

Our partners


The ACCC provided the opportunity for Hitnet to produce and distribute its first consumer rights module to Indigenous people in remote communities this year, and we hope it is just the beginning of this important work.

Cancer Australia came to Hitnet with a set of videos for Indigenous consumers about lung cancer that they wanted us to adapt for use on Community Hubs. A partnership was established that now sees us working together on Health Worker education and training.

The Children’s Court of Victoria was one of the major stakeholders in our work with the Court Network. We have since installed a new Community Hub at Broadmeadows Children’s Court for both multi-cultural and youth audiences.

beyondblue continue to develop their valued relationship with Hitnet, providing new mental health stories for inclusion in the ‘Stories for Keeping Strong’ module they commissioned in 2013.

ACT Health’s second collaboration with Hitnet, through the production of beautiful educational videos about ‘young parenting’, confirms the importance they place on getting this information out to the hardest-to-reach.

Queensland Health contributed to the process of community renewal taking place in Manoora, Cairns, by funding a Community Hub for the local Community Centre, which has become a gathering place for the 22 cultural groups who make Manoora their home.

The Court Network has partnered closely with Hitnet over the last two years to expand their reach to the many court users in Children’s Courts, who are in need of helpful information.

Two new Community Hubs were installed at two different metropolitan sites for the Adelaide-based Aboriginal Health Service. We are working with Nunkuwarrin Yunti to build a healthy Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.

In purchasing a Community Hub for rural Eidsvold in the North Burnett region of Queensland, this client is hoping to provide a digital portal for the creation of, and access to, health information for the local Indigenous and multicultural communities.

Diabetes Queensland engaged Hitnet in a phased approach to educating Indigenous health consumers about diabetes that includes disseminating information on Community Hubs and personal mobile devices.

Delivering culturally appropriate health promotion messages to remote Central Australian communities is our most challenging and rewarding work. Two new Community Hubs are shortly to be installed on behalf of Ngaanyatjarra Health Service in Warrakurna and Blackstone.

Inala, the site of the very first Community Hub installation in 2001, has just purchased its third, which takes pride of place in the foyer of the Inala Indigenous Health Centre of Excellence.

Our clients



Contact us. We’d love to hear from you.

Julie Gibson +61 400 501 [email protected] 3, 673 Bourke Street Melbourne, VIC 3000Australia

Helen Travers+61 404 590 [email protected] Block – Cairns TAFEEureka StreetCairns, QLD 4870Australia

Co-creating knowledge to transform lives

Facebook.com/pages/HITnet/115015120143

www.hitnet.com.au

@HITnet_au

This report is printed on 100% recycled, carbon neutral paper, by a carbon neutral printer.

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Hitnet Annual Impact Report 2015

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