Designing and Building with Country: Indigenous Perspectives in Design
Practical self-paced training for NSW project teams to build genuine cultural capability — embedding Country-led thinking deeply into planning, design and delivery.
Contact-first enquiry • Tailored company pricing • 12-month access • Access code/link issued after payment
Source: Charles Trindall 2024
Country-led practice is not optional anymore. It is how projects succeed.
The Better Placed Framework establishes seven objectives for delivering high-quality built environments in NSW. Connecting with Country helps project teams interpret these objectives through a cultural lens and apply them in planning, design and long term stewardship.
Cultural understanding does not happen by default. Teams need genuine knowledge, practical tools and the confidence to work differently — connecting with Country meaningfully across the full project lifecycle, not just at key approval gates.
This course builds the cultural knowledge and practical capability your team needs. It equips your team to understand Country as a living cultural system, recognise Traditional Custodians as knowledge holders and rights holders, protect Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property, create physically and culturally safe project environments, and structure meaningful engagement with Traditional Custodians and Indigenous organisations. You will also learn a four phase implementation model: Starting with Country, Imagining with Country, Shaping Country, Caring for Country.
This is not a decorative overlay of Indigenous elements. It is a structural shift in how projects are conceived, governed and delivered.
From context to Country-centred delivery
Policy context
Better Placed, 7 Objectives
What it requires
Country, Custodians, ICIP, Cultural Safety
This Course
Build genuine cultural capability
Project Delivery
Country-Centred Delivery
What the course covers
Practical capability building to interpret the seven Better Placed objectives through a cultural lens and apply them in delivery.
Understanding Country and Cultural Protocols
- Understand Country as a living cultural system across Earth, Water and Sky
- Understand the Indigenous concept of Country and its significance in design
- Understanding both the Physical and Spiritual connections to Country for Indigenous peoples
- Apply cultural safety principles in project environments
- Recognise and avoid tokenistic approaches
The Four Phase Country-centred Framework
- Starting with Country
- Imagining with Country
- Shaping Country
- Caring for Country
A practical model to guide Country-led decision making across the project lifecycle.
Engagement, ICIP and Culturally Safe Practice
- Structure meaningful engagement with Traditional Custodians and Indigenous organisations
- Determine appropriate levels of community involvement
- Protect Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property appropriately
- Embed Indigenous leadership and co-design principles
Country-led Design Philosophy
- Healthy Country
- Healthy People
- Belonging
- Shared Knowledge
Ready to build Country-led capability across your projects
Self-paced online course with 12-month access. Aligned with Better Placed and Connecting with Country.
- Practical guidance for project teams delivering NSW built environment projects
- Supports culturally safe engagement and ICIP-aware practice
- Builds genuine cultural capability for meaningful, Country-centred project delivery
We'll respond by email with pricing, next steps, and access details.
Built for the people delivering NSW projects
Project Managers
Lead project teams with practical, culturally safe ways of working across the project lifecycle.
Designers and Planners
Apply Connecting with Country principles in planning and design decisions, not just documentation.
Landscape Architects
Design landscapes that reflect connection to Country and respond to cultural significance.
Engineers and Delivery Teams
Bring Country-led thinking into construction and delivery, including site practices and project staging.
Engagement Consultants
Strengthen respectful engagement practice and support project teams working with Traditional Custodians.
Government Project Leads
Move beyond policy compliance to genuinely embed Country-centred practice across NSW project delivery.
Procurement and Commercial Teams
Support procurement, access setup and rollout across project teams and suppliers
We'll confirm pricing, access setup and next steps by email.
What your organisation gains
Practical outcomes for NSW project teams delivering built environment work aligned with Better Placed and Connecting with Country.
Reduced cultural and reputational risk in project delivery
Clearer culturally safe engagement with Traditional Custodians and community stakeholders
ICIP aware practice and documentation you can apply on real projects
Earlier integration of cultural knowledge into planning and delivery decisions
Practical tools and templates to support Country centred delivery across the project lifecycle
Source: Jason Douglas, Dalmarri 2025
Tailored for your organisation
Company pricing available on request
12-month access included
Access link/code provided after payment
Self-paced online delivery
Use the enquiry bar at the bottom of the page to request pricing directly.
What happens next
Enquire
We Contact You
Payment Arranged
Access Issued
INDIGENOUS ENGAGEMENT AND FACILITATION PTY LTD
Specialists in Country-centred practice for NSW built environment professionals.
- Training that moves beyond compliance into genuine, meaningful cultural integration.
- Hands-on experience with Traditional Custodians, agencies and project teams across real planning and infrastructure work.
- Cultural safety within all aspects of Community Engagement | Facilitated sessions designed to create physical and psychologically safe learning environments, where practitioners supported to ask challenging questions and build genuine capability.
- Practice over tokenism | our methodology is grounded in genuine project delivery | Teams leave with tools they can apply immediately in active projects.
- All training aligned with the Better Placed framework and Connecting with Country principles.
CHARLES TRINDALL
Lead Facilitator | Country-centred Practice Specialist
Common Questions
Everything you need to know about procurement, team access, CPD, and getting started.
We use an enquiry-first process. After you enquire, we confirm your team size and requirements and provide tailored pricing. Once approved, we issue a tax invoice and send access details for your team.
Yes. We can provide a formal written quote and accept purchase orders (including government and large organisations). Once the PO is confirmed, we issue a tax invoice and arrange access.
After payment, we provide a unique enrolment link or access code for your organisation. Team members can self-enrol and complete the course at their own pace. We can also share a simple onboarding guide for internal rollout.
Yes. You can onboard staff progressively across the 12-month access period. Additional team members can be added later if needed.
There's no minimum. We support small teams through to larger rollouts, with pricing tailored to your organisation. For larger groups, we can discuss volume options.
Many participants record this as structured CPD depending on their professional body requirements. A certificate of completion is provided for CPD records. Please confirm CPD hour allocations with your professional body.
CPD requirements vary by organisation and profession. Participants commonly log this type of training for built environment CPD (e.g., planning, architecture, landscape architecture, engineering), subject to each body's rules. We provide a completion certificate to support CPD claims.
Yes. The course is built around NSW's Better Placed policy and Connecting with Country principles — going beyond policy compliance to focus on genuine, meaningful implementation in real project delivery.
We'll respond within 1 business day to confirm your needs and share tailored pricing. If you proceed, we arrange payment, issue a tax invoice, and send access details. We confirm next steps by email.
Still have questions?
Get in touch
Ready to build your team's capability?
Get in touch for company pricing and course details
We'll respond within 1 business day
Questions about access or pricing?Contact us — we'll reply by email.
What happens next
We receive your request
Your message lands directly with our team — no bots, no ticketing system.
Reply within 1 business day
We'll send a tailored pricing proposal and answer any questions by email.
Optional discovery call
If helpful, we can schedule a short call to align on team size and delivery format.