2023 Pat Dixon Scholarship Winner Cr Yvonne Weldon (centre) with trustee Cr Trish Frail, from Brewarrina Shire Council, and then LGNSW President Cr Darriea Turley AM.
Q&A with Cr Pat Dixon Memorial Scholarship 2023 recipient Cr Yvonne Weldon
The late Cr Pat Dixon was first elected to Armidale City Council in 1983 and is remembered as a trailblazer for Aboriginal women in local government who worked tirelessly for the community she represented.
In recognition of her service and achievements in local government, the Cr Pat Dixon Memorial Scholarship was established for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander councillors and council staff members in NSW to undertake further study, professional development or research.
We spoke to the 2023 scholarship recipient, City of Sydney Councillor Yvonne Weldon, about the application process, what it meant to receive the scholarship, as well as her connection to Cr Pat Dixon.
How did you first hear about the Cr Pat Dixon Memorial Scholarship and what made you apply?
I saw it in the Local Government NSW newsletter, and I knew Aunty Pat – my mum had a long history of admiration, but also, awareness of what she was able to do as a trailblazer. And, I’m aware of her legacy, so when I saw it (the scholarship), I thought I should see if I can apply for it – it would be an honour to receive anything named after Aunty Pat, and follow in her footsteps in one way or another in honouring her and continuing the work she did way back then and still has a major impact today.
So, I spoke to some people in the LGNSW office, the team itself, and had a bit of a chat with some of her family, which I still see from time to time, and I put an application in.
How did you find the application process overall?
It was pretty simple and the team at LGNSW are really helpful and are encouraging and assist in giving you examples on what you can do and what has been done in the past. The team there are really happy to help.
When you were contacted about being awarded the scholarship, what was your reaction and what did it mean to you?
I was so thrilled and I still am. It was so exciting to get that phone call – I was pretty shocked and I actually had to sit for a little bit just to reflect.
It made me a little bit teary to be a recipient of Aunty Pat’s memorial scholarship – being the first Aboriginal woman elected into local government in NSW back in the '80s, I can only think about her journey, her life, and even achieving what she had to be the first. She paved the way for people like me and it’s such an honour to follow in her footsteps.
After I was contacted and sitting there thinking about what she had created for everyone – First Nations and all the nations, particularly from a NSW perspective. In terms of this scholarship, I was very touched and to receive a phone call from one of her family members made me extra teary as well I must say because you know that she does live on through them and through all of us to be able to make that difference.
Could you tell us about your research and study tour, and what you were able to learn?
During the mid-term recess of council, I went on a study trip to Europe. I'd never been to Europe before and it was so valuable to go and visit some of the great cities of the world. My commitment today – as it was then, and even when I entered as a candidate for council – my commitment has always been about focusing on housing and what that looks like, and looking at major cities in Europe, having a look at what those same housing pressures are that we're having here in Sydney.
I met with a range of different elected representatives, urban planners, advocates and even developers to help better understand how they're responding to the housing need in their cities and what I could learn and share back here in Sydney, and I was really interested to see how London and Paris were able to significantly expand public and affordable housing in recent years.
I actually toured some of the urban renewal sites, and just walking around the streets of European cities was fascinating and looking at what we do, or we don’t have here, but just really looking at those learnings and insights on how we can really push for reforms for affordable housing.
How did the scholarship help you to be able to contribute to bettering your community?
The City of Sydney recently endorsed some changes for our affordable housing scheme, increasing mandatory developer contributions to help fund community housing projects, and pointing to overseas examples was instrumental in getting this up.
As a council, we advocated for greater rental properties and a greater tenant voice in public housing, and even things like local job targets for major developments. Again, these policies have proven to be successful overseas, and I think if we do more of it here, we have the true essence of what community is.
Just dealing with one part of community or society or a city doesn’t include everybody, and we’ve got to be more inclusive, and what I found seeing other cities and what I’ve lived and what Aunty Pat practiced her entire life was about how does she bring people together and I think that as all First Nations people, being the world’s oldest living culture, we do bring people together and we always have, so how can we do that in a city such as Sydney.
What did you know about Cr Pat Dixon and why is she an inspiration to you?
I knew that when she broke those grounds, she did it not just only within council, but she also did it across the political parties as well. She certainly broke those grounds in ways that wasn’t actually common for women to do so, and to be a very proud First Nations woman, to be able to do that, I thought, wow. She was brave because it was not easy for anyone, particularly for a woman, and then certainly if you’re a First Nations woman, that was even more difficult.
She believed in everybody, and it’s something that I’ve been raised on even within my own family – we’re all the same and we should be able to be treated all the same. But there are challenges for those people who are not treated the same way, so scholarships such as this actually open those doors because there are additional challenges that probably go unnoticed or aren’t actually expressed.
Why would you recommend that others apply this year?
I think anyone who's working in local government, have a go. If you’re a First Nations person and you can apply for the scholarship, you feel like you have something to offer through this scholarship process to council, to your local community, to your family and beyond, give it a go!
Apply, seek out the team’s advice and support, and even drop me a line or two if you need any advice. I can certainly share some of my experience and you never know where it could lead you. You never know what difference you can make because I’m pretty sure that Aunty Pat way back then would not have realised that she made a difference to Yvonne Weldon and continues to do so.
How can you apply for the scholarship?
To apply, visit our website for more information and submit an application before COB on Monday 26 May.
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