Suicide Prevention

Munara, ngai wanggandi Marni na pudni Lairma yertaamma. Wortangga, Mami na pudni Banba-banbalyanna. Tirramangkotti turiduri ngarkuma birra. Ngai Birko-mankolankola Tandanyanku. Naityo Yungadalya, Yakkandulya. First, let me welcome you all to Kaurna country. Next, I welcome you all to the S- cide Prevention Conference as an ambassador of the Adelaide people. For thousands of years, Kaurna people have held conferences in this country with the Nukunu, the Ngadjuri, and the Narrunga. Whole groups of Aboriginal people came - gether and had Banba-banbalya, which was a conference, discussed their differences and new ideas. This country has always had education and the Kaurna people were the edu- tors. I'm proud to say they led the way in conferencing and education. All of the univer- ties in this state have Kaurna names for their Aboriginal Education Units. The University of South Australia has the Kaurna Higher Education Centre as its main campus and the Yunguni ("to communicate") building at the new campus, Yunggondi, which means "to give information," is at the Flinders University. The Adelaide University has Woldo Yerlo, which means "sea eagle" and is the totem of my aunt. Aunty Glad was the matriarch of the Kaurna people in this city and also helped found Tauondi, which became the Aboriginal College. She helped introduce Aboriginal people to f- malized education.

Robert Goldney qualified in medicine in Adelaide in 1967, and as a psychiatrist in 1973. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, and of the Royal College of Psychiatrists of the United Kingdom. He has worked in academic, public hospital and private practice settings, and at present he is Professor and Head of the Discipline of Psychiatry at the University of Adelaide, based at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. His main research interest is in the prevention of suicidal behaviour, by focussing on the detection and optimum clinical management of psychiatric illness, particularly depression. He is a recipient of the Stengel Research Award (1987) of the International Association for Suicide Prevention, an award for outstanding contributions to suicide prevention by Suicide Prevention Australia (2000), and the Louis Dublin award of the American Association for Suicidology for lifetime achievement in suicide research (2007).