Jason Arlder PSM
Founding Director, Thirriwirri
Jason is an Aboriginal man of the Yuin nation.
In May 2020, he co-founded Thirriwirri, a 100% Aboriginal owned and operated consultancy that supports First Nations’ communities and their partners to build the confidence, capabilities and connections necessary to work differently together and achieve tangible social, cultural and economic improvements in their lives.
Jason held senior executive roles in the NSW public and university sectors for over twenty years, including seven years as the Head of Aboriginal Affairs NSW, where he led Government strategy and reform in Aboriginal economic participation, community governance, land rights, culture and heritage and service accountability. Jason has also held the roles of Associate Professor and Associate Dean, Indigenous Strategy and Services at the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Medicine and Health and Executive Director Culture and Heritage in the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water.
Jason has been a member of numerous national and state level councils, executive committees and working groups on Aboriginal affairs, state and economic development, public land management, and social policy reform. He is currently Chair of the National Indigenous Australians Agency’s Indigenous Evaluation Committee.
In 2018, Jason received the Public Service Medal (PSM) for outstanding public service and in 2019 was made a Fellow of the Australian New Zealand School of Government. He holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of NSW, studied leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, and is a Global Alumni of the Commonwealth Leadership Development Study Conferences.