The Centre for Australian Languages and Linguistics (CALL) will establish communityled language hubs in four remote locations to create a sustainable network that enables communities to drive language projects, train new language workers, and deliver placebased language transmission opportunities, while receiving coordination of administrative, training, networking, governance and technical support from the regional centres in Mparntwe Alice Springs and Darwin.
The four communities were selected based on consultations at a range of Sector Strengthening forums in 2024 and 2025, strong community support for the model, longstanding working relationships with CALL, and expressed interest of community language leaders to drive the projects. The model is based on the demonstrated efficacy of regional language networks (see Hoogenraad, 2005 in Appendix) and recent sector strengthening work by First Languages Australia (meetings in Mparntwe in June 2025, and at Puliima Conference in August 2025).
The language hubs located in the four NT communities will be staffed by intergenerational teams of language workers employed on a casual basis driving locally defined language projects such as recording oral narratives, developing teaching resources, delivering training
and intergenerational learning activities on country and supporting digital media projects in local languages.
CALL will coordinate the development of shared resources and digital tools for language preservation and partnerships with universities, government agencies, peak bodies and funding bodies. CALL will also facilitate regular opportunities for training, resource development, co-design of data collection and networking, both face to face and online to community language workers from the four sites.
Each hub will deliver activities aligned to local interests and will realise benefits of:
-alignment with national agendas (e.g. Closing the Gap Target 16, Voices of CountryAustralia's Plan for the International Decade of Indigenous Languages)
-strengthening the national languages sector
-increased transmission opportunities, awareness and engagement for Aboriginal languages
in remote communities