STREAM 1: GROWING OUR WAY‍

Our programs support the growth of our young leaders to champion their aspirations, elevate their voices and enable action to create change.

Lift Leadership

The Lift Leadership program is designed as a responsive tailored approach to developing young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders in schools. Lift Leadership provides structured workshops and summits where emerging leaders are supported to find their voice and identity and build on their leadership capabilities to take action.

Lift Leadership creates a collective force for change. Good Vibrations: Good Vibrations builds safe environments in a culture that enables young people to explore themselves, build positive peer connections, develop support structures that are both personal & professional and to always provide a space where young people belong. Young people are our future leaders, we must stive to provide spaces where their mental health is at the center and they thrive.

STREAM 2: STRENGTHENING OUR FAMILIES‍

Our programs are designed to provide essential support to young people and their families facing challenges. Drawing upon First Nations' holistic family approach, our aim is to inspire them to discover their inner leadership and drive positive change.

Pamle Pamle

Pamle Pamle offers a diverse range of support that meet the needs of young people and their families. It provides a holistic and tailored responses that are centered in Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander practices, protocols and connections. Pamle Pamle offers services including crisis support, outreach, family communities, case management and diversion activities.

Level Up

Level Up supports young people aged 10-15 who have been disengaged from education, training or employment. DIYDG connects young people to educational and meaningful activities in the local community. Level Up's primary focus is to support young people to return to mainstream education or alternative learning providers. If a return is not suitable, Level Up have developed lesson plans tailored to needs of each individual youth.

STREAM 3: EMPOWERED BY DIYDG

Self-motivated individuals and collectives in the community identified gaps and developed innovative solutions to address them, resulting in the creation, development, and delivery of these programs. The programs were delivered in partnership with DIYDG, and they fully align with DIYDG's values and vision.

Naytive Mentorship

Naytive Mentorship is a program that empowers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men, women and young people by providing access to skill building and work experience in the creative arts. The aim is to upskill participants in entrepreneurship in the music industry which can be transferable with other industries. It also provides a platform for people to share their stories through music, and develops careers of emerging musicians from regional/remote communities.

Kunjur First Nations Mens Collective

Kunjur First Nations Men's Collective is designed as a response to the rising rates of suicide in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men. The program's main focus is cultural healing and personal development, through building resilience and empowering our spirit. Kunjur First Nations Men's Collective creates a safe and supported space for men to come together, end the suffering in silence, and build a positive support system for First Nations men.

No Shame In My Game (NSIMG)

NSIMG is a music therapy program for young people that encourages self-expression and storytelling through vocal improvisation and narrative songwriting. It was founded by artist and youth coordinator, Simone Stacey, to provide healing and solace to those in difficult situations such as criminal justice or child protection. NSIMG is inspired by the transformative power of music.

Deadly Drivers

Deadly Drivers Program offers driver training, testing services, and road safety education to at-risk young people and communities in regional, rural, and remote areas of far north Queensland. The program provides positive interactions with government departments and various employment and education providers to encourage further education, training, and employment opportunities. DIYDG supports young people and communities throughout the entire process of obtaining a learner's license, completing the Hazard Perception Test, and developing practical driving skills.

As a youth-founded community organisation, DIYDG stands on the shoulders of all those who came before. Their approach is fundamentally strengths-based, supporting young people and community members by identifying and empowering their inherent strengths and assets - defying deficit models. Grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing, the programs support young people to find their voice and forge a better future for themselves, their families and communities.

• Family - We know that family strengthens our spirits and identity. We create family in order to provide connection and belonging for young people
• ‍Leadership - In order to create change in our world, we empower young people to develop resilience and achieve success
• ‍Opportunities - Young people deserve a chance to feel acceptance to take on the challenges that their choices will lead them through‍
• Wellbeing - We empower our spirits by balancing our aspirations and creating awareness‍
• Growth - Our family is our core. It gives us strength to be empowered

DIYDG have been through a learning process in an attempt to demonstrate our cultural decision-making into our organisational structure. Through intentional evolution, the organisation is establishing two bodies - a Council of Wisdom and a Council of Innovators - that provide guidance to both board and executive leadership.

The Council of Wisdom brings together First Nations Elders and leaders with non-Indigenous specialists, creating a knowledge ecosystem where cultural authority and professional expertise inform strategic direction. The Council of Innovators grounds all work in lived youth reality, ensuring young people's vision, aspirations, and challenges drive organisational priorities rather than being consulted as an afterthought.

Beyond these councils, DIYDG is reimagining leadership itself through a shared model that redistributes power traditionally concentrated in the CEO role. This structural innovation reflects the organisation's commitment to consensus-based decision-making - honoring collective process over individual authority and cultural wisdom over corporate hierarchy.