Jodi Edwards

Dr Jodi Edwards is a Yuin woman with Dharawal kinship connection who has dedicated her life to Community, Culture, education and Language.

Jodi is a certified Wayapa® Wuurrk Practitioner and a Cultural Experience, Language and Tourism Consultant who takes people on a magical journey through storytelling of Aboriginal peoples lives through the eyes of Mother Earth. Jodi shares stories from the oceans, mountains and rivers with Aboriginal Culture as the vocal point.

Nominated as 2023 NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year, she has spent more than 20 years advocating for improved cultural education across NSW. She was named 2022 Shellharbour Woman of the Year and Illawarra Regional NAIDOC Aboriginal Community Person of the Year for her Language and Cultural work across Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama and Shoalhaven local government areas.

Jodi was awarded her PhD from Macquarie University's Department of Indigenous Studies in 2021 for her thesis “Weaving the past into the future: The continuity of Aboriginal cultural practices in the Dharawal and Yuin Nations”.

As a D’harawal language speaker and advocate, she is passionate about awakening the language. She is a Curriculum Reform Advisor for Aboriginal Education with the NSW Education Standards Authority, providing expertise and advice to support the curriculum reform and delivery process. Jodi is also a Research Fellow at RMIT and a tutor at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Sydney. An author and advisor, Dr Edwards has published 4 local Dharawal Dreaming Stories, co-founded the Shellharbour Aboriginal Community Youth Association, established the Guwura Surfing program, works with the Illawarra Women’s Health Centre and continues to sit on the advisory board of Shellharbour Council.

Jodi has great love and respect for Yuin Country and the local Community who continue to teach and nurture her.