We are Country—Country mentors us

Abstract

This article explores epistemological and ontological accounts of Country’s mentorship among young Indigenous Australian knowledge holders, creatives, entrepreneurs, changemakers, and advocates. Using a qualitative decolonising race theoretical lens, the research team adapted and explored multi-directional, more-than-human understandings of the human–Country mentorship relationship to reflect young mob experiences of enacting and embodying Country. The findings highlight Country’s agency, sentience, and authority, whereby young mob shared how they were guided by, sustained by, and obligated to Country. This research honours Country as a knowledge holder and mentor. The research team aims to be transformative by showing new ways to understand Country and both-ways mentorship relationships with young mob and Country. The article is a unique contribution to the research field, as mentorship literature often fails to effectively unpack Indigenous Australian relationality with Country, problematises young mob, and is contextually bound to individual programs, singular communities, or cohorts. By giving voice to Country as a mentor, the research team aims to disrupt Western hegemonic power relations in dominant mentorship frameworks and challenge mentorship theory, practice, and policy. We hope this article encourages geographers and others to take Indigenous ways of knowing, being, doing and becoming more seriously.