FEATURE
KEN ZULUMOVSKI Founder Gamarada Universal Indigenous Resources GUIR
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n 2019 Ken Zulumovski Hon DHSc (USyd) received the honorary award of ‘Doctor of Health Sciences’, by The University of Sydney for his outstanding contribution to Australian society. He is the founder and managing director of the consultancy, Gamarada Universal Indigenous Resources (GUIR) Pty Ltd and the Not for Profit, Gamarada Indigenous Healing and Life Training Pty Ltd. GUIR provides specialised and tailored services to individuals and organisations across the private, government and community sectors. GUIR’s spheres of influence include health, education, justice, and employment. Community engagement across the social & emotional wellbeing and healing fields is GUIR’s forte. GUIR specialises in program co-design and delivery, coaching, mentoring, cultural supervision and organisational capacity building with the GUIR COURAGE Coaching Model. The model combines Wisdom Traditions with Western behavioural science and elements of military leadership and is used extensively for staff training, program development and community
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engagement. GUIR works to promote community cohesion with a focus on marginalised groups who may be at risk of radicalisation. UNSW independently validated this work. Gamarada was recognised by the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet with an Excellence Award for Building Leadership in Indigenous Communities. Ken is a part-time soldier in the Australian Army Reserve and has experience as an Artillery Crew Commander. He will soon be elevated to the rank of Captain and take an advisory role with the Directorate of Recruitment and Retention assisting with the Army’s Reconciliation Action Plan Targets. Tell us about your background. I want to start by acknowledging Gadigal and Eora, upon whose ancestral lands I live on and where most of my career was built. The eYs Magazine Founder, CEO, Editor-in-Chief, and Publisher, Jasmina Siderovski. My community, friends and family and most importantly, all of you readers.
In 2019 I found myself the recipient of the honorary award ‘Doctor of Health Sciences’, by The University of Sydney for outstanding contribution to Australian society. I am a descendent of the KabiKabi & Gooreng Gooreng Nations of South East Queensland, Australia. I am also proud of my Macedonian lineage. I am a graduate of the Djurawang Health Sciences (Mental Health) program at Charles Sturt University and a former lecturer and researcher at Muru Marri, the Indigenous Health Unit of the University of New South Wales, School of Public Health and Community Medicine. My career spans about 25 years in program development and delivery working with Australian first nations and culturally and linguistically diverse communities. But I think the seeds where planted around age 14, when mum Aunty Sandra Johnson, encouraged me to look into becoming a St John Ambulance Cadet. In doing so, I graduated as a Corporal and took on the task of training a lively group of younger cadets in; volunteering, administering first aid, drill to build discipline, fundraising, and protocol including; reciting the St John Ambulance Code of Chivalry.
