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First Knowledges Politics

Philosophical Ordering by Country
Brief Description
First Nations peoples of Australia are among the world's oldest political designers. For them, Country isn't just a place to live, it's part of the network of relationships that shape responsibilities, behaviour and decision-making—a template for living together. First Nations social and political systems balance individual... Read More
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First Nations peoples of Australia are among the world's oldest political designers. For them, Country isn't just a place to live, it's part of the network of relationships that shape responsibilities, behaviour and decision-making—a template for living together.

First Nations social and political systems balance individual freedom with a strong sense of responsibility and connection to others. By placing relationships at the centre, these systems encourage ethical behaviour and create long-term stability and security.

Mary Graham and Morgan Brigg interrogate and unpack two political systems—cultural and colonial—that appear to be at opposite ends of a continuum. Politics is about how these two systems can move together and, in these unpredictable times, help to guide the building of a modern Australia.

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Series: First Knowledges

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  • Caring for Country: First Knowledges for younger readers
    What do you need to know to prosper as a people for 65,000 years or more? Join writer and farmer Bruce Pascoe and historian Bill Gammage as they generously share their knowledge about the amazing way that First Nations people cared for Australia and how closely humans have been connected with nature for tens of thousands of years. From the...
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  • First Knowledges Country
    What do you need to know to prosper as a people for at least 65,000 years? The First Knowledges series provides a deeper understanding of the expertise and ingenuity of Indigenous Australians. For millennia, Indigenous Australians harvested this continent in ways that can offer contemporary environmental and economic solutions. Bill Gammage and Bruce Pascoe demonstrate how Aboriginal people cultivated the...
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  • First Knowledges Innovation
    ‘Deeply insightful, sensitive and passionate. An inspiring, meticulous picture of the innovations that have made us the world's oldest living culture.’ - Larissa Behrendt ‘Another fascinating volume in this landmark Australian publishing series.’ - Richard Flanagan What do you need to know to prosper as a people for at least 65,000 years? The First Knowledges series provides a deeper understanding...
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  • First Knowledges Law
    'Our Laws are forever present and provide the pathways for all Australians to truly learn how to belong to this continent.' - June Oscar 'No other current work has been able to so comprehensively explain the significance of traditional law in all its manifestations.' - Henry Reynolds Law is culture, and culture is law. Given by the ancestors and cultivated...
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  • First Knowledges Astronomy
    What do you need to know to prosper for 65,000 years or more? The First Knowledges series provides a deeper understanding of the expertise and ingenuity of Indigenous Australians. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the oldest scientists in human history. Many First Peoples regard the land as a reflection of the sky and the sky a reflection of...
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  • First Knowledges Plants
    What do you need to know to prosper as a people for at least 65,000 years? The First Knowledges series provides a deeper understanding of the expertise and ingenuity of Indigenous Australians. Plants are the foundation of life on Earth. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have always known this to be true. For millennia, reciprocal relationships with plants have...
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  • Songlines: First Knowledges for younger readers
    How do you find your way around, get your food and drink, connect with your friends and family? How do you know the right and safe way to do things, or how to make things? Before the white people came to the continent, all Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples knew how to do all these things - and...
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  • First Knowledges Design
    Aboriginal design is of a distinctly cultural nature, based in the Dreaming and in ancient practices grounded in Country. It is visible in the aerodynamic boomerang, the ingenious design of fish traps, and the precise layouts of community settlements that strengthen social cohesion. Alison Page and Paul Memmott show how these design principles of sophisticated function, sustainability, and storytelling, refined...
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  • First Knowledges Ceremony
    What do you need to know to prosper as a people for 65,000 years or more? The First Knowledges series provides a deep understanding of the expertise, wisdom and ingenuity of Indigenous Australians. We perform ceremonies every day. Some are personal, some highly organised, and others are repeated for generations. For First Nations Australians, ceremonies create the backbone of cultural...
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  • First Knowledges Health
    What do you need to know to prosper as a people for 65,000 years or more? The First Knowledges series provides a deep understanding of the expertise, wisdom and ingenuity of Indigenous Australians.For thousands of generations the wellbeing of Australia's First Peoples was grounded in the sacred lands of Mother Earth. Good health occurred naturally because lifestyle and diet were...
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  • First Knowledges Politics
    First Nations peoples of Australia are among the world's oldest political designers. For them, Country isn't just a place to live, it's part of the network of relationships that shape responsibilities, behaviour and decision-making—a template for living together. First Nations social and political systems balance individual freedom with a strong sense of responsibility and connection to others. By placing relationships...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • First Knowledges The Collection
    First Knowledges: The Collection introduces Indigenous knowledge systems in vital areas, exploring their relevance to the present and the future. It brings together two distinct ways of understanding the natural world: one rooted in over 65,000 years of tradition, the other shaped by colonial perspectives. Each book is a collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous writers and editors, with the series...
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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781760764272

Publisher: Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 June 2026

Country: Australia

Imprint: Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd

Illustration: 4 Illustrations

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 216g

Pages: 240

About the Author

Dr Mary Graham is a Kombumerri person through her father's heritage and affiliated with Wakka Wakka through her mother's people. She has worked across government and universities, teaching Aboriginal history, politics and comparative philosophy, and incorporating Aboriginal knowledges into curricula. She is one of the foremost writers on Aboriginal Australian knowledges, and philosophy.

Dr Morgan Brigg is an Associate Professor at the University of Queensland and long-term collaborator with Mary Graham. He specialises in conflict resolution, peacebuilding, political theory, and the politics of knowledge. His research facilitates exchange between Western and Indigenous political philosophies and socio-political orders as part of a wider exploration of the politics of cultural difference, governance, and selfhood.

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