On the Gove Peninsula in Australia’s Northern Territory, conversations about the future are never just about work. They are about Country, family, language, young people, and what comes next for communities that have lived alongside mining for generations.

Our Gove bauxite operation is projected to close in 2029 after 50 years of mining. While we’re still focused on operating safely until last bauxite is mined, we’re also helping to create the right conditions for Gove’s next chapter – one that builds on the strengths of the region, supports local people and creates opportunities for future generations. This work is happening in partnership with Traditional Owners, government and the community, to support the Gove Peninsula's transition beyond mining.

We know that communities across Nhulunbuy, Yirrkala and Gunyaŋara are looking ahead to the skills, services and local jobs that will support the future economy.

For young people in the region, that means being able to see what those opportunities might actually look like.

Since 2022, we’ve partnered with The Careers Department (TCD), a national “edtech” careers education platform that helps students explore different careers and pathways. Its online program includes career profiling, virtual workplace tours, training and development, and virtual and in-person work experience opportunities.

Two young students looking at the desktop monitor screen

At Gove, we’re working with TCD to make that experience much more local.

Working alongside local partners, including Traditional Owner organisations; Marngarr Resource Centre Aboriginal Corporation, Gumatj Aboriginal Corporation, and Rirratjingu Aboriginal Corporation, TCD has developed 6 localised virtual work experience modules and day-in-the-life videos for the region. 

Through workshops delivered across four local schools, more than 150 students have engaged in learning experiences that build digital skills and inspire curiosity.

The content focuses on industries and skills expected to play an important role after mine closure, including pathways aligned with Traditional Owner employment aspirations, such as careers advisor, maintenance services, and aged care. 


“What makes the Gove program special is that the community has helped shape it,” Samantha Devlin, CEO and Co-founder of The Careers Department, said.
Gove TCD Facilitator sitting together with 2 young students
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“Students are exploring opportunities that connect to their own region and future. It is not simply showing students a list of jobs. It is helping them explore real workplaces, familiar businesses and practical skills they can use in their own community." 

The modules have also been translated into local dialect, helping make the learning more accessible, relevant and connected to culture. 

At Dhupuma Barker, a school in the Gove region, accessibility and connection really matter.

 
“The vision is to empower young Yolŋu people to thrive in both worlds – drawing on opportunities beyond their community while remaining deeply connected to their land, culture, and identity,” Andrea O’Brien Dhupuma Barker’s Operations Coordinator said. 
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“The Careers Department program helps us show the students opportunities that are close to home. The modules are engaging as the students recognise local members of their own community.”

“It enables students to explore the wider world, develop new skills, and understand the many pathways available to them before returning to their Country with the knowledge, confidence, and capabilities to contribute to their families, community, and the local workforce” Andrea said. 

That became clear during a TCD session at Dhupuma Barker.

DB

Students were working through a module developed with Yutjuwala Djiwarr Aged Care Centre and translated into local dialect, when they began recognising the people and places appearing on screen.

They spotted people they knew in the videos and eagerly pointed them out to classmates. There was a genuine buzz in the room. 

The school already visits the centre each week to read and spend time with Elders, so the module helped students see a familiar place in a new way – as somewhere they could one day work and build a career. 

The program is also reaching beyond the school gate. 

TCD has been preparing training with the Marngarr Resource Centre, a Yolŋu organisation that delivers training, employment and youth programs, and introducing the modules to young adults and people participating in pathways into work. 

With the Gove region continuing to evolve, these partnerships are creating vital opportunities for young people to explore, plan and prepare for the future.

"As the region prepares for life beyond mining, it’s important that local people can see and consider the opportunities that may emerge,” Lauren, our Communities and Social Performance Manager, said. 

“This wonderful partnership is helping highlight exciting pathways that are shaped by community and focused on the region's future.”

Working together to support future careers

The local TCD program in Gove builds on our broader national partnership, established in 2022 through an A$2.8 million investment to extend digital careers education to more students across Australia.

Recently renewed with further investment through to 2029, the partnership gives students, parents and schools access to career profiling, virtual tours, training and work experience opportunities, no matter where they live.

Across the Gove Peninsula, that national partnership has taken on a distinctly local shape, connecting young people with familiar places, local organisations and new pathways that could help them thrive.

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