Insights

Yowalla! (Hello in Gunggari language)

My name is Wade Campbell, and I am a proud descendant of the Gunggari people through my mum’s family.

I am a Traincrew Operations Leader based at Aurizon’s Jilalan Depot in Sarina situated on Yuwi country, and I’m responsible for the day-to-day management of a team traincrew.

I have recently accepted a Duty Deployment Leader role in Brisbane which I’m very excited about and ready for the challenge ahead. In this role, I’ll be leading a team of people who coordinate the live operations of Aurizon’s trains across the country.

The Gunggari people are Traditional Owners for an area spanning approximately 37,100 sq/kms in Queensland’s Maranoa region. The country is located between the towns of Mitchell, St George, Charleville, Bollon and Mungallala.

The Maranoa River is the centre to the Gunggari people’s culture and knowledge. It has such strong traditions that a traditional Gunggari song called Illmargan, was recorded by Granny Emily Jackson in 1974 which tells the Gunggari Dreaming story about the Maranoa River and the connection it has with the Mundagatta (rainbow serpent).

I was born in Toowoomba (Giabal country) and was raised in Taroom (Yiman country) by my mother and father.  Mum was one of twenty-one children consisting of twelve girls and nine boys who, in turn, have of course had their own families which has resulted in so many cousins for me. I could not even count how many and in fact, to this day I still have not met them all.

National Reconciliation Week is about honouring our ancestors and reconnecting the nation’s people – both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to ensure we keep and strengthen our cultural identity.

We all need to be inclusive and work together, honour the past struggles and help each other to heal. Educating our nation’s people – including our children who will be our future leaders – is imperative, as this will ensure all who live in this country maintain resilience and strong connections.

Since starting with Aurizon in 2023, I have been able to improve my leadership skills and knowledge by adopting the leadership model. My motivation to be successful in my career has always been guided and supported by my mentors, managers and colleagues.

Prior to joining to Aurizon, I spent 15 years in the mining industry, starting in maintenance, then going into safety and progressing to production leadership where I was leading almost 70 people. I take every career opportunity I can grab to make myself better, personally and professionally and encourage others to do the same.

After starting with Aurizon, I joined the company’s Indigenous Reference Group which is led by employees and oversees the Aurizon’s Reconciliation Action Plan. I decided to join the group because of its genuine care and commitment to achieving their goals and reconciliation.

One of my key personal deliverables is to continue to build solid relationships with the community and ensure the Traditional Owners of the land where we operate are encouraged and feel welcomed to join Aurizon on our journey.

I am committed to continuing to learning the history and traditions of our First Nations people and sharing their stories with others in order to acknowledge past experiences, as well as working with everyone to move forward together in the spirit of pride, peace and unity.

Noolla Nagarla (Goodbye in Gunggari language)