There are networks of leaders who are closely related to each other through shared responsibilities and interconnected roles. For example, today there are leaders of extended families, clan groups, kinship groups and nations. There are leaders of ceremony, ritual, sacred sites, and Dreaming tracks. There are leaders who are holders of restricted knowledge, and separate leaders for men’s and women’s ‘business’.

An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leader’s representation and accountability operates in multiple directions, across the layers of their networks.

There are strong culturally-based rules and values that stress the need for leaders to only speak on behalf of (i.e. to represent) the ‘right’ people (their own mob or land-owing group), about the ‘right’ issue (i.e. their own country and own business).

The strongest expectation then is that a leader should, first and foremost, ‘look after’ and be accountable to their own family and local group.

Leaders are also expected to go back to their fellow group members to discuss information, ideas and decisions with them. This means their legitimacy has to be continuously earned and proven through their actions and communication in that social arena.