"To achieve social, cultural, and economic prosperity for First Peoples."

It's a vision that drives First Nations Economics, an Aboriginal-led, Supply Nation-registered charity working to transform how Indigenous communities access economic opportunity. Blending expert advice, strong advocacy, and lived experience, the organisation is not only changing conversations; it's changing systems.

That impact has seen co-founder Associate Professor Rick Macourt nominated for the 2025 Sam Tjengala Reuben Award for Young Entrepreneur of the Year at the Supply Nation awards.

The proud, queer Gumbaynggirr man — a lawyer and economic policy specialist — told National Indigenous Times the nomination left him "a little bit chuffed" after it sank in.

"My cheeks went a bit red," he added.

Launched in 2023 by Mr Macourt and Garigal man Sean Cumming, First Nations Economics funds scholarships, education initiatives, and pro bono services through income generated from its own consultancy work. It's a model built not on corporate mimicry, but on cultural values and community strength.

"I guess we were trying to create a model that was reflective of community," Mr Macourt said. "We were always designed to be Aboriginal-majority and community-led as a public benevolent institution, because what we were doing needed to be bigger than us."

Having spent 15 years working across government, corporate, and not-for-profit sectors, he found himself constrained. Trying to lead change while navigating systems not built for, or by, First Nations people felt like a moral compromise.

"There is no one to look up to," he said.

So, they stepped out and built their own path. Now a majority female-owned organisation, First Nations Economics lives by the principles it advocates.

"Everything that we touch has to have a net positive impact on First Peoples," Mr Macourt said. "Everything… needs to be governed and led by First Peoples."

That includes applying the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) in every project, with an expectation that partners "meet us where our communities demand that we are at, which is at a sovereign place".

He noted founding chairperson Trish Oxford sat them down and "put them in their place" by making the case that First Nations Economics needs to be "something that outlives all of us".

"We learned that we could do business our way and get the same outcomes, then we're like, 'that's how we're going to live our life'."

Today, First Nations Economics channels revenue from its professional services directly into the economic development of Community. Programs like the Leah Armstrong Scholarship offer substantial financial support to First Nations women pursuing higher education — two scholarships of up to $20,000 annually for three years.

The organisation's pro bono advisory work is, in Mr Macourt's words, going "bonanzas," and its education stream reinvests critical knowledge and tools into community.

"To have been educated, to have been given wonderful career opportunities, to have been able to unshackle ourselves from the system of government that was imposed on us — we wanted to hand that back," he said.

That sense of duty is deeply personal.

"As a queer man… and recognising that Sean is also a man, we have male privilege. And so again, as a way of respecting the sacrifice that my mum and my grandmother, and Sean's maternal Aboriginal family, have had to give up for us to succeed, we wanted to make sure that we give back tenfold to the women in our community that need an opportunity," he said.

That future-focused thinking now extends beyond Australia. The charity recently opened its first office in Aotearoa/New Zealand, marking the beginning of a global ambition.

"We want to take the frameworks that have served us well and start to bring them to First Peoples — not only around the country, but around the world," Mr Macourt said. "We need to make sure that it's accessible for other communities when they need it."

He adds whilst the core focus is prioritising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, "we can't sit on some of the wonderful work that we're able to contribute and benefit just for ourselves".

"We need to make sure that it's accessible for other communities when they need it."

In a time when inclusion is increasingly under threat, First Nations Economics is a powerful reminder that prosperity doesn't have to come at the cost of culture — it can be built on it.

Award winners will be announced at the Connect 2025 Gala Awards Dinner on Thursday 21 August at ICC Sydney on Gadigal Land.