In October Winya won both the Banksia Foundation Sustainability Award for Indigenous Leadership and the Award for best sustainable product at the prestigious Building Industry Sustainability Awards for our Arnhem custom timber chair range!

Salvaged timbers that would otherwise be burnt (or simply discarded) create Indigenous employment both in remote areas and apprenticeships in cities. Timber is sorted and graded and cut to basic furniture components, then shipped to Sydney, Brisbane or Perth for finishing and then manufactured into lounges. Winya places Indigenous trainees and apprentices into factories across Australia where its products are made.

From the judges: The Arnhem range is a social and environmental collaboration with remote Northern Territory Indigenous landowners and a remote Indigenous mill to provide waste timbers off mine-site clearing to produce custom made soft seating. Salvaged timbers that would otherwise be wasted create Indigenous employment both in remote areas and apprenticeships in cities.

Department of Defence was our lead customer for this new product; it is installed in their new facility in Exmouth WA