Mara Nyabil, founded by Davina B Woods, PhD, is dedicated to educating others about the First Peoples of Australia. Driven by the belief that a healthy society is the cornerstone of a thriving economy, Mara Nyabil is committed to contributing to the social health of our nation. The business purpose aligns with the founder's life purpose, creating a positive impact on both Australian society and the individuals it touches. Through this work, we invest in the future of a flourishing nation.
Davina was born in Brisbane and raised at Deep Water Bend. She attended Bald Hills State Primary School, followed by Pine Rivers District State High. She enrolled at Kedron Park Teachers College which while she was there transformed into the North Brisbane College of Advanced Education Graduating with a Diploma of Teaching.
In 1984 Davina received a letter from the Queensland Education Department (QED). It resulted in her becoming one of the five teachers, who were also Aboriginal, being employed as the inaugural Aboriginal and Torre Strait Islander Education Unit of the QED. Undertaking external studies Davina completed a Bachelor of Education, a Graduation Certificate in Aboriginal Studies, and a Master of Arts.
Leaving QED in 1990 Davina became the Federal Aboriginal Education Officer of the Australian Education Union. Later employed at a Melbourne University, she completed a Graduate Diploma in Tertiary Education and her PhD for which she received the Most Outstanding Research Student award, 2018.
As a writer Davina had her first article Why Aboriginal Studies published in the QED professional journal QUEST in 1986. In 2000 she had her first chapter published in the Professor Mary Ann Bin-Sallik edited book Aboriginal women by degrees: their stories of the journey towards academic achievement. It was the first of several book chapters Davina was requested to write and has had published.
In 2006 her poem Urban Songlines won her the Victorian Indigenous Art Cultural Heritage Award. The fact that the judging was performed by members of the First Nations community of Victoria, made the award extra special. Davina has also had her essay Being Educated published in the prestigious literary journal Meanjin Spring 2023.
Her first book “Foster Father and Son OR Slave Master and Slave” publishes in 2024.
