Nathan Martin was sitting in his jail cell at Long Bay prison when the idea first came to him.
He was in his 20s, serving a seven-and-a-half-year sentence, and already missed four birthdays and Christmases with his children.
He knew things needed to change.
"I just hit my hands on the bed, and I thought this is not what I want to do, not where I want to be, so what am I going to do to change it – and I actually came up with the idea of Yalagan then," Mr Martin said.
Yalagan, a Yuin word for hard working or smart fellow, began as a training and labour hire company to help people like Mr Martin get back on their feet and into long-term employment.
The 35-year-old saw first-hand the lack of Indigenous representation in the construction industry while working as a window-fixer before he landed himself in trouble with the law.
Upon release, he began his journey to make a difference.
Almost five years on, Yalagan has grown into a national multi-disciplinary, and both a registered training organisation and group training organisation, delivering services across training, mentoring, and printing and design.
In 2021, Mr Martin was named Supply Nation's Young Indigenous Entrepreneur.
Jail is 'no place for us'
At the heart of his vision is to help First Nations people coming out of prison into full-time work.
"I just want to get into the prisons, train these fullas while they're in jail, get them out, get them a start — that's a real big thing for me," Mr Martin said.
"When you get out from doing whether it's a year, five years, 10 years, six months, you've got no money in your pocket.
"I've done it, you know, and I know how hard it is. And I know how easy it is for people to go back."
Yalagan is aiming to get 50 Indigenous prisoners — about to be released — trained and into full-time work with tier one companies across the industry.
Waste management company, Bingo Industries, is among the major collaborators to take on the first cohort this month.
"When they finish their sentence, they will have money in their pocket, they'll have their training completed, and rather than sort of just been thrown out and having to sort of work all this stuff out themselves, they'll be ahead of the game," Corporate Affairs Manager, Yeena Kirkbright said.
Mr Martin said it would be a fresh start for the former prisoners and "if they complete the program with no hiccups," they will have a full-time job.
"If I can make one blackfulla not go to jail for me it's all worth it, that's how simple it is— because it's no place for us."
In NSW, almost 30 per cent of inmates are Indigenous despite being just 3 per cent of the overall population.
In 2019, recidivism rates showed 5,961 Indigenous prisoners ended up back inside from about 18,300 prisoners overall.
It's a cycle Mr Martin is determined to break.
He grew up in the small village of Wreck Bay on the NSW South Coast, it was a childhood filled with swimming, fishing, and family — but also walled by trauma, he says.
He lost his father and four friends to suicide at a young age. He remembers crime being "pretty apparent" too.
At 25, he pleaded guilty to charges for supply of ecstasy and conspiracy to supply firearms. He spent four years in prison.
"I get that people have excuses even me I did the wrong thing… [but] I don't hold anyone else accountable but myself."
He credits much of his success to the Never Going Back boxing program run by Corrective Services NSW in conjunction with Tribal Warrior and NSW Police helping to transition inmates back into the community.
It was here he met mentor-turned-business partner Sean Wilson.
"I was holding [boxing] pads for Nathan and [he] pitched to me the idea and I said, 'good luck', because it's difficult, specifically in trying to help Indigenous inmates into long-term careers… but he convinced me over six months," Mr Wilson said.
He said it's critical their program offers long-term career pathways that are "not just entry level" positions that can take someone "from a cleaner to a concierge."
"And that's the ethos of the training."
But convincing more of the industry to take on former prisoners is challenging.
"That's probably one of the biggest things is getting companies identifying and understanding the social and economic framework within Indigenous communities to say I'm going to be supportive along this process," he said.
"I don't think the answer is creating more prisons in any capacity, it's about creating programs."
Doors open to everyone
But Yalagan is more than a former prisoner program.
Its doors are open to anyone — Indigenous or non-Indigenous, those without work, or those simply struggling on the outside.
Hayden Trindall is grateful he came across Yalagan at a time of need.
The 28-year-old from La Perouse struggled through years of debilitating gambling which eventually landed him in rehabilitation.
"I lost my job, I lost my house, my girlfriend broke up with me… I lost a lot of people around me that loved me," Mr Trindall said.
COVID-19 lockdowns meant he lost his decades-long work as a plumber.
"I mentally hit rock bottom," he said.
But Mr Trindall's time at The Glen Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre would help more than just his addiction — they also offered hope of a new career.
"He told us what Yalagan was doing and could offer, and he said to me 'make sure you come and see me when you get out and I'll try and help you out'."
That's exactly what he did. After three months at The Glen, Mr Trindall's life began to shift. He approached Yalagan and completed multiple courses to give him a start in the construction industry.
He's now employed full-time at Sydney's Metro Project. He's also about to mark one year since he last gambled.
"A lot of things have changed and it's just taking those little steps — and Yalagan — that was a start.
"Without it I wouldn't have a job today."
