The Yawuru people of the west Kimberley have a philosophy of “mabu liyan”. Literally translated as “good/strong spirit”, it is a way of living well, with all the things that give meaning to their lives – country, people, community and culture.
Yawuru woman Nini Mills, who is the chief executive of the Nyamba Buru Yawuru (NBY), Yawuru’s development and investment company, explains it better: “‘Mabu’ means good in Yawuru language, and ‘liyan’ is a Yawuru word used throughout the west Kimberley and it can be described in many ways. For Yawuru people, it’s your spirit, your intuition, your moral compass.
