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DK Precinct

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A welcoming environment that encourages learning, knowledge sharing and collaboration.


The Desert Knowl­edge Precinct is a 73-hectare prop­er­ty, which sits on Arrernte bush­land, 9 kilo­me­tres south of the Alice Springs town cen­tre. It was estab­lished in 2006, and its man­age­ment is under­pinned by an Indige­nous Land Use Agree­ment (ILUA). DKA is the land­lord of the Desert Knowl­edge Precinct, and is respon­si­ble for its man­age­ment and development.

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The Desert Knowl­edge Precinct in Alice Springs.

DKA proud­ly acknowl­edges the Arrernte peo­ple as the cus­to­di­ans and first knowl­edge hold­ers of this land.

The Precinct was cre­at­ed by three key part­ners who share sim­i­lar goals and val­ues, and all work onsite:

It is also home to the Desert Peo­ples Cen­tre, a joint ini­tia­tive of Batch­e­lor Insti­tute and CfAT, cre­at­ed to sup­port pos­i­tive out­comes for Indige­nous Aus­tralians through edu­ca­tion and training.

Locat­ed on the out­skirts of Mparn­twe (Alice Springs), the Precinct’s loca­tion is sig­nif­i­cant. It occu­pies the space where, in the past, trav­el­ling Abo­rig­i­nal groups or mes­sen­gers would stop and light smoke sig­nals as a way of request­ing pas­sage through Heav­it­ree Gap (Ntaripe). It was here that Elders or oth­er group mem­bers from Mparn­twe would meet the trav­ellers and hear their sto­ries. The Precinct embod­ies the essence of the land on which it stands, pro­mot­ing knowl­edge shar­ing in a place where every­one is wel­come.
We work with the peo­ple, com­mu­ni­ties and organ­i­sa­tions of Cen­tral Aus­tralia to con­nect peo­ple, knowl­edge, and opportunities.

The Precinct’s key part­ners have worked togeth­er to cre­ate a wel­com­ing envi­ron­ment that encour­ages learn­ing, knowl­edge shar­ing and col­lab­o­ra­tion. The space nur­tures rela­tion­ships that strength­en Cen­tral Aus­tralian com­mu­ni­ties, and sup­ports advanc­ing region­al and remote Aus­tralia. From its key part­ners locat­ed onsite and local organ­i­sa­tions who share DKA’s office space, to school groups and vis­it­ing del­e­ga­tions, the Precinct pro­vides a place for enter­pris­es, research, edu­ca­tion, part­ner­ships, and cul­tur­al activ­i­ties. Its dis­tinc­tive sur­round­ings and note­wor­thy loca­tion pro­vide a unique set­ting to share desert knowl­edge, both ancient and emerging.

In addi­tion to the organ­i­sa­tions locat­ed onsite, the Precinct also hous­es the largest mul­ti-tech­nol­o­gy solar demon­stra­tion facil­i­ty in the world, the famed DKA Solar Cen­tre, which sup­plies approx­i­mate­ly 40% of the pow­er con­sumed onsite each year.

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Magnify Precinct

The Desert Knowl­edge Precinct, locat­ed between Alice Springs and the town’s airport


Locate us

Find the Desert Knowl­edge Precinct on Google Maps.

Explore the Desert Knowl­edge Precinct on Google Earth.

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Intyalheme Project Manager Hannah Farrow on her new experience: driving an electric vehicle.

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Aug 14, 2020

Lessons learnt during the Alice Springs Future Grid project will directly inform Australia's clean energy transition.

DKA Hosts Their Excellencies, General the Honourable David Hurley and Mrs Linda Hurley

Aug 10, 2020

Desert Knowledge Australia was honoured to host His Excel­len­cy the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, and Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, at the Desert Knowledge Precinct.