The Desert Peoples Centre is a consortium formed by Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education (BIITE) and the Centre for Appropriate Technology (CAT).  It was established as an organisational expression of the commitment of both organisations to work together to develop better, innovative links between education and training and other services to achieve more positive and sustainable outcomes for Indigenous Australians, particularly residents of Desert Australia. 

Respectively BIITE and CAT have substantial capacity in training, education and research relevant to the development needs of Indigenous peoples in desert Australia, and have established relationships with a wide range of Indigenous and non-Indigenous stakeholders.  The DPC is not intended to lead to short term redirection of existing CAT and BIITE teaching or administrative resources.  However, over time, the DPC is intended to:

• Explore and establish better synergies from their business operations;
• Explore and establish better opportunities for involving and empowering indigenous people in the development  of flexible innovative education and training responses to their social, cultural and economic development needs
• Explore and establish stronger education training and employment outcomes through better configurations of training, education, case management of students/learners and enhanced pathways through postsecondary education to employment, enterprise and community livelihood outcomes.
• Explore and establish opportunities to better link education and training activities with business and government in innovation and regional economic development.

It is intended that DPC will act as a coordinator and broker of services, a promoter of capacity strengthening and the development of sustainable livelihoods, an advocate for Aboriginal ideas and knowledge and a networker linking individuals and communities to service providers, government business and industry, and education and training providers.

The NT and Commonwealth Governments have made substantial financial commitments to DPC in financing the development of DPC through the establishment of the Desert Knowledge Precinct (DKP) which, from 2008, will provide a shared Alice Springs campus for BIITE and CAT

The DKP will be shared with other bodies including Desert Knowledge Australia and the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Centre providing opportunities for partnership and linkage across the education sectors and across community government and industry.

General high level strategy and an approach to curricula and teaching learning reform strategies are set out in a DPC Business Case, which was submitted to governments in 2003.