"If you don't stick to a trade, you will end up in prison or dead."

Sixteen-year-old Corey Tutt was in the library for a meeting with his careers counsellor.

To get there, he had walked past stacks of books filled with the works of generations of scientists who came before him. He knew he wanted to be like them.

It was in this setting that the Kamilaroi man from the South Coast of New South Wales told his teacher he wanted to become a zookeeper.

Rather than being encouraged, the now-27-year-old was not only told he would never be mentioned in the same sentence as his scientific idols — but that he could also forget pursuing the study altogether.

Mr Tutt has delivered 7,000 books to remote schools in Australia. ( Supplied )

You have probably already guessed it, but Corey's teacher ended up being wrong

Mr Tutt did not listen to his careers counsellor's advice; after being encouraged by an Indigenous Taronga Zoo Sydney zookeeper, he started volunteering at Roo Gully Wildlife Sanctuary in Western Australia.

That gig led to a role as an animal technician at the University of Sydney, where Mr Tutt now works as a research assistant for the Matilda Centre.

He may not have ended up with a science degree, but this has not kept him from the field. And his experiences have given him a new agenda; helping Indigenous kids realise their dreams, whatever those dreams may be.

One of the schools only had 15 books in its library before Corey Tutt donated more. ( Instagram: Deadly Science )

"Being Indigenous, you're normally pushed towards the arts and sports, and they're wonderful things, but not everyone's going to be an NRL player. And not everyone enjoys art."

And so it was that Deadly Science was born.

Through the project, Mr Tutt sends books and educational resources to remote schools in need.

One of them only had 15 books in its library before he sent more up.

Why people are talking about Closing the Gap

It is vital work, if the experts (read: the Federal Government) are anything to go by.

Last week's 12th Closing the Gap report revealed Aboriginal children across the country are lagging behind non-Indigenous children in literacy, numeracy and writing skills.

On top of that, we are only on track to meet two of seven government targets to reduce the disparity in health, education and employment outcomes.

As the country reacted to the failure, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said new targets and an overhaul of the current framework would be led by Indigenous Australians.

This project has been in the works for several years.

But those on the ground are not waiting for the Government; like Mr Tutt, they are already working on creating the change they want to see in their communities.

What happened when one man started sending his own books to remote schools

Mr Tutt had to work two jobs to cover the cost of getting Deadly Science up and running.

Now more than 100 schools and foundations have benefited from his efforts.

With the help of donations, he has provided over 7,000 books and 200 telescopes to schools in need since starting it just under two years ago.

On top of this, he runs Skype sessions and shares videos and Q&As with scientists including Professor Brian Cox and Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, so students can ask questions about real science.

It is paying off.

In a recent survey, these schools showed a 25 per cent increase in engagement in STEM subjects.

Corey is far from the only Indigenous person driving change. Wondering who else to pay attention to?

On the same day the Closing the Gap report was released, five Indigenous changemakers — of which Mr Tutt was one — put their projects to Parliament, after being recognised as Trailblazers as part of the remote, rural and regional 2020 ABC Heywire project.

Together, their initiatives address health, education and the continuity of culture.

Semara Jose, Ferlin King and Tamika Young (left to right), are empowering Indigenous youth. ( ABC Heywire )

Deadly Inspiring Youth Doing Good (DIYDG), fronted by Semara Jose, Ferlin King and Tamika Young, are working on the latter in Cairns, Far North Queensland.

DIYDG's mission is to empower and support young Indigenous people in Cairns, re-connecting them with culture in the hope of cutting crime and suicide rates and addressing mental health issues.

Their biggest event is an annual wellbeing camp, bringing together young people to connect to culture, create a sense of belonging and foster emotional safety.

In Forster, New South Wales, 26-year-old Worimi woman Tanika Davis is working to bridge the communication gap between health professionals and Indigenous families.

After her son was diagnosed with autism, the countless doctors' appointments, NDIS visits, therapy appointments and nutrition consultations piled up.

On top of all the life admin, she was exposed to the stigma that surrounds autism, which she says is especially prevalent within Indigenous communities.

Tanika Davis's The I Am, Movement makes culturally sensitive educational resources. ( ABC Heywire: Yasmin Jeffery )

To combat some of it, and to make sure her son would have access to culturally sensitive educational resources, Mrs Davis created The I Am, Movement.

She creates resources including flash cards featuring artwork by Indigenous artists, depicting native animals and environments.

This year, she is fundraising to travel to five NSW communities to culturally upskill doctors, therapists and educators about autism.

Why change organised by Indigenous people for Indigenous communities works

These are only a handful of the examples of grassroots activists making a difference within their communities on a (currently) small scale.

It is in this area — actually having an impact — that governments have struggled.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 2 minutes 31 seconds 2 m 31 s Party leaders admit failure in Closing the Gap

The Prime Minister said the findings from last week's Closing the Gap report proved a "top-down, government-knows-best" approach had failed to deliver what was needed in Indigenous communities.

"We perpetuated an ingrained way of thinking passed down over two centuries and more, and it was the belief that we knew better than our Indigenous peoples. We don't," Mr Morrison said.

So, what is it about change driven by Aboriginal people themselves that lends itself to success compared to that attempted by non-Indigenous people?

"Aboriginal people will always know what's best for themselves and their communities," the University of Melbourne Law School's senior Indigenous fellow, Eddie Cubillo, told the ABC.

He says we only have to look to the 2020 ABC Heywire Trailblazers to see why.

"[The Trailblazers are being recognised] because they're out there in their communities.

"They know what's best for their communities, they live there, and that's why their projects are successful. They have a really good understanding of what their communities are about."

TL;DR? It all comes back to commonality

The Trailblazers agree.

When asked why Deadly Science works, Mr Tutt says simply: "I speak from a place of commonality to these kids. And that commonality is the fact that I come from a place of trauma."

"I also come from a place of learning very practically, on country. And the kids [I work with] are the same. But a lot of their teachers have gone to fairly good schools and might not have the experience with that trauma. And that background makes it very hard for those kids to relate to them."

The same notion of commonality is present in Mrs Davis's motivations for increasing Indigenous health awareness.

"Going through the health system can be a really uncomfortable experience for Aboriginal people, and sometimes Aboriginal people feel more comfortable in reaching out to other Aboriginal people in terms of, say, business or health," she says.

"You don't have that factor of shame, or a barrier to getting an explanation."

Mrs Davis created her project after being affected by the stigma attached to autism. ( Supplied )

And it is there too in the work of DIYDG.

To Ms Jose, the "why" of it all comes back to that thing called history and its tendency to repeat.

"We have limited opportunities to actually be at the forefront leading change and historically, we've been oppressed," she says.

"We have been pushed into institutions that have forced us to disconnect from our language, our culture and our identity.

"When you know the issues, you can come up with the solutions."

Non-Indigenous and want to help with Closing the Gap? Here's how to go about it

Mr Cubillo says he hopes the Prime Minister's words are a portent of real change.

"There's so many reports done, Senate inquiries, there have been royal commissions," he says with the air of someone who has listed each of these examples time and again.

"There's academic research that's stated things aren't working and that there are better ways of doing this, and there are all these underlying issues that are impacting Indigenous people that need to be looked at altogether, not separately.

"And these underlying issues impact education, health, justice, all these systems that are being forced on Indigenous people."

To Mr Cubillo, the overwhelming answer as to how non-Indigenous people can help with Closing the Gap, is by listening.

"It's been 30 years since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and there's been recommendations from that and numerous other reports that have come out and said similar stuff about self-determination, and we continually ignore them.

"The reality is, we're 3 per cent of the population. We need our friends to help us to develop better relationships and outcomes.

"But the biggest issue is that, again, Indigenous people have always shown that they have worked and aspired to do things on their own and to find what the best outcome is for them."

Mr Cubillo says non-Indigenous people do not have to look too far when it comes to figuring out how to help Aboriginal people drive change.

"There's a framework in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People that people can look to, and get stuck in from there. It's all there, and that's a simplistic way people can get educated.

"And another simplistic way [to help] is by making sure you research before you make judgment on Aboriginal people and Indigenous issues.

"The information is out there."

The ABC's Trailblazers program provides a platform for individuals and groups of up to three working on projects to make regional Australia a better place.

Winners receive media support, networking and mentorship opportunities and an all-expenses-paid trip to Canberra.

If you would like to find out more about the next Trailblazers intake, go to the ABC Heywire website.