Comentoring, collaboration, and community: feminist approaches within an australian university

McGuire and Reger propose “comentoring” as a feminist innovative challenge to traditional, hierarchical models of mentoring. This commentary reflects on experiences of implementing comentoring among a group of interdisciplinary researchers at a regional Australian university. It emphasises ways personal alignments (development of community), democratic approaches to research, and multiway mentoring practices have been integral to the group's academic success, collectively and individually. It outlines flow-on effects of this praxis for others (e.g., postgraduate students, early career researchers) encompassed within this group. Finally, this commentary supports and develops McGuire and Reger’s proposal, particularly among minority/priority groups—including academics who identify within multiple intersecting identities—arguing this professional practice model is integral to empowering ethical practice among academics enacting social justice research.