Gunai Kurnai Elder Uncle Ricky Baldwin has been appointed as the new Elder in Residence at Monash University's William Cooper Institute.

He is stepping up from Aunty Di Singh, who recently retired after many years in the role.

Uncle Ricky said the appointment was an honour and an opportunity to strengthen cultural connections for Indigenous students.

"It was a huge honour and it was unexpected," he said.

"I connected with students on my first day and a lot of them don't have a connection to culture.

"I'll be working with the young ones to change that."

He plans to create opportunities for students to learn about their culture and identity.

"I asked them to make a wish list of what they want to learn and bring it to me," he said.

"Some have never made artefacts or learned to dance. When I suggested we make our own clapsticks, their eyes lit up."

Uncle Ricky said he wants to mentor students and advocate for culturally safe spaces across the university.

"They can come to me if they're having difficulties or if cultural education is missing in some classes," he said.

"I've got a lot of freedom to be me and I'm very big on teaching culture.

"This year's NAIDOC theme is the 'Next Generation' and these young ones will be well-educated and ready to create change."

He also hopes to take students on Country and develop cultural immersion programs.

Beyond cultural mentoring, Uncle Ricky sees opportunities to build pathways for young people into sport and education.

"The campus has five basketball courts and a state-of-the-art gym," he said.

"I want to run a National Three on Three grassroots tournament (Basketball) and link students with organisations and scholarships."

Uncle Ricky said he is excited to continue building relationships and supporting Indigenous students and staff across Monash University.