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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures 

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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures 

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This source highlights 18 different subjects within the overarching topic. The topics help explain to the teachers and students of what is going to be in the lessons as well as the significance behind what they are learning. It illustrates multiple viewpoints and instances of what happened and why it is significant to learn.

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DADIRRI (Official Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr Video) :: 3 minute promo

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David Gulpilil is a legendary actor, who since starring in 'Walkabout' has lead a unique life balanced between two cultures within Australia. 'Ten Canoes' was the first film to feature an Aboriginal language. 

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The Other Others | Great Australian Pods Podcast Directory. Hosted by the author of 'Sand Talk' and 'Right Story, Wrong Story'. Discusses Aboriginal knowledge systems through yarns and confronts big topics with guests from all over the world. 

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Podcast: The Other Others
Host: Tyson Yunkaporta
Category: Science
Sub-Category: Culture & Identity, Science News & Discussions, Universities & GLAM
First Episode: 2021

Through the Indigenous Knowledge Systems Lab (NIKERI, Deakin University), we have unlikely, cheeky and kind of inappropriate yarns with surprising people about how an Indigenous complexity science lens can be applied to solving the world's most wicked problems. Intro theme by Regurgitator.

Connect: Mastodon and Facebook Deakin, and Instagram Deakin, and YouTube and LinkedIn Tyson, Deakin, and Bluesky Deakin, and Threads Deakin

Listen: Amazon or YT Music or Apple or Spotify or RSS or Web

RELATED POSTS

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The Other Others | Great Australian Pods Podcast Directory

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Podcast: The Other Others Host: Tyson Yunkaporta Category: Science Sub-Category: Culture & Identity, Science News & Discussions, Universities & GLAM First Episode: 2021 Through the Indigenous...

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Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre in Kakadu National Park. It was so immersive and educational, and had a great range of books in the store. You can engage with locals who will pass on their rich knowledge of the land, weaving, history, etc. 

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Warradjan Aboriginal Culture Centre offers authentic, affordable Aboriginal artworks featuring Bininj indigenous artists from Kakadu National Park. View collection here.

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Children's books with First Nations Histories, cultures and Perspectives

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Children's books with First Nations Histories, cultures and Perspectives

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Please see attached PDF.

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FIrst Nations Texts with teacher note links

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Connection to Country | Australia’s Defining Moments Digital Classroom | National Museum of Australia

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Why is Country important to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people? How are language, Country and spirituality linked? Learn about the first peoples of Australia and the strong connection they have to the land.

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I've used these videos for digital technologies

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Key outcomes for students

Students will learn about how their digital footprint or reputation builds up over time, and how cyberbullying, sending nudes and sexting can have impacts on themselves, their family and their community. They will discuss the concept of respect in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and how this can be applied to online activities.

Using this resource in schools

There are three short animations as well as three issue-based videos and posters featuring the same characters.

Show the videos or pin up the posters and use the lesson plan activities to structure discussion. You can choose one video, based on the topic most relevant to your students, or show all of them over a series of lessons, in any order.

Introduce your students to the other pages in the resource, for self-directed learning.

Note that the animations contain mild coarse language and themes that may not be suitable for all ages. We suggest you review the content to ensure it is suitable for your audience.

You can also send your students the link to the student and community homepage and let them explore on their own.
Student home
Lesson plan structure

Two discussion-based lesson plans are available.

Secondary lesson plan

This lesson plan has two activities, each focusing on a different topic:

Activity 1 - sexting and sending nudes: uses the video That's Not Team Spirit to introduce the concept of sexting and explore the potential social, emotional and legal consequences as well as how to manage sexting-related issues

Activity 2 - digital footprint: uses the video Dumb Stuff to introduce the idea that everything we do online contributes to our digital footprint or reputation. It explores the potential social and emotional consequences of this as well as how to manage social media related issues.

Both activities place the issue within an Aboriginal cultural context and start by using the Respect Circle video to examine the impact of online behaviour on yourself, others and family/community.
Resources
Watch the videos That's Not Team Spirit, Dumb Stuff and Respect Circle on the Be Deadly Online student home page

Yarning circle lesson plan

This activity uses the poster series and the Digital Footprint video.
It may be suitable for upper primary students as well as lower secondary. For primary students, the Digital Footprint poster, the Positive Uses of Technology poster and the Dumb Stuff animation may be the most appropriate.

Resources
Watch the videos Digital Footprint video on the Be Deadly Online Digital Footprint page.
Downloads

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Key outcomes for students Students will learn about how their digital footprint or reputation builds up over time, and how cyberbullying, sending nudes and sexting can have impacts on themselves, their family and their community. They will discuss the concept of respect in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and how this can be applied to online activities.

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Getting to meet the women of Aurukun in previous work was an experience that will be hard to forget. My experience was relatable to this youtube link. 

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Getting to meet the women of Aurukun in previous work was an experience that will be hard to forget. My experience was relatable to this youtube link. 

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlhG5CqeH9k

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Preserving the knowledge of the medicine of the land - Steve Kemp

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Preserving the knowledge of the medicine of the land - Steve Kemp

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The simple dot style as well as cross hatching maybe beautifully aesthetic to the eye but has a far more hidden meaning and deeper purpose; to disguise the sacred meanings behind the stories in the paintings.

Before Indigenous Australian art was ever put onto canvas the Aboriginal people would smooth over the soil to draw sacred designs which belonged to that particular ceremony.

Body paint was also applied which held meanings connected to sacred rituals. These designs were outlined with circles and encircled with dots.

Uninitiated people never got to see these sacred designs since the soil would be smoothed over again and painted bodies would be washed. This was not possible with paintings.

Aboriginal artists abstracted their paintings to disguise the sacred designs so the real meanings could not be understood by Westerners.

Dot painting originated 40 years ago back in 1971. Geoffrey Bardon was assigned as an art teacher for the children of the Aboriginal people in Papunya, near Alice Springs. He noticed whilst the Aboriginal men were telling stories they would draw symbols in the sand.

Bardon encouraged his students to paint a mural based on traditional dreamings on the school walls. The murals sparked incredible interest in the community. He incited them to paint the stories onto canvas and board. Soon many of the men began painting as well.

At first they used cardboard or pieces of wood, which was later replaced by canvas.

This began the famous Papunya Tula Art Movement.

Bardon helped the Aboriginal artists transfer depictions of their stories from desert sand to paint on canvas.

The Aboriginal artists soon became concerned that the sacred-secret objects they painted were being seen not only by Westerners, but Aboriginal people from different regions that were not privy to their tribal stories.

They did not want them to understand or learn the sacred, restricted parts of their stories so the artists decided to eliminate the sacred elements and abstracted the designs into dots to conceal their sacred meanings.

Early Papunya paintings showed strong representations of artefacts, ritual objects and spiritual ceremonies. This style disappeared within a few years.

The first paintings to come from the Papunya Tula School of Painters were never intended to be sold. They were purely created by the Aboriginal people who were displaced, and living a long way from their original home country.

The works were visual reminders of their own being. They painted land that they belonged to and the stories that are associated with those sites. In essence they were painting their identity onto the boards, as a visual assertion of their identity and origins.

Originally colours were restricted to variations of red, yellow, black and white produced from ochre, charcoal and pipe clay. Later acrylic mediums were introduced allowing for more vivid colourful paintings.

These art works could show dots, cross hatching, maps of circles, spirals, lines and dashes which is the long established pictorial language of Western Desert Aboriginal People.

Aboriginal artworks painted in acrylic are a beautiful blend of traditional and contemporary. The dot technique gives the painting an almost 3D effect and a sense of movement and rhythm.

Many people comment that the paintings look alive and that they literally seem to jump out at you. The flat canvas comes to life with energy and vivacity just like the dreamings and rituals that inspired them.

Back to Dreamtime Art Library

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There is an amazing story behind the story of Aboriginal dot painting. Tap to discover how the last great art movement was accidently born from secrecy.

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The Kalkadoon People, also known as the Kalkatungu, Kalkatunga or Kalkadungu, ruled what is called the Emu Foot Province and have been living on these lands for over 40 thousand years. The Kalkadoon People owned vast tracts of land extending from McKinley's Gap in the east where they joined the

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This website contains  curriculum linked teacher resources, complete with student handouts and resources. It has a Professional Learning tab, and a Discover and Learn tab linked to articles and stories.

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Indigenous Australia, Culture, People & Resources | Australians Together

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Explore the rich diversity of Australian culture and First Nations history at Australians Together. Learn about Indigenous culture, migration, and more. Discover resources and information for educators, students, and all Australians.

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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have developed an intricate understanding of the environment over many thousands of years.

Artist: Laurie Nilsen

The artwork used in the design of this website represents the relationships between seasonal, meteorological and astronomical changes - and how the Mandandanji people read these changes to inform life on country.
About the Indigenous Weather Knowledge website
Learn more about the Indigenous Weather Knowledge (IWK) website and the Bureau of Meteorology's commitment to strengthening respectful and collaborative relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Language, culture and environmental knowledge
See an overview of the relationships between language, culture and environmental knowledge.
Reconciliation Action Plan
This plan formalises the Bureau of Meteorology's commitment and contribution towards reconciliation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples and the wider Australian community.
Please note: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website may contain images, voices or names of deceased persons in photographs, film, audio recordings or printed material.

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The Indigenous meteorology of Australia, knowledge on weather, calendars and climate.

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Aboriginal History for Kids - The First Australians

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We are working towards a vision for an education system that is more culturally inclusive and responsive, and that values and respects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and living cultures.

AITSL worked collaboratively and consulted with the profession, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education experts, students, families, and communities to develop a professional learning toolkit. The toolkit provides resources to support the intercultural development of teachers to enhance their culturally responsive teaching practice.

To begin your professional learning, you might like to access the intercultural development self-reflection tool as a starting point, then explore the intercultural development continuum and intercultural development capability framework for more information.

Intercultural development self-reflection tool

Use this tool to reflect on your self-awareness of worldviews, assumptions, attitudes, beliefs, and biases in relation to personal identity and culture.

Intercultural development continuum

The continuum provides a shared language and understanding of intercultural development while reflecting the non-linear process of building cultural responsiveness.

Intercultural development capability framework

Learn more about your current stage of intercultural development and find recommended actions to support your ongoing learning, so that you can improve your teaching practice.

Finding and recommendations

This report calls for institutional action at the school, system, sector and national level, supporting teachers to enhance and enrich their practice and to maximise student outcomes by developing their intercultural responsiveness.

The development of this report

AITSL reviewed the evidence and partnered with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education experts and the profession to develop this report with guidance from the Advisory Group for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education (AGATSIE), and in consultation with the teaching profession, students, families, and communities.

AITSL acknowledges their generous input to the report and the important body of work it represents and is grateful for the opportunity to have learned from them throughout the course of this project.

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building a culturally responsive australian teaching workforce

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final report for the indigenous cultural competency project

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Building a culturally responsive Australian teaching workforce

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Building a culturally responsive Australian teaching workforce

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Key Points

Many Australian Muslims are being encouraged to vote Yes in the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum.

Qualitative polling indicates Muslims resonate with First Nations people and are empathetic to their struggles.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese encouraged the community to back the Voice at an annual iftar dinner last week.

They'll be among the general population who will

on whether they support the constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by

"The reality is we are part of this country. And we now have the responsibility to address issues of the past."

"By further suppressing the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were continuing a process of assimilation, not preservation and growth."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flanked by Muslim leaders including the Grand Mufti Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammed at a Ramadan iftar in April 2023. Source: Facebook / ANIC

Kos Samaras, director of political consultancy RedBridge and a former Labor Party campaigner, says these voices are not alone.

He said multicultural communities are "some of the strongest supporters" of this campaign, with qualitative research from Redbridge showing mounting empathy from migrants with the First Nations struggle.

To be Muslim is to stand for justice.

Saja Alam, young Muslim voter

"Anyone that's grown up in that has themselves felt targeted, subjected to prejudice and racism, and therefore has empathy for another group of Australians who clearly have had been suffering this level of prejudice for a lot longer.

Earlier this year, leading No campaigner and Yuin, Bundjalung and Gumbaynggirr man Warren Mundine revealed he will

"The No campaign should not even bother with multi communities because they're not going to get by with them."

Australian National Imams Council held its annual iftar dinner, attended by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Source: Facebook / Australian National Imams Council

The Liberals last week announced their

by the government, but have backed the recognition of First Nations people in the Constitution.

That same day, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attended ANIC's annual

iftar dinner in Sydney where he used his speech to implore Muslim attendees to vote Yes.

He said "respect and fairness" were values of his government and of the Muslim community at the dinner.

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'Standing for justice': Why these Australian Muslims back the Voice to Parliament

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Key Points Many Australian Muslims are being encouraged to vote Yes in the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum. Qualitative polling indicates Muslims resonate with First Nations people and are empathetic to their struggles. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese encouraged the community to back the Voice at an annual iftar dinner last week.

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Spoken Virtual Tour|State Library of Queensland

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Spoken Virtual Tour|State Library of Queensland

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I came across this section within the State library of Queensland website and although I have not explored all aspects contained within, I was absolutely enthralled by what I have experienced thus far.  Well worth a look.

https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/virtual-tours/spoken

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We invite you to experience Spoken: celebrating Queensland languages with our virtual self-guided tour.

Contact Us

(07) 3840 7666
Stanley Place, South Brisbane Queensland 4101, Australia

© The State of Queensland (State Library of Queensland) 2023

Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners

We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their continuing connection to land and as custodians of stories for millennia. We are inspired by this tradition in our work to share and preserve Queensland's memory for future generations.

Digital graphic based on Kurilpa Country, an original artwork by Lilla Watson.

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We invite you to experience Spoken: celebrating Queensland languages with our virtual self-guided tour. Contact Us (07) 3840 7666 Stanley Place, South Brisbane Queensland 4101, Australia © The State of Queensland (State Library of Queensland) 2023 Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and their continuing connection to land and as custodians of stories for millennia.

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A dive into the deep past reveals Indigenous burning helped suppress bushfires 10,000 years ago

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Researchers focused on a site in the Illawarra region of NSW, which holds a unique record into the past.

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The new TV show Little J and Big Cuz is the first animated kids show to feature Indigenous Australians and their culture.

Award-winning Aboriginal actress Deborah Mailman voices the character Big Cuz in the show, and said the benefit was the diverse landscape the characters traverse, making it relatable to everyone.

"So kids, no matter whether they're living in the city or the outback, it's just great to have kids to see themselves represented in a way that's relatable to them."

Lydia Miller, executive director of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts at Australia Council, said it was incredibly important for Indigenous children to be able to see themselves on screen.

"When you see yourself reflected in the society you understand you have a place in the world," she said.

"What's really important is the cognitive development of children up to six years of age.

"[It's] important to develop these programs that engage young people and young children, because it assists with their cognitive development milestones.

"But it's also an affirmation of their culture, country, kindship systems and relationships, element of sensory motor development, [and] how to socially interact."

Ned Landers said they set it in "nana's backyard" to try and make it relatable nationally.(Supplied: Ned Lander Media )

Aboriginal kids 'get to see themselves on TV'

Producer Ned Lander said each episode had many layers within it, such as connection to country and what he called "both-ways learning".

"Learning from your own culture and learning from white fella country, learning from your school and your grandmother," he said.

But producing a show that reflected the diverse Indigenous communities within Australia was no small feat for the team.

"One of the really big challenges was to try and create a national show," he said.

"The idea that we came up with was we took the whole of Australia and squashed it around nana's backyard.

"I see it as a show that connects people and connects kids, and gives young Aboriginal kids hopefully a sense of seeing themselves on television from a very young age in a really positive way."

Animator and director Tony Thorne said he didn't want to make anything that felt like a caricature.(Supplied: Ned Lander Media )

Animator and director Tony Thorne said he had to create an image of this universal family that would not isolate individual Aboriginals.

"We definitely don't want something that feels like a caricature; we want something that feels natural and is appealing," he said.

Mr Thorne said it was a little saddening that it took so long for a show like Little J and Big Cuz to be created.

"It's a terrible thing that a show like this hasn't already been done," he said.

Show dubbed in local languages

Mr Lander said he had been contacted by numerous Indigenous community members who wanted to dub the show into their nation's language.

"The great thing about animation is you can dub it so easily," he said.

He said so far they had dubbed episodes in a number of Indigenous language, including Pintinjarra, Arrernte, Wiradjuri, Yawuru, and a reclaimed Tasmanian language called Palawa Kani.

Little J and Big Cuz premieres on NITV on April 28.

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aboriginal and torres strait islander arts

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New show lets Indigenous kids see themselves on TV

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The new TV show Little J and Big Cuz is the first animated kids show to feature Indigenous Australians and their culture. Award-winning Aboriginal actress Deborah Mailman voices the character Big Cuz in the show, and said the benefit was the diverse landscape the characters traverse, making it relatable to everyone.

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Ask us anything – Aboriginal people respond

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University of Sydney staff and students respond to questions anonymously submitted by non-Aboriginal people.

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Albert Namatjira (born Elea Namatjira; 28 July 1902 – 8 August 1959) was an Arrernte painter from the MacDonnell Ranges in Central Australia, widely considered one of the greatest and most influential Australian artists. As a pioneer of contemporary Indigenous Australian art, he was arguably one of the most famous Indigenous Australians of his generation. He was the first Aboriginal artist to receive popularity from a wide Australian audience.[1]
From Wikipedia

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Barambah-Cherbourg Diggers in World War I

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Barambah-Cherbourg Diggers in World War I

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The Boys From Barambah

We have created an immersive experience in which the user can follow individual soldiers on their journey abroad to the war fronts in Europe and the Middle East. On this site the user chooses a soldier and clicks through the text, photos and documents. Every one of the Boys from Barambah soldiers has a profile page which tells their story and links to their records and archives.

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We have created an immersive experience in which the user can follow individual soldiers on their journey abroad to the war fronts in Europe and the Middle East. On this site the user chooses a soldier and clicks through the text, photos and documents. Every one of the Boys from Barambah soldiers has a profile page which tells their story and links to their records and archives.

Many other research documents such as war records, enlistment papers and other archival materials have also been placed on the website.

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We have created an immersive experience in which the user can follow individual soldiers on their journey abroad to the war fronts in Europe and the Middle East. On this site the user chooses a soldier and clicks through the text, photos and documents.

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Welcome to the Cherbourg Memory

The Cherbourg Memory is a site for the people of Cherbourg and the people of the world. We offer you a window to our world – the Aboriginal people in South East Queensland, Australia. On this site we tell stories of our people – why they were brought here and what they have become over the 110 years they have lived here. It is a difficult and sometimes sad story, but it is essentially a story of survival and hope.

We welcome you to join the Cherbourg Memory Community – to participate by sharing your stories, by connecting with our people, by telling us about your world.

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The Cherbourg Memory is a site for the people of Cherbourg and the people of the world. We offer you a window to our world - the Aboriginal people in South East Queensland, Australia. On this site we tell stories of our people - why they were brought here and what they have become over the 110 years they have lived here. It is a difficult and sometimes sad story, but it is essentially a story of survival and hope.

We welcome you to join the Cherbourg Memory Community - to participate by sharing your stories, by connecting with our people, by telling us about your world.

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The Cherbourg Memory is a site for the people of Cherbourg and the people of the world. We offer you a window to our world - the Aboriginal people in South East Queensland, Australia. On this site we tell stories of our people - why they were brought here and what they have become over the 110 years they have lived here.

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The Ration Shed Museum

We welcome you to the Ration Shed Museum – located in the Cherbourg Historical, Cultural and Community Precinct – where you will have the opportunity to see and experience the past and present of a largest Aboriginal community in South East Queensland.

As a visitor you can hear the stories of our Elders, explore historical and contemporary exhibitions, view films, see our artists at work, buy some of the beautiful pottery and paintings, walk around our landscaped gardens and have a cuppa with us.

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Thanks for your patience everybody - we are happy to announce we are open to the public again - with a few precautions in place to keep everyone safe. All visitors are asked to phone and book an appointment before arriving, A maximum of 30 people visiting at any given time, A maximum of 8 people all…

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Is this proof of the fastest human in history? Australian Indigenous footprints may be evidence of exceptionally fast speeds reached whilst hunting
https://pacificans.com/does-this-20000-years-old-footprint-belong-to-the-fastest-man-in-history/

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https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-02/stolen-generations-survivor-harry-mills-searches-for-children/102106304

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This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.

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by Ted Egan

Vincent Lingiari (1919?-1988), Aboriginal stockman and land rights leader, was born in 1919, according to government records, at Victoria River Gorge, Northern Territory, son of Gurindji parents. Both his mother and his father, also Vincent Lingiari, were employed on the 3500-sq. mile (9065 km²) Vestey-owned cattle station, Wave Hill, established in 1883 by Nathaniel Buchanan. Called Tommy Vincent by his employers, he received no formal education. Aged about 12 he was absorbed into the station work at the stock camps, where cattle from the 80,000 herd were mustered, branded and drafted into mobs of 1200 bullocks to be driven to meatworks at Port Darwin.

Although Lingiari became a head stockman at Wave Hill, he initially received no cash payment. The first time that he handled money was in about 1953 when he lined up with the other stockmen at the Negri River races and was given £5 pocket-money. At the same time, he was becoming a highly respected Gurindji 'law boss'.

On 23 August 1966, tired of the Aborigines being 'treated like dogs' in their own country, Lingiari led two hundred of his people, employees of Wave Hill station, with their families, in a 'walk-off'. Encouraged by Brian Manning and a Roper River Aboriginal man, Dexter Daniels, both of the North Australian Workers Union, he demanded better pay and rations, and protection of the Aboriginal women. The group camped in the bed of the Victoria River and later moved to Daguragu, known to non-Aborigines as Wattie Creek. The Gurindji strike was to last nine years, the longest in Australian history.

Influenced by Daniels and the film actor Robert Tudawali (both members of the Northern Territory Council for Aboriginal Rights), and by the writer Frank Hardy, Lingiari was happy to add his voice to the emerging cause of 'land rights'. In April 1967 the Gurindji sent a petition to the governor-general, R. G. (Lord) Casey, asking that their tribal land be returned to them so that they could establish their own cattle station. Lingiari, Galarrwuy Yunupingu and Ted Egan recorded Gurindji Blues in 1971. Proceeds from the sale of 20,000 copies were divided between the Gurindji people and the Aboriginal tent embassy, Canberra. Lingiari introduced the song with the words:

My name Vincent Lingiari. Come from Daguragu, Wattie Creek Station . . . I have come here to tell the Parliament about the land rights. I got stories from my old grandpa that the land belonged to me, Aboriginal man, before all the horses and cattle came onto that land. I've got that story on my mind.

In anticipation of achieving their objective, the Gurindij formed in March 1971 the Muramulla Gurindji Co. To raise money to buy horses and erect fencing, Lingiari addressed members of the Waterside Workers' Federation of Australia and of Abschol, a committee of the National Union of Australian University Students established to support university scholarships for Aboriginal students. With the Gurindji elders Donald Nangiari and Lupgna (Captain Major), he visited Sydney and Melbourne to gain support for what was seen as a test case in land rights. During the strike Lingiari occasionally allowed Aboriginal workmen to assist the Wave Hill manager. In 1971 he worked as a ranger at Wattie Creek and also, from time to time, used his tracking skills to help Northern Territory police officers find missing persons or stolen cattle.

In March 1973 the newly elected Whitlam government reached an agreement with Lord Vestey to lease 3236 square kilometres of Wave Hill station to the Gurindji people for 'residential and cultural purposes and to depasture stock'. On 16 August 1975 Gough Whitlam poured a handful of red soil into Lingiari's hand to symbolise the legal transfer. The Gurindji leader commented: 'Now we can all be mates'. In 1986 the land was converted to freehold title.

Throughout the strike, Lingiari maintained a quiet dignity. He was appointed AM in 1976. In his later years, he became frail and almost blind. Survived by his wife, Blanche Nangi, whom he had married tribally, and their six sons and two daughters, he died on 21 January 1988 at Daguragu and was buried with traditional honours.

The Lingiari Foundation was formed in 2001 to promote reconciliation and Indigenous rights and to develop Aboriginal leadership; the Vincent Lingiari memorial lecture is delivered annually in Darwin; and the songs From Little Things Big Things Grow, by Paul Kelly and Kev Carmody, and Old Vincent, by Ted Egan, honour his memory. A Northern Territory Federal electorate is named after him, and a memorial to him in Reconciliation Place, Canberra, was unveiled in May 2004.

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Biography - Vincent Lingiari - Indigenous Australia

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Vincent Lingiari (1919?-1988), Aboriginal stockman and land rights leader, was born in 1919, according to government records, at Victoria River Gorge, Northern Territory, son of Gurindji parents. Both his mother and his father, also Vincent Lingiari, were employed on the 3500-sq. mile (9065 km²) Vestey-owned cattle station, Wave Hill, established in 1883 by Nathaniel Buchanan. Called Tommy Vincent by his employers, he received no formal education. Aged about 12 he was absorbed into the station work at the stock camps, where cattle from the 80,000 herd were mustered, branded and drafted into mobs of 1200 bullocks to be driven to meatworks at Port Darwin.

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Silenced too long, it is time for our Voice to be heard. Greg Ugle

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Silenced too long, it is time for our Voice to be heard. Greg Ugle

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A reflection to consider

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Budj Bim National Heritage Landscape / Eel Traps

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Budj Bim National Heritage Landscape / Eel Traps

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Sacred to the Gunditjmara people, the Budj Bim National Heritage Landscape provides evidence of a system of channels and weirs constructed from the abundant local volcanic rock to manage water flows from nearby Lake Condah to exploit eels as a food source.

The location is UNESCO World Heritage List. The Eel Traps are dated to be 6,000 years old and is one of one hundred significant Australian engineering achievements featured in Wonders Never Cease, a book celebrating Engineers Australia centenary year in 2019.

https://www.deadlystory.com/page/culture/history/Gunditjmara_people_build_sophisticated_Budj_Bim_eel_trap_system

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Budj Bim is a dormant volcano in South Western Victoria on Gunditjmara Country. The Budj Bim cultural landscape consists of multiple locations such as Lake Condah and the Tyrendarra Indigenous Protected Area.

Budj Bim means High Head in the language of Gunditjmara people and is home to one of oldest aquaculture systems in the world. Budj Bim is said to have erupted over 30,000 years ago and the lava flow that resulted created a system of channels that Gunditjmara people developed into weirs, dams and traps for fish and eels.

Creation Story

Budj Bim ties heavily in to the Dreaming of the Gunditjmara people. It is said that an ancestral creation-being revealed itself in the landscape to the Gunditjmara people. Budj Bim the ancestral creation-being's body, the mountain is the forehead and the stones are the teeth.

"(The Budj Bim landscape), which we have cared for over thousands of years, is so important to Gunditjmara People"- Aunty Denise Lovett, Gunditjmara Elder

To learn more about the creation story check out Dhauwurd Wurrong: The Creation of Budj Bim or you can download the Creation of Budj Bim App.

Lake Condah. © Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners
National Park

The Budj Bim National park (formerly Mt Eccles National Park) is located 'at the western edge of the volcanic plains that stretch from Melbourne to Port Fairy, extending northwards to Hamilton and Ararat.

The park was renamed to Budj Bim in 2017 and was the first national park that was co-managed by Gunditjmara Traditional Owners and Parks Victoria.

The area (originally 35 hectares) was declared a public picnic space in 1921, this then grew to 6120 hectares in 1985 and today the national park extends over 8000 hectares.

Aquaculture and Eel Traps

Budj Bim is home to one of the oldest aquaculture systems in the world. Aquaculture is the farming and breeding of water creatures including fish, eels, shellfish and plants for food and other human use. Aboriginal people are pioneers of aquaculture and there are examples across the Country of sophisticated fish trapping systems that are thousands of years old. Another famous example besides Budj Bim is the Brewarrina Fish Traps on Ngemba Country in NSW.

The Budj Bim eel traps have been in use since the Dreaming and throughout this time they have been rebuilt as needed. As western science is still young and catching up to the complex systems we have used since time immemorial, the eel traps have been dated back to over 6000 years ago.

Eel trap. Image source: Culture Victoria.

Gunditjmara people managed the water flow from Lake Condah, creating dams and blockages to ensure the water flowed as they needed it.

The eel and fish traps supplied enough food to sustain their community all year-round so that they never had to leave and also allowed the Gunditjmara people to trade with other nations.

Gunditjmara people built stone houses and huts to assist with living permanently on the land and today there are over 200 registered and recorded stone houses.

The Budj Bim eel traps and stone houses challenge a long held belief that Aboriginal people were hunters and gatherers who lived a nomadic lifestyle across the land. It shows that we had farming and land management practices and strong economic and agricultural lifestyles.

"There are around 200 registered and recorded stone house sites (at Budj Bim), so people were living a sedentary life" - Uncle Denis Rose, Gunditjmara Elder

Tae Rak channel and holding pond. © Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners
Heritage Listing

The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape was became a part of the National Heritage List on the 20th of July 2004 and almost 15 years later to the day The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape was granted World Heritage Listing. Budj Bim being listed on the world heritage list means the site is recognised as having "outstanding universal value" and is 1 of 19 other locations in Australia that have made the list.

This was a landmark decision as it is one of few places recognised purely for its importance to the First Nations Peoples.

Further Reading

Sources

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Gunditjmara people build Budj Bim eel trap system

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Budj Bim means High Head in the language of Gunditjmara people and is home to one of oldest aquaculture systems in the world. Budj Bim is said to have erupted over 30,000 years ago and the lava flow that resulted created a system of channels ...

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Brewarrina is a small town on the Barwon River in Ngemba Country. It is also the site of the world's oldest surviving human-made structure, the Brewarrina Fish Traps or Baiame's Ngunnhu.

Click on the article to see an image of the fish traps before they were destroyed.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/jul/10/fish-traps-brewarrina-extraordinary-ancient-structures-protection

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The people of Brewarrina proudly call their fish traps "the oldest manmade structure in the world".

Located in north-west New South Wales, the traps lie where the Barwon river makes a curve near the largely Aboriginal town of Brewarrina.

When the water level is low, bulrushes grow tall as waist-high and the sun bears down on exposed rocks - ordinary rocks, arranged in an unusual way.

The rocks surround 12 teardrop-shaped pools across half a kilometre. In the past, fish were herded in through small openings that the locals would quickly close shut with a few rocks. The pen walls are at different heights, allowing them to be used at different water levels, and have proved resistant to damage in the face of high and fast water flows.

When the fish traps were added to Australia's national heritage list in 2005, they were described as "the largest traps recorded", showcasing a thorough understanding of "dry stone wall construction techniques, river hydrology and fish ecology". Due to their size, design and complexity they were considered "exceptionally rare".

Quite how old these structures are is unclear. Dr Duncan Wright, an archaeologist at Australian National University, says although there has been no reliable radiocarbon dating, archaeological data suggests the traps are more recent than local claims that they are 40,000 years old . "To my knowledge there have been no fish traps found that date back that far, certainly none in Australia," he says.

Other traps in NSW appear to date to within the past 3,000 years, with the majority less than 1,000 years old, he says. "This suggests a widespread phenomenon involving stone-lined fish traps. Brewarrina is likely to be a part of this, however, without an exact age for the site it remains possible that it could be older."

Even if the traps are "only" 1,000 years old, it doesn't detract from their importance, says Wright. They remain a "remarkable example" of Aboriginal innovation, an ability to understand and exploit the natural landscape and form one part of a growing body of work that challenges how hunter-gatherer Australian societies have long been perceived.

"Fish traps became prominent across Australia - from the Torres Strait islands to south-east Australia - during the past few thousand years, suggesting interconnections across tens of thousands of miles. Life in pre-European Australia was a hell of a lot more complex than we might think," he says.

A glass-plate negative of the fish traps dating from 1880-1923. Photograph: Powerhouse Museum Sydney

These traps, called Ngunnhu by the local Ngemba people, have strong spiritual connections to an ancestral being called Baiame, who legend says threw his net across the Barwon, thereby creating their design. Along with his sons Boomaooma-nowi and Ghinda-inda-mui, he is said to have built the traps using dug up stones and boulders.

According to the story, Baiame then allocated the traps to different family groups, making them responsible for their use and maintenance. The area became a meeting place for 20-odd nations, including the Morowari, Paarkinji, Weilwan, Barabinja, Ualarai and Kamilaroi people, who would gather each year in a kind of parliamentary meeting.

Fish traps exist in Albany, Western Australia, where locals are pushing for their preservation. Video by Monica Tan and Bill Code Guardian

It was an ideal location: teeming with enough freshwater mussels, emu and crayfish to feed all the elders, men, women and children. They gathered from across the northern basin for corroborees, initiation ceremonies and trade meetings.

Ngemba man Feli McHughes says the ingenuity of the traps lay in how they did not disrupt the flow of the river. "It could be left there permanently - when the gate wasn't closed the fish could come back out if they wanted."

But he says things changed when the "white man came here" and traditional practices began to "go underground". The Ngemba people were rounded up and ordered to live at Brewarrina Mission, nine miles away. "And they weren't allowed to come here and get fish from these traps," McHughes says.

Stones were removed by European settlers in the 1860s and 1920s for construction work. And the traps suffered a further blow in the 1960s, when a weir was installed just a few metres upstream. A report for the NSW Healthy Rivers Commission subsequently found it was "unnecessary for a secure town water supply" and that "reconciliation and justice" suggested it should be removed. The concrete slab halts the river's natural water flow and at times the traps run dry.

Between 1986 and 2009, $64,000 in NSW heritage grants was approved for conservation of the traps. A local community group, the Brewarrina Business Centre Cooperative, is responsible for their condition. Its museum runs daily tours of the traps, charging $10 per person, and in 2014 had about 1,000 visitors.

Ngemba man Feli McHughes, 55, who lives in Brewarrina. Photograph: Grace Tan/The Guardian

Cooperative member Bradley Hardy agrees the weir has wreaked havoc on the river and the traps. "If the water was up more we wouldn't have so much trouble with the bulrushes. The water would wash the mess away from the traps." And native fish - which swim upstream - wouldn't struggle so much in the face of an aggressive population of European carp that has overrun the river system.

Hardy and his colleagues work diligently in their spare time to clean out rubbish and clear away the bulrushes. His vision for the place is modest: "If we can get about two or three more labourers in the area that'll be real good."

He says the mood of the town is deeply connected to the state of the river flow. "We're river people. When the water is running again it creates a good vibe."

The neglected state of the traps speaks to a broader issue plaguing Aboriginal cultural heritage in NSW. Since 1969, objects of Aboriginal cultural significance have fallen under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, but continued to be undervalued and poorly protected, with limited support given to traditional owners. Recognising the many instances where this system has failed, in 2011 the state government kicked off a process of reform with the last phase of community consultation in review by the office of environment and heritage.

NSW is covered in important cultural sites and objects, including bora rings, burial carved trees, hand-crafted coolamons and thousand-year-old rock artwork - but only 100 have been officially declared in the state (and come under the Act's protection) since 1974. NSW Aboriginal Land Council chairman Craig Cromelin says the rest are hidden from non-Aboriginal people and will remain so until legislation is "made solid and strong".

McHughes hopes for more tourism investment, but is sceptical about the chances. Welfare dependence is "sterilising the spirit of the Aboriginal people", he says, and heritage conservation represents an opportunity to create more culturally appropriate work - of which there is little in a town with a 13% unemployment rate.

And while Australian academics are finally acknowledging the scientific and engineering ingenuity evidenced by Aboriginal heritage sites such as the traps, McHughes is rapidly giving up on hope mainstream Australia will likewise recognise its value, believing them to be "embarrassed" by it in context of the historical debasement of his people.

He says the national heritage "couldn't give two hoots" about its condition. "It's the oldest manmade structure in Australia. To see the dilapidated state they're in - it's a disgrace to the nation. Would someone just let the Opera House go like that? And how much more important are the traps to the heritage of this country?"

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The fish traps at Brewarrina are extraordinary and ancient structures. Why aren't they better protected?

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The people of Brewarrina proudly call their fish traps "the oldest manmade structure in the world". Located in north-west New South Wales, the traps lie where the Barwon river makes a curve near the largely Aboriginal town of Brewarrina.

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"The oldest skeleton ever found in Australia, Mungo Man, has been returned to his home 40,000 years after his death. He spent the past 40 of those years being studied by scientists. But while he's now been returned to the area he once lived in there are still arguments over "

I really love that there is heaps of tangible history, engineering and science to show students how long First Nations have been here. There are heaps of great examples that can be used to show First Nations civilisation and culture is older than the popular civilisations such as the Egyptians/Pyramids!

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Do you know where his face appears?

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The development of Australia as a nation, particularly after 1901. Students explore the factors that led to Federation and experiences of democracy and citizenship over time. Students understand the significance of Australia's British heritage, the Westminster system and other models that influenced the development of Australia's system of government.

What contribution have significant individuals and groups made to the development of Australian society?

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The development of Australia as a nation, particularly after 1901. Students explore the factors that led to Federation and experiences of democracy and citizenship over time. Students understand the significance of Australia's British heritage, the Westminster system and other models that influenced the development of Australia's system of government.