Aboriginal Way

A collaborative team of modern scientists and Ngarrindjeripeople with traditional knowledge have been working together on the Younghusband Peninsula soaks, which have sustained human and animal life for generations.Some of those soaks still remain today, although many have disappeared, prompting the research project to better understand what has changed across the landscape.Led by the Coorong Lower Lakes Murray Mouth Research (CLLMM) Centre, the project has focused on identifying freshwater soaks across Australia’s longest coastal dune system, while also working closely with Ngarrindjeri Elders and Indigenous rangers, whose understanding of the Countrystretches back long before modern mapping and satellite technology.For Ngarrindjeri Elder Uncle Derek Gollan, the work isdeeply connected to his own life and history in the region. Born at Raukkan, and raised around the Coorong, Uncle Derek spent decades working as a national parks ranger, travelling up and down the peninsula and learning the waterways, dunes and ecosystems through lived experience.AW spoke with Uncle Derek on Country about his life and experience looking after the Younghusband Peninsula.

Over the past 18 months, Aboriginal leaders have engaged ina co-design process in efforts to guide the South Australian Framework to Advance First Nations Water Interests and deliver beneficial advice on water management for their Country. During a workshop held on Barngarla Country at Central Ovalin Port Augusta, representatives from PBCs approved a draft framework which will now be submitted to the SA Government for consideration.Throughout this series of workshops, Traditional Ownersvoiced the specific concerns and aspirations they had for the future management of water on their lands, an area which many in attendance voiced had been overlooked historically.South Australia’s water resources have historically beenundertaken without due acknowledgement of Traditional Owners’ ancestral rights and obligations to water, impacting Aboriginal people’s ability to use their traditional and ecological knowledge to care for the environment. During the workshop we spoke with respected Barngarla Elder Harry Dare about water concerns he had for his Country, as part of a wider conversation about the region’s unique challenges when it comes to managing theenvironment.   

The South Australian Aboriginal Land & Sea Ranger Conference was held at the Adelaide Hills Convention Centre in Hahndorf on March 23-26, bringing ranger groups and relevant bodies from across the country together for a constructive dialogue, workshops and exchange of vital knowledge. Different days of the conference had specific focus areas including ranger networks and success stories, training and education, and future planning and strategic co-design.Several ranger groups gave detailed presentations on the work they do on Country, including Burrandies Aboriginal Corporation, Wardang Island IPA (Aboriginal Lands Trust), Ngarrindjeri LPCA, Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Rangers, Far West Coast Rangers, and Yarluwar Ruwe.This episode is part two of a series of interviews from the forum and feature yarns with Burrandies'  Thomas Lovett and Terry Hartman and a conversation with APY Ranger Adrian Dodd.

The South Australian Aboriginal Land & Sea RangerConference was held at the Adelaide Hills Convention Centre in Hahndorf on March 23-26, bringing ranger groups and relevant bodies from across the country together for a constructive dialogue, workshops and exchange of vitalknowledge. Different days of the conference had specific focus areasincluding ranger networks and success stories, training and education, and future planning and strategic co-design.Several ranger groups gave detailed presentations on thework they do on Country, including Burrandies Aboriginal Corporation, Wardang Island IPA (Aboriginal Lands Trust), Ngarrindjeri LPCA , Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Rangers, Far West Coast Rangers, and Yarluwar Ruwe.In this episode we speak with FWC ranger Stefan Mazaroskiand Kimberley Land Council Land and Sea Unit Manager Daniel Oades about their experiences at the conference and in managing their Country generally.

Arabana, Mudbura, Gurindji and Warlpiri photographer Colleen Strangways has collected her life’s work (so far) into a remarkable series of vivid imagery on display at the Adelaide Town Hall – accompanied by a striking photography exhibit (UV Songlines: Illuminating Ancestral Roots in the nearby Paul Kelly Lane.One of Colleen’s signature flairs in photography is the inclusion of iconography from the lands her subjects belong to.This process is something that inspired her initial passion for photography, reciting memories of looking back on images of her family and the landscape of her Country as sources of inspiration.Having Country incorporated into the portrait photographs allows Colleen to quickly engage her audiences with key details relating to their lives and ancestry.Altogether, Wathlu Anthunda brings together 38 striking portraits of First Nations people from 30 communities, created across the course of Ms Strangways 15-year career. AW sat down with Ms Strangways and Adnyamathanha and Narungga exhibit contributor, Zane Weetra, to discuss the creative process behind this collection of works.