Mosaic Map: NRM funded projects
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site specific
region wide
Hands-on training boosts Aboriginal heritage
Archaeologist David Rhodes talks to students from Sunraysia TAFE about identifying Aboriginal artefacts
Indigenous community member Danielle Stewart, Traditional owner Joyce Kennedy and Sunraysia TAFE Koori Liaison Officer Sissy Havea
Shell middens on the bank of Bumbang Island
The number of Indigenous people in the Mallee who can assess sites for cultural heritage value and Indigenous history is set to increase with the help of a special training course developed by Mallee Catchment Management Authority (CMA).
"The training is on their country and within their own community," said Linda Pratt, Mallee CMA Manager of People and Programme Support. "Our aim is to train 30 community members representing all Indigenous groups in the Mallee region."
The course is designed to be interactive and hands-on. There is very little theory compared to an equivalent course at university, and it is presented by Aboriginal Elders and by specialists in the applicable discipline.
"There will be a lot of visual and hands-on demonstrations, and compared to a desk-based course is a very interactive style of learning," said Linda.
Funding
The training, funded by $50,000 from the Australian and State Governments, is popular with the large Indigenous population present in the Mallee.
Activities
Sites that are assessed for cultural heritage values can be on private or public land and include burials, scar trees, shell midden sites and isolated artefacts.
Indigenous elders and 'monitors', who are nominated by their own community to act as escort on site visits, provide the training in traditional ways of assessing a site. Indigenous facilitators Marlon Parsons and Ken Stewart and other specialists such as archaeologists, present the scientific knowledge.
The local TAFE college provides training on GIS/Mapping and Occupational Health and Safety.
The Catchment Management Authority conducts the first level of site assessment, and if it finds something of cultural heritage value such as stone artefacts, Aboriginal Affairs Victoria and representatives from the Indigenous community become involved. Each traditional owner group will use different methods of assessing sites.
Achievements
Many interesting archaeological or heritage discoveries have been made by people going about their day-to-day activities on farms, and in the rural landscape while doing things such as seed collecting.
People have found bones and shell middens as well as scar and ring trees, all of which are indicators that a community once lived in the area and that burial sites may be close by. Currently there are almost 3,500 registered sites throughout the Mallee.
More information
- Linda Pratt, Mallee CMA Manager of People and Programme Support: (03) 5051 4331 or linda.pratt@dpi.vic.gov.au
- Mallee Catchment Management Authority
See also
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