Protecting Aboriginal Cultural values in NSW Marine Estate

YouTube Clip Transcript


Protecting Aboriginal Cultural values in NSW Marine Estate - YouTube clip transcript


HI I'm Kylie Jackie and a Bungalong

woman and I have the privilege of

leading initiatives for protecting the

aboriginal cultural values of the marine

estate.

The Marine estate management

10-year strategy is a really

important initiative to our

people because it's to uphold and

strengthen and promote Aboriginal

cultural values of Sea country which has

been identified at real high risk from

the threats and risk assessment.


Some of the activities that will come from

initiative include getting more

of our people on sea country to do work

that helps the environment but also to

promote that local cultures and to

engage Aboriginal people more

meaningfully around planning and

decision-making for the Marine estate.

Introduced species that are invasive

they take over all native vegetation.

Once the native vegetation is gone then

the native animals and birds and

wildlife actually start disappearing as

well with harvesting their food and that

from the oceans and their shorelines and

stuff like that.

We'd like to have a

nice clean area and also there's a lot

of significant cultural areas along

these shorelines a lot of young people

they love the water .

Part of the water is you know their life so

if we can create something around in the

water you know something that they love

it's not a hard job to come to work.

There's also a healthy lifestyle.

They make these tickets to operate.

Like I said there's not a lot of employment

down here but we're looking at creating some

employment around the tourism industry

and working with marine parks stuff.

[Applause]

How are long have they been here for ?

Could be five thousand yours, but they could be a lot longer than that.

There’s a story beyond that that's about

your identity and it's about law and

it's about who you are as young men.

I never had those opportunities at all and

most the men here wouldn't have had

these opportunities growing up

so we've taught the boys some things

that they probably didn't know before.

We want to know a little bit more about and what have more

understanding and that that knowledge is

there now and they can't get rid of it.

We're currently undertaking a re - veg

here. It's one of the most polluted lakes

within the state which is pretty sad

considering it is an area that as a young

child I remember going prawning with my

father and uncles and stuff like that.

We are under taking vessel training with local

Aboriginal community with the idea of

upskilling them so they can obtain a

boat license.

Green to green when going

upstream. So it's good to see you know

the other side of the law.

That's always

been a goal of mine to work for the

fisheries or National Park just so that

I can also protect my sites and culture

in that as well and hand that over on to

my community and my family as well.

We're taking the kids around showing

them the significant cultural values of

the Aboriginal people that occupied this

area for roughly over 60,000 years.

They are pig faces, so if you are

thirsty or you've been running and

training.

Aboriginal culture is so hands-on.

We touch, we see, we taste, we smell and

We hear, so we're using all those

parts of our body - our listening, looking,

smelling and being able to keep quiet

and being able to retell a story that's

been handed down. So it's really

important because they get to feel those

senses and learn about life and the reality of it in nature.



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