Cultural awareness resources

Image: Jam Graham-Blair, a proud trawlwoolway pakana at the 2019 Landcare Conference. Photo by Natasha Mulhall 

 

Working Together to Care for Country

Landcare Tasmania is committed to strengthening relationships and two-way knowledge sharing with palawa/pakana communities of Lutruwita/Tasmania. We honour Aboriginal self-determination, culture, and knowledge, and seek to build trust through respectful, collaborative partnerships. Our focus is on early and ongoing engagement, cultural awareness, and ensuring our projects support Aboriginal priorities for caring for Country.

 

We pro-actively ensure that all projects funded through Landcare Tasmania are checked against the Aboriginal Heritage Register. 

Image: The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre map of palawa kani place names 

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre have a number of resources and programs on their website ranging from land management programs, language revival and more.

You can also check out their interactive map of place names in palawa kani, the language of Tasmanian Aboriginal people.   

Do you know if the Landcare Work you are planning could impact on Aboriginal Cultural Heritage?

Aboriginal Heritage Tasmania gives free advice to landowners, land managers and developers.  They also have an excellent Aboriginal Heritage Awareness online training module which we encourage everyone to utilise. 

You can also find out about the diverse Aboriginal cultural landscape which comprises the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. 

Image: Nita Education at 2019 Landcare Conference. Photo by Natasha Mulhall 

  • The Aboriginal Heritage Act 1975 outlines provisions for the preservation of Aboriginal relics.  The act includes substantial penalties for harming Aboriginal heritage. 
  • The Aboriginal Heritage Council is an independent body who advises the Tasmanian Government, land managers and owners on the protection and management of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Tasmania. 
  • Records on Tasmanian Aboriginal people can be accessed through Tas Libraries. 
Jason's Story - Cultural Burning in Southern TasmaniaCultural Burning in Southern Tasmania

The Cultural Burning in Southern Australia report and six accompanying posters bring together and uniquely present six diverse personal cultural burning experiences from across southern Australia. These experiences both diverge and align as Aboriginal peoples’ paths, perspectives and priorities have always diverged and aligned.

SETAC

The South East Tasmanian Aboriginal Corporation (SETAC) began a collaboration with Landcare Tasmania in 2021 to start a series of cultural burning workshops for Landcarers, led by Jason Andrew Smith, palawa man, a cultural burning educator and fire practitioner. Jason worked on the above project to create this poster (right).  Read our 2023 blog post recapping our On Country with SETAC excursion learning cultural land management practices. 

More groups 

Landcare Tasmania members, the Glenorchy Reconciliation Group (GRG) bring together Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people to build understanding and respect for cultural heritage. They have been caring for makalina rruni, Frying Pan Island on Berriedale Bay, for a number of years. 

Image: Nita Education

Nita Education provides Tasmanian Aboriginal cultural experiences including Excursions, Welcome to Country, Bush Tucker Tours, Cultural Awareness Training and more to schools and business across Tasmania, inspiring connection to a 50,000+ year old culture. 

Pakana services is a non-profit social enterprise that reinvests all profits back into the company to further develop the working skills of Aboriginal Tasmanians. Pakana services use a number of modern land management methods while sharing knowledge of Aboriginal culture and techniques with the wider community.

 

More resources:

Need more resources or assistance regarding Landcare and Aboriginal cultural heritage? Get in touch.

 

Landcare Tasmania acknowledges that the island of Lutruwita/Tasmania is Aboriginal Land, sovereignty was not, and never will be, ceded. Aboriginal people have cared for the lands, waterways, skies and communities of Lutruwita/Trouwerner since the beginning of time.

We pay respects to the palawa/pakana of Lutruwita/Trouwerner and strive to fulfil our simple but collective vision – that all Tasmanian communities are empowered and enabled to care for the land and waterways of Lutruwita/Trouwerner.

Landcare Tasmania is committed to continuously listening, learning and building stronger relationships with Aboriginal communities.