Indigenous

Troy Cassar-Daley says he’ll have “a whole lot of fun” when he tours remote Cape York communities early next month. The country music star was booked to perform at the Cooktown Expo and has been able to add shows at Aurukun, Coen, Mapoon and Pormpuraaw while in the Far North. He’ll perform with The Black Image Band, made up of the Harrigan brothers from Wujal Wujal.

Sparsely populated and prone to natural hazards, northern Australia is home to nearly 36,000 people – predominantly Indigenous Australians who live in remote communities. Previous fire and emergency management training has been seen as inadequate by local Indigenous land, fire and emergency managers, as it was based on suitability for southern Australia and lacked the tailored, collaborative strategies required to keep remote northern communities safe from frequent natural hazards in unique environments.

Pam Dillon. Canteen Creek School conducted a community kayak come and try day over the May Day long weekend. Local community members, children and staff travelled 50km Canteen Creek to Policeman’s Waterhole in Iytwelepenty National Park/Davenport Ranges for a fun-filled day on the water.

Geoff Helisma. Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) Catherine Cusack will table the Clarence Catchment Alliance’s (CCA) anti-mining petition in the NSW Upper House ... Ms Cusack said she was “actually feeling like I’m participating, today, in the community consultation process that the Clarence Valley has been denied”.

This year the Honey Festival is with us again. Much more space this time so expect this to be something special. There will be talks, demonstrations, competitions and special activities for children. An amazing programme once again - There will be dance – the Wadumbah Aboriginal Dance Group and also the Mad Tatters with their Morris dancing and fantastic costumes. There are camel rides , pony rides and the Dinosaur train. The Mounted Games will be on in the arena again. There will be Goats, Sheep, cattle and, of course, the Alpaca Show and Sale. The Bullsbrook Poultry Club will be having a young birds show.

Hundreds of mourners turned out to farewell iconic local, Denise Goddard on Tuesday. While the funeral was held at St Mary’s Cathedral in Darwin, Tennant Creek was well represented, with current priest, Father John and former priest, Father Joseph from Christ the King Catholic Parish amongst those officiating at the service. Denise, whose Aboriginal heritage is Kaytetye, was born and raised in Tennant Creek although ongoing health problems took her away from the town she loved for years at a time.

The 20th Ord Valley Muster, from 21 to 29 May 2021, features an outstanding line-up of over 30 events across nine exciting days including two nights of side splitting comedy, a real county rodeo, fringe shows, cultural experiences and performances, a traditional Corroboree, a secret suppers series, Art in the Park, music, early morning bliss with floating yoga boats and a family-friendly closing party that includes a diamond dig.

Kirstin Nicholson. It has been a flurry of turtle activity around the district over the past couple of months as broad-shelled turtles nest, and eggs hatch. Graham Stockfeld from Turtles Australia returned to the area recently to record data on turtle sightings, nest locations and condition ... Barapa Country Elders were actively involved in locating turtle nests in the Gunbower Forest on this visit.

It was their day. There were tears, statements from the heart and jubilation at the Federal Court hearing that determined native title on 52 parcels of land in the Richmond Valley. His Honour Justice Steven Rares presided over a makeshift courtroom in a marquee on Stan Payne Oval at Evans Head on Friday.

More than 60 leaders from Queensland’s 17 Indigenous councils gathered in Cairns last week to discuss common issues affecting their communities, such as housing and inadequate service delivery. The Indigenous Leaders Forum heard from speakers including Minister for Housing Leeanne Enoch and Assistant Local Government Minister Nikki Boyd over the two days.

The Jurnkurakurr Volunteers continue to turn up each night at BP in their efforts to curb some of the anti-social behavior around Tennant Creek. The word of what they are doing appears to be spreading far and wide, with several visitors coming along last week to see what is happening in our community.

Our First Nations heritage met our digital world head-on today (April 29), with the launch of a brand new virtual reality experience and app, which will transport users to a day before European settlement at Bankfoot House. The unique immersive and interactive experiences were launched today at the Bankfoot House Heritage Precinct, during Sunshine Coast Council’s 2021 Heritage Symposium.

A stunning projection on the waters of the Murrumbidgee River was the backdrop for an historic meeting of the Wiradjuri and Barkandji nations with Narrandera residents to return native fingerlings to the southern Murray Darling basin ... The culturally significant event was filmed by the National Museum of Australia. It was pre-empted by the historic fish kill in the Menindee on Barkindji Country in December 2018 and January 2019, with an estimated one million dead fish in the Barka/Darling River.

Brigadier Mark Ascough was awarded his border protection medal while posted in Weipa and was chuffed to see young Private Edward Nelson Sigai awarded his. Brigadier Ascough was the guest of honour at Napranum’s Anzac Day service and reflected fondly on his time at Weipa and the Western Cape.

Private Edward Nelson Sigai said he felt “pretty proud” to be awarded the Australian Operational Service Medal for Border Protection in front of his community on Anzac Day. The 23-year-old is a Napranum local and went to school at Western Cape College ... The quietly spoken soldier said he hoped he could inspire others in the community to join the Defence Force and serve their community and country.

The chair of Tennant Creek’s relief supermarket has thanked the hard work and dedication of the Jurnkkurakurr Volunteers action group for a dramatic decline in theft and vandalism at the store and the 24-hour BP service station ... Volunteers, including Traditional Owners and other community leaders, now sit outside the BP and supermarket every night, talking to youth wandering the streets and encouraging them to go home.

New and the installation of bulk water meter monitoring at Epenarra are part of the NT Government’s plan to shore up water security in Aboriginal communities across the NT. A $28 million investment will provide tailored projects in ten remote communities to improve water quality and supply infrastructure, prioritising areas of critical need ... Minister for Indigenous Essential Services Chansey Paech said his Government was committed to improving water security across the NT.

Western Cape communities have been urged to have their say on the Indigenous Voice process after workshops were held in the region last week. Prominent Indigenous leader Professor Marcia Langton was joined by Yarrabah mayor Ross Andrews for talks in Napranum, Weipa and Aurukun. The sessions were to discuss the key points of the Indigenous Voice report, released in January, and to garner feedback to take to the federal government.

Jai-Mec Rural Contracting has joined forces with Remondis to create new company Red Earth Industrial Services ... Sandra Kirk, who runs Jai-Mec with husband Jai Christie, said Indigenous employment was one of the priorities under the Red Earth Industrial Services structure. The longer-term goal is that Red Earth Industrial Services will flourish into a diversified industrial business, offering a variety of additional services which may include sand blasting, painting and electrical work.

The three levels of government will be meeting in Tennant Creek next week to acknowledge the key achievements to date of the Barkly Regional Deal and discuss future priorities ... The Barkly Regional Deal is the first Regional Deal in Australia - a 10-year $78.4 million commitment between the Australian and Northern Territory governments and the Barkly Regional Council. However Barkly MLA Steve Edgington said the NT Government was nowhere near meeting its commitment to the 28 economic, social and cultural initiatives to be implemented across the region over the first three years of the deal.