Drawn by the ancient yet alive energy of the Top End, six friends who have been at the core of the team in Melbourne facilitating IofC Australia’s ‘Trustbuilding through truth-telling’ program made a memorable self-funded trip to Darwin to connect with First Nations people, festivals and places. Sarah Naarden, Brenda Cooke & Anne Holland write:
Soaking up every cultural moment that dynamic Darwin had to offer in early August, we began our journey by attending the breath-taking ‘Country to Couture’, a showcase of world leading indigenous fashion, embedding pathways for self-empowerment.
‘We were blown away by bold colours, big earrings and unique designs. The smiles of new Indigenous models and the pride of new designers from remote communities strongly resonating in the room.’
The next day the team grounded in place with a memorable day in Litchfield and a transformative On-Country experience led by Uncle Les Lipwurrunga Huddleston. While we drove through a landscape replenished from cultural fire practises, we learnt about bush medicine and magnetically aligned anthills. After a visit to iconic waterholes layered with a smoking ceremony and yidaki healing we were left feeling enlivened for the full program ahead.
Turruk in Darwin kicked off with a breakfast yarn with Thomas Mayo, who shared insights from the recent Yolngu led Garma Festival. His message was to ‘never give up.’ Thomas also informed the group about the First People’s Forum coming up in October, where decisions about the next steps will be discussed. Global Indigenous perspectives were shared by First Nation Canadian friends, Rainbow and Lewis Cardinal, who zoomed in from Caux. Grassroots stories of change were introduced by Nicole Shackcloth, CEO of Saltbush Enterprises, Dr Penny Ramsay from remote Arnhem land and Leila Gurriwiwi from Agency Projects.
Image: Bianca Easton (L) and Leila Gurriwiwi (R) at the breakfast yarn
In between participating at the opening of the Darwin Indigenous Art Fair, the Telstra Indigenous Art awards and the National Indigenous Music awards, we squeezed in some impactful site visits.
This included a trip to the Indigenous led community organisation ‘In Our Hands’ where Larrakia Elders invited us to try screen printing. The group also visited Saltbush Social Enterprises, who provide an amazing wrap around service, taking on intergenerational unemployment and enable positive employment outcomes in both remote and urban communities.
‘In Our Hands’
Also of note was a site visit to the Darwin Memorial Uniting Church and Peace Garden designed by IofC member, Mike Brown’s father Gordon Brown. It was hard not to be touched by the 77 bronze crosses displayed in the church, salvaged from the bombed WW2 ships from Darwin Harbour – a brave gesture of healing and reconciliation from a Japanese air force pilot.
The trip concluded with a visit to the awe-inspiring highlights in Kakadu, the Ubirr rock with its majestic ancient cave paintings, and the expansive views of the lush wetlands.
‘A divine sunrise on Yellow Waters Billabong illuminated the extraordinary rich ecosystem, hosting world heritage listed wildlife.’
Initiatives of Change Australia will continue its Trustbuilding work with online forums, delivered by volunteers with First Peoples across Australia. If you are interested in engaging in the forums please contact mike.brown@iofc.org.
Photo credits: Sarah Naarden and Brenda Cooke