The stories of Aboriginal elders are being saved using latest digital technology.

At a five day workshop held last month in Bundaberg, a group of Aboriginal people from Bundaberg, Cherbourg and Wondai produced stories about their traditional knowledge.

Funded by the Burnett Mary Regional Group under the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country, the workshop gave members of the Indigenous community skills in audio, still photography and video using the latest digital equipment to record their own stories, history and culture.

One of the workshop participants, Marleane Johnson produced a digital story featuring her father Burnie Johnson.

“Dad has a lot of knowledge about the River and surrounding areas, all of which have been passed down to him through stories from his elders,” she said.

“This workshop gave me the opportunity to get together with Dad and other local families and relatives to record their stories, and to create a permanent record of this history for our family.”

 

The workshop was also attended by the recently formed Bunya Mountains Murri Rangers and included a trip to Walkers Point to give the group some “in the field” recording experience.

 

Murri Ranger Maurice Mickelo said the field trip was great as the group needed to get out of the classroom.

“While we were out there, we did a fair bit of recording that will hopefully highlight that area and why it needs to be protected,” he said.

Walker’s Point is a culturally significant area featuring an expansive series of shell middens, evidence that Indigenous groups would have used this place extensively over a long period of time and held large gatherings there to conduct ceremony, trade, hunting and gathering.

The group photographed, filmed and recorded audio, documenting the site in its current state. These recordings have been archived and will be used by the Burnett Mary Regional Group for future site monitoring and evaluation purposes.

Luke Barrowcliffe of Goorie Vision said the entry level workshop focused on the consumer range of digital equipment as it is easily accessible and would be generally used in work, home and school environments.

“The training is designed so graduates of the week are able to capture better quality recordings and photos,” he said.

He said that the workshop provided an important link between Aboriginal elders and their young people, bridging the intergenerational divide.

“Funnily enough digital technology is providing our elders with a medium to connect youth back to culture and country,” he said.

Co-facilitator Chris Peckham from Source Media said previous workshops had be held at Thornhill Station, Cherbourg and Hervey Bay with great success.

“It’s a great opportunity for Indigenous community members to record culturally specific stories and language in a trusted environment,” he said.

 

 

 

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