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Tribal Warrior Association - Connection to the harbour
Summary
Shane Phillips speaks about Sydney Harbour from an Indigenous perspective and his ongoing connection to the harbour in his role as CEO for the Tribal Warrior Association.About Shane Phillips
Shane Phillips has a long history of working to empower disadvantaged Indigenous Australians through his involvement as Chief Executive Officer of the Tribal Warrior Association and organiser of the renowned Family Culture Day on the Block at Redfern. The Tribal Warrior Association aims to spread and revitalise Aboriginal culture, and to provide economic and social stability to Aboriginal people. Shane is a cultural leader who believes the pathway to positive change is through empowerment and belief in the pride and strength of Indigenous people
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‘Bully Beef Stew’ - a theatrical exploration of Aboriginal manhood
Summary
Sonny Dallas Law, Colin Kinchela and Bjorn Stewart discuss their new performance work ‘Bully Beef Stew’ presented by PACT Centre for Emerging Artists. Bully Beef Stew is a theatrical exploration of Aboriginal manhood by three young Aboriginal men working together to transcend usual notions of what it is to be an Aboriginal man today.About Sonny Dallas Law, Colin Kinchela and Bjorn Stewart
Sonny Dallas Law is a graduate of the Eora Performing arts Centre 2004. He has been practicing his craft since his graduation, performing, writing and directing. Sonny Dallas has performed in small community theatre to large stage productions. He has also starred in many short/short feature films. Sonny Dallas is currently the Cultural Arts Development officer at the Redfern Community Centre. He enjoys his roles and responsibilities organising and running cultural arts events and programs for the community.
Sonny continues to write and perform as an artist working on other projects outside of his daily work. Sonny believes by working in the arts administration and in the Performing Arts Industry practically, he will further his skills as an artist. Colin Kinchela Gamilarray (Kamilaroi) Nation, North-West New South Wales, is an independent Sydney based actor, director and writer, works across a sweep of performance mechanisms combining dominant work practices of community cultural (heritage) protocols, social justice and mental health. He regularly facilitates for a range of diverse educational and arts organisations as a guest director and mentor/ trainer.
Colin is the Vice-Chair and an initial member of Mooghalin Co-Op, the newest Indigenous theatre company in Australia. Bjorn Stewart has professionally performed in a number of developments, short plays and major productions such as Ben Hurr, The Colourblind Project, and now a current member of Kenetic Energy Theatre Company, who focused on political injustices on the global environment and tackling indigenous issues.
He has also performed, written and directed his own performances around Sydney and Wollongong. As an artist Bjorn relishes in treading a fine line on boundaries set for racial discrimination in a playful environment. This playful energy triggers the conceptual exploration of the human nature in controlled environments he enjoys dwelling into and brings this share experience with an audience.
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Indigenous boatmen around Sydney
Summary
Dr Keith Vincent Smith speaks about his latest research into Indigenous boatmen around Sydney –sparked by his exhibition and book MARI NAWI: Aboriginal Odysseys (Rosenberg, 2010).About Dr Keith Vincent Smith
Dr Keith Vincent Smith is a historian, author and curator, devoted to colonial Indigenous/European contact history. He has published major biographical studies of the Indigenous leaders Bungaree (1992) and Bennelong (2001). In 2006 Keith was co-curator, with Anthony Bourke, of Eora: mapping Aboriginal Sydney, 1770-1850, a major exhibition at the State Library of New South Wales. He was senior researcher for the first episode of the SBS television documentary First Australians (2009).
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Climate issues in the early days of the Sydney colony
Summary
Masters graduate Erin Town talks about the fight for food in the early days of the Sydney colony. When the first settlers arrived at Sydney Cove they quickly realised that the land was harsh, dry and unsuitable for the level of farming required to sustain the new colony.About Erin Town
The first settlers were so unprepared for the Australian climate and soil that even Governor Phillip was on rationed food. Erin will discuss the struggles that early European settlers had with food production, the resulting rations and the importance of imports to the growing colony.
Erin recently graduated from Macquarie University with a Masters Degree in Museum Studies. She also has a Bachelor of Arts (History) and has trained at both The Rocks Discovery Museum and Macquarie University Museum of Ancient Cultures.
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Our ‘foodie’ past through archaeology
Summary
Guide Team leader James Manser, from Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority’s education division Sydney Learning Adventures, talks about how we can learn about our ‘foodie’ past through archaeology.About James Manser
Join James at The Rocks Discovery Museum where you can see, touch and interact with archaeological artefacts discovered in the local area, and you learn about what they tell us about our eating and drinking habits in times past.
James has been responsible for the implementation of archaeological and built environment education programs in The Rocks, Darling Harbour, Chinatown and Pyrmont. Since 2001, Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority has developed and implemented archaeology-related school excursions for children up to 18 years.
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The Hula Hoopist of The Rocks
Summary
Kira Carden – speaks about life as Hula Hoopist and a Rocks resident.About Kira Carden
Kira Carden from Sydney's circus group Hu-La-La is a high-skill circus artist wrapped up in the body of a 50’s Pin-up Girl. She can spin a hoop on every part of her body, head to toe, she can spin over 40 hoops at once in the famous “Hula Slinky” . Kira lives in The Rocks and has worked as a freelance Hula Hoopist performing solo and group acts with Hu-La-La throughout Australia. She has enthralled audiences with her mix of high-skilled circus hoops and Burlesque styling since 2002. With over ten years’ experience in theatre, dance and circus, Kira’s unique style of performance has been in high demand in corporate entertainment, music festivals and nightclubs. In addition to hula hoops, Kira’s acts include feather fans, Isis wings, Swing Dancing and puppetry.
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Currency of The Rocks
Summary
Ardent coin collector Tony Stevens will talk about proclamation: why the colony needed them, why certain coins from different countries were chosen and what they tell us about visitors to the colony.About Tony Stevens
Anthony (Tony) Stevens was born and raised in Birchgrove (Balmain) in the 1950s, when the area was still a working-class suburb. At the time, Mort Docks and Snail Bay, a wooden ship repair yard, were still operating. At low tide in Snail Bay, Tony would collect copper nails, coins and old metal ship parts which saw him develop a love of historic items. He still remembers when hundreds of old pipes and cutlery were dug up in Birchgrove when tram tracks were being laid. Today, he still discovers old coins and spends hours researching the origin and people that once used them.
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Sustainability, as per our traditional landowners
Summary
In his talk Dootch will discuss the concept of sustainability from an Indigenous persons perspective and how caring for country is central to his culture and his cause.About Roy 'Dootch' Kennedy
Uncle Roy ‘Dootch’ Kennedy is a Dharawal Traditional Owner and Chairperson of the Illawarra Aboriginal Land Council. He is a negotiator and advocate for Aboriginal rights and has been involved in community and environmental activism for many years. On Boxing Day 2000 Dootch and his cousin set up camp at Sandon Point to raise awareness that the local council had given a developer approval for a housing estate on this site where a traditional Aboriginal Kuradji, or clever man, was buried. Ten years later the Sandon Point Aboriginal Tent Embassy remains home for Dootch who is still fighting to protect this important Indigenous site and unique natural environment
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Creating performances in The Rocks
Summary
Creative producer Michael Cohen talks about creating performances in unusual spaces and places, in The Rocks and beyond.About Michael Cohen
Michael Cohen is a site-based performance/event director and creative producer of events at Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority. In this capacity, he directed The Rocks Fire Water (Vivid Festival 2009 and 2010). Michael was co-artistic director of Theatre Kantanka from 1996 to 2006, and programme director of Newcastle Live Sites between 2004 and 2008.
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NAIDOC - and what it stands for
Summary
Aboriginal local woman, Nikita Ridgeway will be speaking about NAIDOC and what it stands for.About Nikita Ridgeway
Born to Aboriginal parents, her father a Biripi man and stolen generation from Taree and her mother a strong Bundjalung woman, Nikita was bred to be a fighter and educator for her people. She is also the grand-daughter of well-known Aboriginal author and lecturer Dr Ruby Langford Ginibi who writes and speaks about Aboriginal culture, history and politics.
Nikita’s parents and grandmother were civil rights activists who fought for the equal rights of their people laying the foundation for the ideologies she has today.
Having grown up in the western suburbs of Sydney she has forever battled stereotypes—being female, Aboriginal, a “Westie” and young. Although from her success, it is evident this has not stopped her yet. Nikita was the first Aboriginal school captain at Blacktown Girls High School and the first Aboriginal student in NSW to receive the Minister of Education Award for Academic Excellence and Contribution to School. She is also co-founder of The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Basketball Association, tournament director of National Indigenous Basketball Championship and co-founder and event director for Redfern Records Entertainment and the Aboriginal Hip Hop & RnB BUMP Music Awards
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Cadman’s Cottage and the role of the Government Dockyard in Macquarie’s colonial expansion
Summary
David Thompson from the National Parks and Wildlife Service talks about Cadman’s Cottage and the role of the Government Dockyard in Macquarie’s colonial expansion. Built in 1816, Cadman’s Cottage is one of only a handful of Sydney buildings that remain from the first 30 years of the colony.About David Thompson
David Thompson is a Senior Guide with the National Parks and Wildlife Service. He coordinates the NPSW tours within the Sydney Region and has worked out of Cadman’s Cottage since 1999.
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Finding treasure and celebrating amazing women
Summary
Annette Butterfield speaks about finding a trunk of extraordinary artworks in her family home and about amazing women unacknowledged in the history books.About Annette Butterfield
Annette holds a masters degree in art history and theory from the University of NSW. She has worked as a co-curator at various venues throughout Australia speaking about 19th century female artists. Annette runs a women’s group called ‘The Lost Ladies’ through the Older Women’s Network in Millers Point to investigate historic places in Sydney.
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Life in the heart of The Rocks
Summary
Clocktower Square town crier Stephen Clarke speaks about his working life in the heart of The RocksAbout Stephen Clarke
Stephen has been town crying and performing at the Clocktower Square in The Rocks since 1988. He also works as the Gosford City Council town crier and is a balloon sculptor, guitar player and voice-over man for radio commercials.
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ARTEXPRESS exhibition in The Rocks
Summary
A selection of 2010 Visual Art students from this year’s ARTEXPRESS exhibition in The Rocks speak about their creative process.About Artexpress artists
ARTEXPRESS represents the high standards and diversity achieved by Year 12 Visual Arts students in New South Wales schools. In 2011, 19 venues in The Rocks, including hotels, shops, galleries and a historical dig site, will display the work of 34 students. The Rocks Discovery Museum is the ARTEXPRESS headquarters where visitors can pick up a map and cast their vote in the People’s Choice Award.
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Indigenous heritage and bush foods
Summary
Jess Sinnott speaks about indigenous heritage and bush foods, sharing her knowledge of the fruits, vegetables and meats seasonably available to Aboriginal people in the Sydney area.About Jess Sinnott
Jess Sinnott currently works as a part-time teacher and aboriginal cultural education program coordinator at northern Sydney Institute of Tafe. Jess is also an Aboriginal guide with Sydney Learning Adventures, an Aboriginal education officer with the Royal Botanic Gardens and an Aboriginal discovery ranger with the National Parks and Wildlife Service. An experienced guide, interpreter and heritage officer, Jess is skilled in delivering tours, programs and workshops that give everyone an opportunity to share in the knowledge of Aboriginal history and culture.
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Researching Aboriginal family history
Summary
Indigenous Services Librarians and authors Melissa Jackson and Ronald Briggs give their expert advice on researching Aboriginal family history and demonstrate the online resources available through the State Library of NSW website.About Melissa Jackson & Ronald Briggs
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NAIDOC week
Summary
NAIDOC week and this years themeAbout Lorna Munro
Lorna Munro descends from thousand-year-old bloodlines with deep roots in New South Wales, and family ties and connections in Northern Queensland, Victoria and beyond. Born in Sydney in the year of Australia’s bicentenary, 1988, she is a proud young Wiradjuri/ Gamilaroi woman.
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History of the Julian Ashton art School
Summary
Australian Artist Paul Ashton Delprat talks about art in The Rocks, and the Julian Ashton art School and its History.About Paul Ashton Delprat
Paul is the principal of the Julian Ashton Art School in The Rocks which was founded in 1890 by his great Grandfather Julian Ashton. His art is represented in the National Gallery, Canberra, regional galleries, the BHP collection and other public and private collections.
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The Rocks Dreaming program
Summary
Binowee Bayles takes us into the world of The Rocks Dreaming program and how she ignites the imaginations of young people with an interpretation of the Rocks from an Aboriginal perspective.About Binowee Bayles
Binowee Bayles takes us into the world of The Rocks Dreaming program and how she ignites the imaginations of young people with an interpretation of the Rocks from an Aboriginal perspective.
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Aboriginal welfare photography
Summary
Sue Newman, Aboriginal Liaison Officer, and Susan Charlton, Creative Producer, discuss their emotive exhibition of old Aboriginal welfare photographs, In Living MemoryAbout Sue Newman & Susan Charlton
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The influence of Indigenous women
Summary
This talk will focus on the importance of Indigenous women and the many roles they have played in the overall development of Australia’s Indigenous history, from traditional times to the present.About James Wilson-Miller
It will highlight areas where the influence of women far outweighs that of Indigenous men through their everyday role as educators, child carers, camp builders, food collectors, decision-makers, peacekeepers, artists, storytellers and healers. It will also be centred on women from Gringai Clan of the Wonnarua Nation in the Hunter Valley, NSW.
James Wilson-Miller has been Section Head and Curator of Koori History and Culture at the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, for the past 14 years. He is an experienced researcher, well-known Koori historian and the author of the best seller, Koori: A Will To Win, based on the Koori female line of his immediate and extended families. In September 1998, he became the first Koori historian to give the prestigious annual History Council address. James is respected by Koori Elders, educators and community members as well as his non-Koori colleagues and in 2001 was awarded the Centenary of Federation Centenary Medal for Services to the Community.
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The impact of structural racism
Summary
Merindah Donnelly is a Wiradjuri woman from the Gamillaroi community in Tingha NSW. From a young age Merindah was aware of the impact that structural racism has had and continues to have on many Indigenous people.About Merindah Donnelly
Growing up in rural NSW, Merindah was exposed to racism and marginalisation and has since sought to become a spokesperson and ambassador for social justice and Indigenous issues.
Merindah works at the Australia Council for the Arts as the Indigenous Program Officer for Market Development Internationally and Nationally. Her commitment to Indigenous social justice remains a priority and she recognises the rights of Indigenous people to claim, control and enhance their cultural development and cultural maintenance through the arts. She is proud to work for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Division where the principles of self-determination are celebrated.
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The making of our Nation
Summary
Binowee Bayles, a member of the Local Aboriginal Community talks about ‘The making of our Nation’ from a Youths perspective, “The making of our nation is not something from our past – but rather something that I and many young Australians are living now for ourselves, our people and our children.”About Binowee Bayles
Binowee Bayles is the second youngest of eight daughters who have been raised with a proud sense of Aboriginal cultural identity. She has worked in Community Services, Education and Theatre and has performed Traditional Aboriginal Dances both nationally and internationally.
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Exhibition at the State Library of NSW Carved Trees
Summary
Ronald Briggs talks about the rare photographs of traditional carved trees, exhibited at the State Library of NSW from 18 April – 26 June.About Ronald Briggs
Ronald Briggs is a curator, author and librarian. He is the curator of the current exhibition at the State Library of NSW Carved Trees – Aboriginal Cultures of Western NSW and is a Gamilaroi man from Moree, NSW. Ronald has worked as an Indigenous Services Librarian at the State Library of New South Wales since 1991, where he assists clients interested in researching Indigenous local or cultural history, Indigenous Australians researching their family history, or public libraries developing their library services and collections for their local Indigenous community. Previously Ronald worked at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
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Painting The Rocks: The Loss of Old Sydney
Summary
Dr Wayne Johnson will give an inside view of Painting The Rocks: The Loss of Old Sydney - the book he co-authored to accompany the exhibition. The book examines the forces that changed Sydney’s built environment during the 19th and 20th centuries and the events that led to the loss - and preservation - of significant parts of our colonial heritage.About Dr. Wayne Johnson
Dr Johnson has been Sydney Harbour Foreshore's archaeologist since 1994 and has been curator of The Rocks Discovery Museum since it opened in 2005. Over the past 25 years he has worked on archaeological projects in Bahrain, Jordan, Zanzibar and Portugal. Since 2001, he has worked with the University of Sydney's Greater Angkor excavations in Cambodia. In 2008 he co-authored the book A History of Sydney's Darling Harbour with Roger Parris and in 2010 he co-authored Painting the Rocks: The Loss of Old Sydney with Paul Ashton, Anna Cossu and Caroline Butler Bowden.
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The Rocks Pop Up Project
Summary
The Rocks Pop Up Project - Four buildings // six months // limitless thinking: Anique Vered shares how The Rocks’ latest partnership takes form in four vacant heritage buildings.About Anique Vered
The Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority in partnership with Arts NSW is running a pilot project to raise the profile of the arts in The Rocks. The Rocks Pop Up Project Space Manager, Anique Vered is a cultural worker and producer interested in creative mediums as effective platforms for societal growth. Producer of the inaugural Creative Sydney 2009, most recently Anique spent two years engaged with various communities in Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, Germany and Israel to gather a deeper understanding of how associations between people and place can sustain both individual and collective.
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Cultural trade and migration in The Rocks in the colonies
Summary
Dr Lisa Murray, City of Sydney historian, talks about the influence of cultural trade and migration in The Rocks. In the early years of colonial settlement, Sydney was the cosmopolitan hub of the South Pacific with French explorers, Russian whalers, & traders from China, India and the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) all helping to shape our city.About Dr Lisa Murray
Dr Lisa Murray has been a historian at the Council of the City of Sydney since 2001 and is currently the Acting City Historian and Chair of the Dictionary of Sydney. Her research interests include Sydney's urban, cultural and social history; and cultural landscapes, memory and heritage. Recent publications include the award-winning book The Capitol Theatre Restoration and Musical Chairs: The Quest for a City Recital Hall. Her current research project for the council is a social history of the southern-city industrial areas of Redfern, Waterloo and Alexandria. The book is due for publication in late 2010.
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Lachlan Macquarie's legacy in The Rocks
Summary
Continuing on the theme of celebrating the 200th anniversary of Governor Lachlan Macquarie’s 12-year tenure as the 5th Governor of the colony of New South Wales’, Lisa Murray from the Dictionary of Sydney talks about Lachlan Macquarie's legacy in The Rocks, seen in the suburb's streets and the stories behind their names.About Lisa Murray
Dr Lisa Murray has been a historian at the Council of the City of Sydney since 2001 and is currently the Acting City Historian and Chair of the Dictionary of Sydney. Her research interests include Sydney's urban, cultural and social history; and cultural landscapes, memory and heritage. Recent publications include the award-winning book The Capitol Theatre Restoration and Musical Chairs: The Quest for a City Recital Hall. Her current research project for the council is a social history of the southern-city industrial areas of Redfern, Waterloo and Alexandria. The book is due for publication in late 2010.
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Let the river's run let all people be one colour
Summary
Nambrimbrii (Let the river's run let all people be one colour) will be the focus of his speech, creating an atmosphere of spiritual cognition. Richard has a wealth of spoken word monologues relating to the two hundred years of historical occupation.About Richard Green
He will perform contemporary song of his ancestors and try to encourage people to discover the truth and beauty of Aboriginal Australia.
Richard Green is of the Irish/Darug of Western Sydney, he is of the Boorooberongle people of Burramattagal. Richard is of the Webb/Green family bloodline and is highly regarded as a Yellamundie (storyteller, singer and historian). Richard’s alter ego, singer/songwriter Dr Greenthum is regularly aired on Gadigal Radio 93.7 FM. Richard is in constant demand as an Australian actor and has recently appeared as the voice of Germain and language tutor on the Chris Burke series of the 'Yarramundie Kids'.
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The 19th Century garden at Vaucluse House
Summary
Gardener Dave Gray talks about Victorian gardens. Just 30 minutes from the city, Vaucluse House showcases an elegant lifestyle that sharply contrasts the warehouses and townhouses of The Rocks. The Historic Houses Trust property features a working kitchen garden on the site of a 19th-century original.About Dave Gray
Head Gardner Dave Gray shares some enthralling stories about the hard work that goes into creating this authentic recreation of a functional Victorian kitchen garden and the rewards of connecting to history through a medium still beloved today.
Dave Gray is head gardener at the Historic Houses Trust and has worked as a gardener at Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens. David has certificates for horticulture from the City of Guilds and Royal Horticultural Society, London and National Certificate of Horticulture in Landscape from the Merrist Wood and Agricultural College in the UK. Most recently he has overseen the garden at the historic property Glenfield, in south-western Sydney, as part of the Endangered Houses Fund.