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Council is celebrating National Reconciliation Week (NRW) this year with an exhibition opening, a traveling museum and the launch of a new Reconciliation Action Plan.
During NRW – which runs from 27 May to 3 June every year – Council will also be proudly supporting the second annual Walk on Country.
The theme for this year’s NRW is ‘Now More than Ever’, emphasising the continued fight for justice and rights for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
On Friday 31 May, the Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Centre will open Saltwater Currents: First Nations Seascapes and Contemporary Artefacts, showcasing the works of Yiman, Ghungalu, Gurreng Gurreng artist Anthony J Walker.
Walker, a former Indigenous park ranger, brings his experiences of caring for Country to life through vibrant paintings of Northern Rivers shorelines. Following the exhibition's opening, on Sunday 2 June the Gallery will host a Meet the Artist session with Walker, where people can listen to him share his experiences.
The Tweed Regional Museum has also expanded its award-winning Land | Life | Culture display, which highlights the enduring connection of the Tweed Bundjalung people to the land through oral traditions, lore and archaeological evidence. The extended exhibition explores contemporary social history and the fight to protect culture, Aboriginal rights and special places in the Tweed Shire.
The Museum on Wheels (MoW) will be traveling throughout the week, bringing a condensed version of Land | Life | Culture to Tweed Heads on Monday 27 May and Murwillumbah on Tuesday 28 May.
The MoW will also visit the Minjungbal Museum & Cultural Centre on Friday 31 May for their Reconciliation Week celebration. Activities include a panel discussion, cultural walk, bush tucker demonstration, weaving and free entry to the museum.
As part of NRW, Council will launch its second Innovate Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The RAP is part of Council’s commitment to fostering an inclusive community and guides efforts towards reconciliation for the benefit of First Nations people.
This RAP highlights achievements like the creation of Livvi’s Place – Goorimahbah Place of Stories, a playground and cultural space celebrating the Tweed Bundjalung Nation through artwork and storytelling. The recent phase of the project includes a vibrant youth precinct with a skate park featuring artwork by local Bundjalung artist Christine Slabb and wooden sculptures by Aboriginal artist Glenn Romanis.
Other achievements include the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Town Planner Development Program, developed in partnership with Griffith University, to support emerging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander town planners in Tweed, and the Hastings Point Headland Management Plan, which seeks to protect culturally significant sites like the Cudgera Creek fish traps.
This new two-year RAP will supersede Council’s 2018 Innovate RAP.
Director Sustainable Communities and Environment Naomi Searle said she was proud of how far Council had come in recent years in working to embed the principles and purpose of reconciliation across the organisation and into the wider community.
“We are proud to have the support of one of the country’s longest serving Aboriginal Advisory Committees who have provided Council with guidance for over 25 years now,” Ms Searle said.
“We have learned a lot over that time and continued to build a strong and meaningful pathway for further reconciliation. Council will continue to work with First Nations people and our Aboriginal Advisory Committee to ensure we continue to learn from, acknowledge and respect Aboriginal people and Country in everything we do. While we have achieved much, there is still more work to be done.”
As part of NRW activities, Council supported the ninth annual Kinship Festival, hosted by Murwillumbah Community Centre on 25 May. The event, which aims to connect children and families to Country, was well attended.
Council is also supporting The Family Centre’s second Walk on Country event on Sunday 2 June. The community walk starts at 10 am at Ed Parker Rotary Park beside Cudgen Creek at Kingscliff and ends at Cudgen Headland Surf Life Saving Club. After the walk there will be live music and a community barbecue, an Elders' morning tea and children’s activities.
“National Reconciliation Week is a time to celebrate First Nations culture, reflect on our history, and showcase our efforts to build a stronger, more united community,” Ms Searle said.
“Having events like the Kinship Festival and Walk on Country in the Tweed is an honour and a wonderful way to celebrate local culture.”
About National Reconciliation Week (NRW)
Australia celebrates NRW from 27 May to 3 June every year. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey – the 1967 Referendum acknowledging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and the High Court Mabo decision, respectively. NRW is preceded by National Sorry Day on 26 May.
Event details:
Monday 27 May
Tweed Regional Museum on Wheels (MoW)
Land|Life|Culture display and workshop 10 am 2 pm
Tweed Heads Administration Office car park, cnr Brett and Wharf Streets, Tweed Heads NSW 2485
Free
Tuesday 28 May
Tweed Regional Museum on Wheels (MoW)
Land|Life|Culture display can be viewed all day or visit Museum staff from 12 pm - 2pm.
Murwillumbah Civic and Cultural Centre – car park
10-14 Tumbulgum Road, Murwillumbah NSW 2484
Free
Friday 31 May
Minjungbal Museum & Cultural Centre NRW Day
featuring the Tweed Regional Museum on Wheels (MoW) Land|Life|Culture display
10 am – 1 pm
Cnr Kirkwood Road and Duffy Street, Tweed Heads South NSW 2486
Free
Winter Opening Celebrations
Exhibition opening of Saltwater Currents: First Nations Seascapes and Contemporary Artefacts from Saltwater Country by Anthony J. Walker
Tweed Regional Gallery, 2 Mistral Rd, South Murwillumbah NSW 2484
Bookings recommended. To book, visit Humanitix
Free
Sunday 2 June
Walk on Country
10 am – 1 pm
Walk commences from Ed Parker Rotary Park, Kingscliff (beside Cudgen Creek) and finishes at Cudgen Headland Surf Life Saving Club
Free
Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret Olley Centre
Saltwater Currents: First Nations Seascapes and Contemporary Artefacts
Meet the Artist: Anthony J Walker. Anthony discusses caring for Country with Robert Appo, Aboriginal Project Officer, Byron Shire Council
2 – 3 pm
Bookings recommended. To book, visit Humanitix.
Free
Ongoing
Tweed Regional Museum
Land | Life | Culture
More info Land | Life | Culture | Tweed Regional Museum (nsw.gov.au)
Free
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