The Land Is Our Backbone 40TH ANNIVERSARY of AUSTRALIA’S ABORIGINAL LAND RIGHTS ACT 1 SPONSORS CHAIRMAN's WELCOME 4
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2016 WA|A |ARAKA GA BUNDURR The Land Is Our Backbone 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF AUSTRALIA’S ABORIGINAL LAND RIGHTS ACT 1 SPONSORS CHAIRMAN'S WELCOME 4 PRINCIPAL SPONSORS FROM OUR DIRECTOR 6 GANBULAPULA & GULKULA 10 the region 12 CONTENTS FOUR DAY PROGRAM 14 EDUCATION FAIR 16 EDUCATION FORUM 17 KEY FORUM 21 PLATINUM SPONSORS FACING OUR NATION 24 BUNGGUL 26 YOLNGU HEROES 28 MERCHANDISE ARTISTS 30 Welcome to the 18th YOUTH FORUM 32 Annual Garma event, SILVER SPONSORS OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTNER CULTURAL ACTIVITIES 36 GAPAN GALLERY 37 Hosted by the GARMA MUSIC 38 Yothu Yindi Foundation CINEMA 44 ACROSS THE GROUNDS 46 IN KIND SUPPLIER EXPO 48 OUR SUPPORTERS 50 FESTIVAL INFORMATION 56 GENERAL SPONSOR language 64 SITE MAP 65 GARMA IS AN ACKNOWLEDGING OUR SUPPORTERS FRONT COVER The Chairman, Board of Directors and management of the Yothu Yindi Foundation extends their sincere thanks to those that have Young man Dhunumbu #2 Mununggurr in front of the Australian Flag. ALCOHOL & supported the YYF projects currently being undertaken in the East Arnhem region. We also acknowledge those that have helped Photographer Melanie Faith-Dove. to put this event together, and those that have commitments that prevent them joining us onsite. Image taken from Garma 2015, copyright Yothu Yindi Foundation. DRUG FREE EVENT 3 CHAIRMAN’S WELCOME WA|A |ARAKA GA BUNDURR You will see much of the unique Yolngu way of life as you immerse yourself in Garma where you are living for THE LAND IS OUR BACKBONE four days with my people. You will hear our language spoken, see our ceremony performed and look in It is our song-cycles that have the greatest importance wonderment at the patterns and style of our beautiful in the lives of my people, and which guide and inform art as it is made and presented to you. At the bunggul our lives. you will see a tradition that is timeless – a world that I A song-cycle tells a person’s life: it relates to the past have dedicated my life to. to the present and to the future. And as Yolngu we During the day you will be challenged by speeches and balance our lives through the song-cycles that are laid discussions and dialogue that will lift you from your seat out on the ceremony grounds, the universities of our and make you sit upright, trying to think through what it people, where we hone and perfect our knowledge. is your ears are hearing. I encourage you to do this as it It is through the song-cycles that we acknowledge is for the exchange of knowledge that Garma exists. our allegiance to the land, to our laws, our life, to our And when you see the ceremony in full flight, hearing forebears and to each other. We work from the new the manikay sung and watching the patterns and moon to the full moon - travelling these song-cycles design that are presented to you, take some time to as a guide to life and the essence of our people: think about the Aboriginal people who have had these keeping it all in balance so that wealth and prosperity jewels of life taken from them in the short history of might flow. This is the cycle of events that is in us and our nation. I say this not to condemn your forebears, or which gives us the energy for life; the full energy that yourselves, but to merely state the truth. Even today we require. Without this we are nobody and we can the truth is hard to bear such is the loss suffered by so achieve nothing. many Aboriginal people, continuing to this day. The As the master of the ceremonies here at Gulkula truth may help you understand your own life better I recount this to remind you that Yolngu are very and allow you to be a contributor to the challenges different to other Australians, although we are very that lie ahead in making a settlement between our proudly Australian. We have our own law and way people within the nation. of life and with it the ownership of our land and Wa\a \araka ga bundurr. Welcome to Garma, please everything in it. And it is because of this that we do not enjoy your time with us. always fit in with everything you might believe in, and we do not always agree with your thinking. Sometimes we disagree very strongly with non-Yolngu ways and ideas. But we try and balance both our worlds and make a future that is rewarding for everyone. Dr Galarrwuy Yunupingu AM 4 5 The vision of the Yothu Yindi Foundation is for Yolngu & other Indigenous Australians to have the same level of well being and life opportunities as non-Indigenous Australians. FROM OUR DIRECTOR What is it aiming to achieve? • Description: Currently, the Garma CEO, YOTHU YINDI FOUNDATION, MRS DENISE BOWDEN Institute forms a crucial part of Garma The Yothu Yindi Foundation has identified through formal presentations (e.g. three primary objectives to drive the Key Forum and Youth Forum) and achievement of its vision of financially, informal communications, discussions physically and culturally sustainable and networking. Moving forward, Yothu up in the power of the song-cycles that On behalf of the Yothu Yindi news ways of life, imprinted upon this Indigenous Australians, each vital for social Yindi Foundation will create a broader Foundation and its Chairman I am nation over the course of the last 220 vest the land in Yolngu. cohesion, cultural identity, community Education Hub, providing 3 core groups privileged to be able to welcome you years. I urge you to think about your This year is the 40th Anniversary since development and maximised economic of activities: to Garma yet agin. role in the future of this living culture. development. These objectives are to: the promulgation of the Aboriginal • PHASE 1: Garma Institute: a culturally The land you are on is Gulkula. It Garma is the place where we work at Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act • provide contemporary environments and focused ‘bush university’ with the high watermark in terms of social programs to practice, preserve, maintain conference, tourism and community is Gumatj land, handed down over this interface – where the freshwater The Yothu Yindi Foundation was justice legislation in Australia and we and present traditional knowledge facilities and learning in partnership countless generations from Ganbulapula and saltwater mixes. It’s not always established in 1990 to promote Yolngu an ancestor of the current members of pretty or pleasant, we don’t always get will celebrate land rights this year. systems, cultural traditions and cultural with a tertiary education institute. practices (such as traditional dance cultural development with community the Gumatj and related clans. it right, or understand what we should, YYF acknowledges the Land Council (bunggul), song (manikay), art (miny’tji) • PHASE 2: Dhupuma College: school leaders and persons of authority from but Garma gives each and every one of Chairpersons and members and the You are hosted by the Yolngu people and ceremony); support and coordination – co- five regional clan groups: us the chance to make a difference. hard-working officers who are with curricular, boarding and transitional who are linked together by kinship, Gumatj, Rirratjingu, Djapu, Galpu, us at Gulkula. There are also many • develop economic opportunities for schooling support; language, tradition and law and the This year we again lost many elders ex-Chairman, ex-members and retired Yolngu through education, training, Wangurri master of ceremonies for this event is and leaders. Mr. Wunungmurra, Mrs PHASE 3: Dhupuma College: VET officers who have joined us, all of employment, enterprise and personal • The leadership and innovative program Galarrwuy Yunupingu. Galarrwuy has Gurruwiwi, and Mrs Munungurr are and adult pathways – vocational and whom have played their role. Thank and community development, including development of the Foundation are led the Gumatj clan for many, many just three of the great leaders that foundation training, job placement, you for keeping land rights strong. community leadership development; and considered significantly positive coordination of regional youth years with the support of his family. this region still grieves since we last to forces supporting Indigenous cultural Our Youth Forum has lifted in numbers opportunities; and Balupalu, Nungki, Dhundhana and met at Gulkula. It is heart-breaking to maintenance, not only in Northeast Djawa and his daughter Binmila and think of the knowledge that is lost with and over 250 students from North East • facilitate the sharing of knowledge and culture, thereby fostering a greater 2. The annual Garma Festival of Traditional Arnhem Land, but throughout the sister Djapirri are YYF Board members each elder but we can take comfort Arnhem to the Gold Coast will interact understanding between Indigenous and Culture (Garma) country and internationally. and work closely to Galarrwuy and his from the Yolngu-wide dedication to and learn from each other, forming life non-Indigenous Australians. vision of the future, as do we all. two-way education and a belief in long bonds across places and cultures. • Aim: Reconciliation, education and The Foundation is a not-for-profit Yolngu knowledge-systems as the key The Youth Forum is my favorite place understanding through sharing of culture charitable public benevolent The vision is simple yet powerful: institution, with an all-Yolngu Board ingredients for the future. and I am looking forward to the young How is it going to do that? and traditional practice; promoting and dhupuma – or, in our language, look people opening the bunggul and highlighting Yolngu culture, and creating of Directors. All revenues to the Yothu Yindi Foundation is focusing on three up to the future.