Reconciliation Action Plan 

Ngaparrtji Ngaparrtji Two-way Science

Here is a link to a list of Aboriginal Presenters in the Perth Region and Beyond

WASEF 2023 Acknowledgement of Country  –  Dr Elaine Lewis                                   

Wandjoo, Welcome

AAEE members across this nation have been participating in many practical engagements with Aboriginal and Torres Strait peoples over many years.  The WA Chapter has engaged closely and deeply with Noongar Elders, educators and artists, working together with them to contribute to Reconciliation.

The recent Referendum result has challenged us to intensify this commitment.  At an AAEE Learning Circle last week about Professor Anne Poelina’s podcast Holding the Fire: Indigenous Voices on the Great Unraveling, we were invited to reflect on where we are at in this space.

During this Learning Circle we shared the 4 Gs: Gratitude, Grief, Growth & Going forward.

In the context of the recent Referendum result I would like to express my:

Gratitude 1^st, for the ancient wisdom that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples share with us;

2^nd Grief, relating to the devastating, rejected, disempowered feeling I have felt plus the knowledge that some of my Noongar friends are being impacted by mental health concerns, including Aboriginal people invited to attend this Forum but felt unable to because of what the referendum result said to them;

3^rd Growth, because I have learnt so much and continue to learn from Noongar Elders, educators, artists and friends; and finally

4^th Going forward, how can I, we, take action to continue to stand with our Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander peoples.  One way discussed in the AAEE Learning Circle was to develop Communities of Hope.  In these communities we take action with Noongar people – to start we need to be silent, then listen and share what the referendum result means to each of us and what we are going to do about it.

What we in AAEE are doing following the Referendum, is engaging in learning circles to discover where we will progress our “going forward”.  Professor Stan Grant in the 2023 ANU J G Crawford Oratory on the 30^th of last month (it is well worth listening to on YouTube); Stan asks us for ”space and kindness to find our way through” and reflected that “there is a better way – knowing when to speak and when not to speak”.  We saw this ancient wisdom in action when there was a week of Aboriginal silence in response to the Referendum result.

So, with the 4Gs in mind I say a heartfelt Acknowledgement, which was shared with us by Leonard Thorn, a Noongar Elder who has worked closely with AAEE WA over many years:

Kaya Bulup, Hello everyone

Ngala Kaaditj Wadjuk  Noongar Moort  Keyan Kaadak Nidja Boodja.

I would like to acknowledge the Wadjuk Noongar peoples as the original custodians of this land and we pay our respects to Elders past and present.

Here is the link to hear Dr Elaine Lewis present the Acknowledgement