NSW Australian of the Year Awards - WOW!

 With the Premier Barry O'Farrell - Ben Townsend Photography

It would be an understatement to say I was surprised to learn that I had been nominated for the Australian of the Year awards, and then shocked to hear that I was a finalist in the Local Hero category. Wow! What a humbling and awesome thing for a girl from the burbs in Sydney.

And then I learned of my peers in the same category and I was blown way. Shane Phillips   – who was named the Local Hero for NSW last Monday night in a ceremony at the MCA in Sydney– is someone whom I have admired for many years and who’s work in Redfern and inner Sydney I have followed for a long time. We share common vision for a healthy community and the last time I spoke to him at the Excellence Dinner  a few months ago, he was telling me about the success of his early morning boxing sessions at the NCIE. Impressive and inspiring to say the least.

 

With the gorgeous Sarah Garnett 

 

I was thrilled to be alongside and to meet the deadly Sarah Garnett at the awards ceremony. As an author and someone passionate about literacy, I obviously have a bias towards libraries of any description, and so I am inspired by Sarah’s ‘Footpath Library’ initiative because like Sarah, I want all Australians to have access to books as well, regardless of their socio-economic background or where / how they love. Sandra and I hope to be able to do some work together in the future, but in the meantime, you too can participate in this wonderful initiative. Check out their website and help get books into the hands of the homeless. 

I’d also like to acknowledge Dr Steve Flecknoe-Brown  from Broken Hill and all the work he does out here and I hope to visit one day and grab some of their deadly Olive Oil.

Finally, I’d like to express heartfelt thanks to Reconciliation Australia for the nomination and for their continued work in bridging gaps between all areas of our society. And of course, I’d like to thank the National Australia Day Committee for naming me a finalist in NSW.

 

NSW Finalists, the Premier and the Chairman of the Australia Day Council of New South Wales - Ben Townsend Photography

Why the kids in Cowra reckon you should visit…

Japanese Garden 

On my recent trip to Cowra (Wiradjuri country) in Central NSW, I spent three afternoons at Mulyan Public School creating characters and settings and teaching the kids the importance of using their senses when writing. The final exercise each day was to brainstorm what they loved most about Cowra, and what they thought would best entice visitors to their town.

In pairs they drafted (in under fifteen minutes) and then presented in their best radio voices what it would sound like if they did PR over the airwaves for TourismCowra,  Just re-reading these now reminds me of all the wonderful reason to head over the Blue Mountains again for a visit. I still haven’t tried the recommended fish’n’chips!

Here are their short radio grabs:

 Wyangala Dam State Park 

Wyangala Dam, take your fam…

POW!  Cowra really loves you

We got friendly peeps, houses are cheap.

Cowra’s the best, we all rule.

If you ever come here, we’ll make you drool.

We make the others look like a fool.

I’m on the radio, even though I’m still in school.

By Dylan Andrew and Xavier Gauci

Lachlan River is the best,

With lots of places to rest.

Lots of friendly people to meet,

With great places to shop in the main street.

I dare you to come to Cowra!

By Kyesha Ingram and Sarah Gardener

You’re live with Janae and Courtney.

We are going to discuss why you should visit Cowra.

The Great Escape.

Number 1 would be to view the sights at Billy Goat Hill.

Then have a cracking good time at the mill.

Number 2 would have to be to go to the Lachlan River and catch a fish.

Once you are done, have a wonderful dish…

at the services club.

Number 3 would be to walk around the POW camp.

And then skateboard at the local skatepark

and flip down the ramp.

We hope you have a ball at the mall

In Cowra.

By Janae Hinderagar and Courtney Chambers.

Lachlan River 

 You must come to Cowra because the Japanese Gardens are the best.

Better than the rest.

Come have some wine at the Mill.

Don’t worry about the bill.

Have a swim in the Lachlan River,

After you get out it’s sure to make you shiver.

We have lots of magnificent sports.

We never score naughts.

Lots of parks for sports

Enchanting hotels and resorts.

Kangaroos and wombats walking around

They don’t even make a sound.

By Ellee White and Hollie Crawley.

Here in Cowra, we’ve got Billy Goat Hill,

You’ll really like it, yes you will.

You can go to Farleys Beach.

And have a lot to eat.

You can watch the sunrise and watch the sunset.

You’ll have a good time, I’ll make a bet.

By Darkyha Collett and Danieka Williams.

Come to Cowra because you get the best fish and chips in the world,

And it is the cleanest town in the world.

By Hannah Stone

We would like you to come to Cowra because …

there are great views and our town is very tidy.

By Jacob Heata

 Dawn breaks in Cowra - view from Billy Goat Hill

Come to Cowra, its great.

Come to Cowra, the people are great.

Come and see the great Cowra from the top of Billy Goat Hill.

By Kayne Veney

Come to Cowra because you get the best fish and chips in the world.

It is the cleanest place on the planet.

By Zoe Browne

Cowra is a special place because you get to play football.

You get to kick the football wherever you go.

The weather is sunny and you get to rest near the trees and walk past the football fields.

The people are happy and remember Cowra is fantastic so be good and come to Cowra.

By Ryan Carroll

You should come to Cowra because it has the Cowra Show.

It has the best food.

It has the Lachlan river and the Cowra pool.

It’s a clean town and the people are fabulous.

It has parks, shops and it is a clean town.

Cowra has the best view at Billy Goat Hill.

By Jaiden Farrell

Cowra is a good place

Cowra is a tidy place.

Cowra is a lovely place.

By Makayla Bridgett

Cowra, where the people are fabulous

and the streets are clean.

The weather is sunny.

The grapevines are amazing.

The best wines in Australia.

By Rory Boland

We want you to visit Cowra because we sell the country’s best fish and chips and we make the best canola in the world.

By Clayton Hayes.

 A beautiful sunrise - view from Billy Goat Hill

You should come to Cowra because it is tidy.

At Billy Goat Hill you get the best view.

You can do the coolest tricks at the skate park.

Thankyou for coming to the best town,

By Lawson Spratt

Cowra

Where the streets are clean.

See the sights at Billy Goat Hill.

The people are amazing.

The best town in Australia.

By Lucy Murray

Cowra is cool.

It is fun.

It is awesome.

The food places are yum!

The weather is always hot.

It is great.

You should come and play at the Cowra Pool.

By Tanika Lanyrie

You should come to Cowra because it has the best food. It has the Lachlan River and the Cowra pool. People should come because it has parks and it is a clean town. It has good views at Billy Goat Hill.

By Leroy Murray

We want you fellows to come to Cowra because our streets are like crystals.

We will give everything free at Cowra.

By Zac Olbourne

We want you to come to Cowra because we have the best fish and chips. The streets are clean and at Billy Goat Hill you can see all of Cowra.

By Mackenzie Crook

Now, who wants to come on a road trip with me back to Cowra?

Media Release: The Tightening Grip - a crime novel

Cowra leads the way with Indigenous literacy development

Toddlers at Yalbillinga loving storytime in the morning.

Pic by Alen Delic, Journalist at Cowra Guardian

There’s nothing quite like being back on country, Wiradjuri country that is, and where much of my mob lives… in Cowra.  Last week I drove to the central west to catch up with family members, to farewell the late Wiradjuri artist Harry J Wedge and to check out an innovative literacy program being run at the Yalbillinga Boori Day Care Centre.

I can't tell you how wonderful it was to see kids who love books so much!

I spent some time on each of three mornings at Yalbillinga reading books chosen by the little cherubs in the centre. It was heart-warming to see the interest and engagement they all had with books (see pics above and below) and it was affirming to see the difference that quality resources can make to the literacy development of young Australians.

Storytime with all the budding readers at Yalbillinga

The Yalbillinga PaCE Literacy Program is supported by AIATSIS  and DEEWR's Parental and CommunityEngagement program and it’s wonderful to see partnerships between national organisations that recognise that our young people are talented and capable, and that they can do anything when motivated.

Program founder and coordinator Dr Lawrence Bamblett says: “Our program is based on a modest idea that getting people talking about reading reaps big rewards. And it is working.  The literacy program [which targets 0-5 year olds] focuses and directs Aboriginal cultural advantages to help our kids excel at school. The collective worldview that motivates people to share child-rearing responsibilities is one of our advantages. It's just another way to view Wiradjuri excellence.”

Following an inspiring (and might I say exhausting time – I don’t have kids and I tire very easily with the cherubs!) I spent some time with community members, students and staff from Cowra High School and pretty much anyone who wanted to talk books, writing and publishing. I was happy and excited to assist one local woman get her kids manuscript of to Magabala Books for consideration. Fingers crossed for that!

 My deadly t-shirt. The kids had t-shirts reading "I'm Miss Write" and "I'm Mr Write" - love it!

Three afternoons were then spent with students across a range of classes at Mulyan Public School where we tested our senses, created characters and sacred places and even wrote radio grabs on why people should visit Cowra. I’m going to post those here shortly, but seriously, Cowra Tourism should hire some of these budding writers to sell their town.

I want to thank my family, the mob at Yalbillinga and the students and staff at Mulyan Public School for a deadly week of creativity, cultural enrichment and inspiration.

 

The deadly sign waiting for me when I arrived. How cool is it?

Community of Excellence - Indigenous youth and digital inclusion

Special guests at the launch included Governor Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir, The Hon. Victor  Dominello

It was my absolute delight to launch the  NCIE’s Community of Excellence  today, having only arrived back in Sydney last night from Cowra, where I worked on literacy projects at Yalbillinga Boori Day Care Centre and ran workshops at Malyun State School. I was excited to tell the community about this one example of digital literacy and the importance for us as Indigenous people to be part of the social media revolution. Exciting and innovative facilities such as this ensure that we are not left behind in terms of sharing knowledge, building professional  profiles, enhancing community engagement and supporting the future generations of Indigenous leaders.

I’d like to congratulate and thank the Telstra Foundation and the NCIE – who have demonstrated through this initiative how two leading national institutions can build a partnership designed to support the present and future well being of young Indigenous people. 

 

Jason Glanville (CEO, NCIE), moi and Tim O'Leary (Chief Sustainability Officer at Telstra)

The Community of Excellence demonstrates the foresight and progressive approach of the Telstra Foundation to be driving ‘digital inclusion’, and I’d like to acknowledge their commitment to making it possible  – for our people, that is our members, to connect whenever, and wherever, we may be.

On my recent trip to Santa Teresa for ARMtour, myself and other team members signed up students to be part of the Community of Excellence. Through this facility those who participate will be able to follow the personal training video that Michael Hennessey created and / brain warm up video prepared by the current Australian Karate champion Anthony Tockar. These are the ‘special benefits’ being part of this community can afford you, and me, for that matter. And these are the innovative ways in we can and are using the digital environment to improve the health of young people nationally.

 CofE members demonstrate the site

Following ARMtours, many of us feel what some call the blues, but because our uniform is orange, we get the oranges. Our role models come from around the country and from across a range of sporting arenas and professions. As teams we share a significant amount of time doing what many feel are life-changing experiences in remote communities, and then we go home alone. It can be difficult to manage the post-natal-kind-of emotions one feels after ARMtour, but this new facility provides a way for role models and the students we work with 1000s of miles away, to maintain at a high level of engagement and positive affirmations on a daily basis, if so desired.

Minister Dominello with students of Marist Brothers, Pagewood and teacher Mark Heiss 

 

As an author, I must declare my bias. Naturally one of the things I like most about the Community of Excellence is the role the ‘blog’ plays. Outside this space, we have relatively few bloggers to speak of and we pretty much follow each other. Within the CoE (not to be mistaken for the Church of England) we have bloggers all over the country, finding their voice and their writing skills right here. Thanks to the National Indigenous Youth Leadership Academy (NIYLA) , members are directed to do activities that require them to blog. This is a major achievement not only in literacy, but Indigenous publishing of sorts. I can see the community of excellence being a breeding ground for future novelists, poets, even speech writers.

And I might add, while members are perfecting their writing skills, they are also improving their capacity of working in the digital environment. I do feel the CoE should serve as a template for education nationally.

The other aspect of the CoE I appreciate is the goal setting facility. I’m a goal-setter; I have been for many, many years. But I work alone as a writer and the Community of Excellence now means I can share, support and be inspired by the goals of others. Some of my on-line peers have goals such as: completing marathons, reading certain titles, another wants to improve their fitness and lose 4kg – this is one I am trying to do with her –because in our digital community, the opportunity exists for members to reach goals together. Another wants finish their masters in 2013. One was as specific as Fight strongly in Japan at the Kyokushin WWC Tournament! Imagine what it does when you are lacking motivation or ideas for what’s possible or how high you can aim, to read such inspiring goals set by your peers, by fellow students, colleagues, family members and mentors. I don’t want to fight in Japan, but I wouldn’t mind going back there for a holiday! There’s another goal I should add to my profile! 

The amazing Gondwana Choir with young people from around Oz totally capitavated the audience with their talent and passion.

And can I just say, socially I’m not short of things to do, but my diary gets a lift when I check out the events stream of the CoE – and this is another fabulous way that digital inclusion leads to greater community engagement off-line. You can be kept up to date about and receive invitations to exhibitions, launches, and even author talks!

Finally, I think it’s important to say that the Community of Excellence as a social media tool is NOT the place where we read status updates that complain about family members, hangovers or any other negative statement, the kinds that weigh us down emotionally and psychologically when reading. Rather, our community is the exact opposite. It is an affirming, positive, mentoring space where we set goals – professional, personal, health related - and we gain support from those doing the journey with us.

It is a space where we can congratulate without shame, the successes of our peers around Australia. 

It is a space that embraces the cores values of the NCIE as a national organization: Excellence, Inclusiveness, Growth and Integrity. These are my own values, and that is why I am here. To quote Jason Glanville, Excellence is the new black, and it is also authentic. And we are proud to celebrate it.

And so, having given it the biggest Digitally Inclusive Gold Star possible it was my pleasure to officially launch the Community of Excellence and wish the NCIE and Telstra Foundation a long and prosperous future together, working towards the digital inclusion of Indigenous people of ALL ages! 

Luke Murray, Indigenous Community Engagement Officer, Korin Gamadji Institute will be enlisting his young people also.

I'm (belatedly) grateful for the BlackWords Symposium - UQ

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 Writing Us Panel: Ellen Van Neerven-Currie & Peter Minter (back), Dr Sandra Phillips & me front :)

On October 20, I was part of one of the most inspiring, intelligent, motivational and empowering literary events I’ve even been to. And no, it wasn’t simply because I convened it. Rather, it was because the program included speakers the likes of Bruce Pascoe, Dr Peter Minter, Dr Jared Thomas, Dr Sandra Phillips, Wesley Enoch and Australian Children’s laureate Boori Monty Pryor. These deadly people appeared alongside a number of other articulate and widely published academics, authors and editors.

The event was the BLACKWORDS Symposium, held at the UQ Art Museum and hosted by AustLit and EMSAH and it brought together students, researchers, readers and librarians to discuss the current state of Indigenous writing and storytelling in Australia.

I was there because of my connection to BlackWords, which began back in 2006 when I was offered my dream job to coordinate the pre-existing on-line database of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers and storytellers. I was asked to help grow the resource nationally with staff and content development, while assisting in promoting and showcasing our published work over time. And someone was going to actually pay me for it. I nearly wet my pants when I heard that.

Director of AustLit - Kerry Kilner opens the day 

I still remember my interview with Kerry Kilner (above), Cheryl Taylor and Gus Worby and how my head was brimming with ideas immediately. Some of those ideas have come to fruition and can be witnessed on the current BlackWords site of AustLit.

For those of you who don’t know, BlackWords as a comprehensive on-line facility assists me in all my public talks as a writer – especially to teacher librarians seeking works across genres, subjects, genders and geography to use in their classrooms – but also to general Australian readers wanting to broaden their own reading of Indigenous Australia. I can share with them the one-stop shop of all they need to read to find… all they need to read.

The fact that those interested can search by heritage also means it’s now easy to search for every book, poem, play or essay written about your local area, and indeed I often suggest schools do projects using the literature they can find on the traditional owners of country and the related history of the local area they live in.

 Wesley Enoch discusses the process of developing I Am Eora

For me, as a writer focusing often on history that is important to me as an Aboriginal Australian, I love that I can search the Calendar of events and click on for example Aboriginal Day of Mourning or the Pilbara Strike, or Wave Hill or Reconciliation or any number of award-winning artists over time to find what we, as First Nations Australians have written on various subjects and events. I can use our literature and in fact, once searching BlackWords, for nearly every paper or presentation I prepare.

There are few websites that can claim to be so versatile, so useful and dare I say it, so interesting!

So, it was with excitement and pleasure that I accepted the invitation to help coordinate today’s symposium celebrating the 5^th anniversary of what we now know as BlackWords, and I congratulate the past and current team members, many of whom are here and whom you will meet throughout the day. I’m grateful to those who have offered their own words to present on the day, for they are the one’s who keep the research community thriving.

Melissa Lucashenko sets the scene for a passionate day

Kicking off our day of inspiration was award-winning novelist Melissa Lucashenko, a Goori woman who writes about Brisbane and northern NSW in her novels including, Steam Pigs, Killing Darcy, Hard Yards and Two Flash.

And might I say, that the novel Too Flash – which should be on curriculum and is perfect as a coming of age work for young Australian women, also taught this woman here some lessons about self-esteem when I read it in my 30s!

Melissa writes regularly for Griffith REVIEW, and her essay ‘The Angry Country’ was selected in Best Australian Essays 2010.

Melissa has been an independent screenplay assessor for Screen NSW and Screen Tasmania for nearly a decade, and is currently a board member of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board of the Australia Council.

I’m pleased to say that Melissa is currently working on her fifth novel, Mullumbimby, a modern story of romantic love and friendship set amidst a native title war in northern NSW. I can’t wait to read it.

Other highlights of the day for me - among many - was a performance by poet / actor Steven Oliver of his piece REAL  – penned in response to my own work Am I Black Enough for You? Another of his works I love is HATE HE SAID. 

I’d like to thank all those who presented on the day and the hard work of Irene Howe and Kerry Kilner in making the event such a success. Looking forward to the next one!

 Yarning with Boori Monty Pryor

ARMtour Day 6: I’m grateful for fond farewells, spirituality and my own bed!

 Helen, Thelma and Louise ponder the community as they leave

It was a sad farewell to Santa Teresa today as we packed our vans and said goodbye to the staff and students at the school, drove back to Alice and travelled back to our respective cities / homes. But had a few reflective moments along the way.

 Here’s my final gratefuls for ARMtour in Santa Teresa:

SANTA TERESA SPIRITUALITY CENTRE: I’m grateful for meeting Paula Ferber in the classroom at the school, because turns out she was one the deadly artists responsible for the famous mural inside the Santa Teresa church. On our final day here, Paula took us to the Spirituality Centre, which plays an important role in the local community and Catholic Parish. Once the site of the girls dormitory, it is now a place for traditional healing, but also a venue for creative / artistic activities. This pic above shows the rows of beautiful hand painted silk scarves painted by local artists. The pic below is a stunning banner painted by Paula Turner.

Also famous are the Santa Teresa Crosses – they are all originals, no one is the same. They make a wonderful gift and in turn help the community by giving meaningful occupation and assisting the local economy. You can order yours by emailing:  eekatew@bigpond.com

  

My deadly team leave me at the airport :(

FOND FAREWELLS: While a visit to any community becomes part of the special tapestry of memories we carry with us forever, it’s the friendships we make with our teammates that make the experience something that also stays in our hearts. Saying goodbye to Cathy, Rebekah, Anthony, Marc and Michael was a fleeting but moving moment because when you share 24/7 with strangers for five nights, you fast become friends. I am grateful for the extraordinary sense of camaraderie and humour they each brought to our time away, and for their patience with me at all times.

 Our dynamic team leader, Rebekah!

REBEKAH TORRENS: I’m grateful for our Team Leader Bundjalung woman, Rebekah Torrens, who, when not volunteering with ARMtour  is an ASPIRE Project Officer with the University of NSW. Rebekah brings with her a background in teaching, but more importantly, an ability to lead with a sense of compassion and humour. Which is something that’s needed when in the dark of night her team members mistake hosing on the road as a seven-foot long snake.

This is Rebekah’s second visit to Santa Teresa and she first joined the ARMtour community because: “If I can work with my people, then I’m happy with that. Once I’ve done that then I will move on and work with other communities here and abroad.”

MY OWN BED: Yes, it’s true. I am the only volunteer not to camp tonight. But having been in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and then directly to Alice and Santa Teresa, I needed to get home and ground myself. I need to say, that I was one of the oldest on tour and the old bones don’t work so well on the ground as it were. Having been disoriented after some weeks of travel, I was sad due to missing my team, but truly grateful for NINE WHOLE HOURS SLEEP in my how bed!

[Thank you to DEEWR who fully funds ARMtour as part of the Sporting Chance Program]