Hon Lindy Nelson-Car, MP, Minister for Communities, Disability Services, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Multicultural Affairs, Seniors and Youth visited the recently opened Indigenous Knowledge and Technology Centre in Hope Vale to meet with elders and hear about the language recording project. The Minister was accompanied by Michael Hogan, the Assistant Director-General, Dept of Communities.
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Hope Vale Mayor, Greg McLean, gave the key-note speech at the IKC Administrator's Conference in Cairns this week. "The Hope Vale Council is funded to provide roads, rates and rubbish collection in our community, but we must also be funded to provide reading so our community members can enjoy the same services as every other Australian" said Mayor McLean Shirley Costello, the centre co-ordinator is very excited about the number of community members using the new Hope Vale Indigenous Knowledge and Technology Centre (IKTC). Since the official opening the centre has been averaging some 50 to 60 people coming into the centre a day. Students from Cooktown High school are being transported to the Hope Vale centre to enable them to source material for their history projects on Hope Vale. Well done to Shirley and her assistants.
To achieve the Indigenous Knowledge and Technolgy Centre’s (IKTC) vision to be a repository for all of the intellectual property held within a community, then knowledge in all its forms must be well represented in the IKC. Artworks, tools and ceremonial objects are imbued with such knowledge. The maker of these items embeds their own understanding and interpretation of the world into the pieces. In a society which depends primarily on oral information transfer, these objects provide an alternative to the written word as physical representations of indigenous history and culture. Currently the main route for capture of these physical elements is their purchase and display by institutions such as museums, galleries and libraries. In making such sales, the artists and artisans do realise value for their efforts to allow them to continue to practice their particular craft. However, at present, these pieces invariably leave the community to join a collection, often far removed from the community and the people to whom they relate. James Leech, who is heading up the Keeping Culture Strong Project in Hope Vale, would like to see councils, institutions or other interested parties supporting the purchase of such local works by the IKC’s so that they can be retained within the community for all to see and admire. As part of this process, we would also like to see the artist’s interpretation of the work recorded for posterity either by written interview, audio recording or video recording. Capturing the artist’s description of the artwork or object, and their association with the information embedded within it, would provide a lasting record within the community that helps others to understand the subtleties of these works. To kick-start this initiative, Bob Magid has purchased the ‘Living Reef’ work by Roy McIvor and Gaye White has purchsed Evelyn McGreen's basket print will be presenting it to Greg McLean at the opening to be hung in the IKC. Roy McIvor explains the story behind Living Reef, click on the video below to view. The Hope Vale council has appointed Shirley Costello as the coordinator for the soon to be opened Indigenous Knowledge and Technology Centre which will be housed in the Jack Bambie Centre. Shirley has served as a councillor at Hope Vale and prior to that a teacher at the local primary school. The Dot Com Mob would like to congratulate Shirley on her new appointment. This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
It was all systems go this month when the Hope Vale Council vacated the Jack Bambie building, Shirley Costello was appointed the Centre manager and the centre was painted in preparation for the arrival of furniture, shelving and computers. Shirley and Lee Robertson (CEO of Hope Vale Council) had a lot of fun choosing the colours and the Centre has now been transformed from a dull yellow (see “before” photo) into a lollipop wonderland. I would like to personally thank Mayor McLean, the Hope Vale Councillors,Lee Robertson, Shirley Costello, Terena Hopkins (Dept of Communities) Renee Colless (State Library), James Leech (State Library) and the community painters and furniture removal team for all their hard work this week. Hope Vale Mayor, Greg McLean, and the Councillors of Hope Vale Council are preparing for the opening of a combined Community Technology Centre and Indigenous Knowledge Centre which will be housed in the Jack Bambie Centre in Hope Vale. The Council has established an advisory committee to guide the development and operation of the centre to ensure it meets community needs and interests. This community hub will be a stimulating, recreational and learning space, housing a library with books, magazines, DVDs, music and games, public access computers with Internet and free training programs for all ages. A supervised homework club will be run in the Centre after school for high school students attending Cooktown High School. Other existing community groups will also benefit from the proposed new resources. Cr June Pearson said “By developing the skills of the local people to take advantage of the information and learning opportunities available through the Internet, we can help overcome some of the disadvantages Indigenous people experience living in remote locations. The Centre will provide the resources for people to develop their own interest areas whether it is art, music, sport, higher education or business”. The Centre will provide employment for Hope Vale residents with the Centre Co-ordinator receiving mentoring and training from the State Library and opportunities to attend professional development sessions in Brisbane. Arts Minister Rod Welford said the State Library currently supports 16 Indigenous Knowledge Centres, primarily in the Cape York Peninsula and Torres Strait regions. “These Centres are valuable assets for our Indigenous communities. They provide both traditional library services as well as a means and a place to capture and preserve local history and traditions,” Minister Welford said. “No doubt this will be a welcome addition to the Hope Vale community,” he said. Lindy Nelson-Carr, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, congratulated Mayor Greg McLean and councillors, Bob Magid and the other parties in developing this partnership. “This is a great initiative for HopeVale, creating opportunities and strengthening connections to the world beyond. There is an exciting future ahead as more Indigenous communities, the private sector and public sectors partner in this way”, said the Minister. Ralph Gatt, the Division Manager of Sydney ITeC Repair Centre will personally provide the first technology training event in the new centre in April. Ralph will teach young people in Hope Vale how to build and repair computers, as well as how to film and edit their own movies. To facilitate Internet access WorkVentures has donated 10 refurbished computers and networking equipment to the new centre. Cr Shirley Costello said the Council will soon be launching its own website, which will provide information about the history of Hope Vale, its cultural and natural heritage, including information on the different clans. It will also function as a community noticeboard. Frost Design, a Sydney based company, will assist in the website design.As soon as the weather clears, the centre will be decorated by local artists. Computers and other resources will be unpacked for the planned opening soon after. Cr Des Bowen said the Council has worked on the project for two years and it was a great example of a partnership of local people, business and government combining to develop an exciting facility for the Hope Vale community. The partners include philanthropist Bob Magid from the DOT.COM.MOB, the State Library of Queensland, Dept of Communities (DoCs) and D.E.S.T, SJB Architects and WorkVentures. This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
WorkVentures in association with the AMP Foundation and Microsoft, sent the Divisional Manager of Sydney ITeC Repair Centre, Ralph Gatt, to Hope Vale to teach a group of young people how to repair and build computers. Ralph returned in April, 2008 to complete the course and the participants who could successfully build and repair the computer were rewarded with a computer to keep for their own use. With the aim of the project is to assist the community along the road of self reliance, WorkVentures donated 15 refurbished computers to the Council for the new Indigenous Knowledge Centre and left a supply of spare parts for ongoing maintenance. Microsoft through the Unlimited Potential program supplied the Council with software licences for the machines. This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
Bob Magid, hosted a meeting with the Hope Vale Shire Council at the Cairns International Hotel to discuss the location of the new joint Indigenous Knowledge Centre and Community Technology Centre in Hope Vale. The Council members agreed at that meeting to make available the Jack Bambie centre, which was purpose built as a training centre, but due to the shortage of buildings had become a temporary council chambers.SJB Architects in Melbourne offered to assist with plans for the layout of the centre. This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.
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