Meet the groups the Dot Com Mob is working together with to open and operate Indigenous Knowledge Centre's in Queensland's remote Indigenous communities so that members of these communities can have access to the same services as every other Australian. The Administrators from 16 IKCs across Cape York, Torres Strait and Cherbourg attended a conference in Cairns in Sept to share ideas and learn about new activities they can run in their centres. The Mayor of Hope Vale, Greg Mclean called for more funding so councils can continue to offer 'long-life' learning opportunites in Indigenous communities. Watch the video to see and hear the difference these centres are making.
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From the very top of Australia in the Torres Strait Island of Boigu down to Cherbourg in south-east Queensland, Indigenous communities are enjoying computer and library activities. Watch this video for a personal tour inside these centres and to meet the people supporting this initiative. 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 The Qld State Library is committed to supporting the personal and professional development of the people selected by local councils to undertake the role of IKC Administrator. This support will see IKC Administrators better equipped to engage and grow their respective communities through the delivery of education, social and economic services and activities. The conference was held at Cairns Colonial Club Resort from 8 - 11 September, 2008. Also attending the conference was the Minister for Community Development from Papua, New Guinea - Dame Carol Kidu. Dame Carol, speaks about the merits of IKCs in the video below. State Librarian Lea Giles-Peters today announced a major new acquisition by the State Library of Queensland of a significant photographic collection charting the development of the Hope Vale community from 1958–83. Ms Giles-Peters said Lutheran Pastor Ivan Roennfeldt’s donation of his collection of 2,000 photographs and slides coincided with the 50th anniversary of Hope Vale’s Lutheran Church. Pastor Roennfeldt, 83, who is now retired and living in Brisbane, was on the Board of the Lutheran Church which oversaw the Hope Vale Mission. He visited the Mission many times over 25 years from 1958, and photographed the community and local landmarks. “The photographic collection donated by Pastor Roennfeldt depicts the daily activities of the mission, such as farming, constructing irrigation systems and wood turning,” Ms Giles-Peters said. “There are also a number of images acquired by Pastor Roennfeldt dating from the 1800s, which show the earlier traditional life of the community, including rare shots of fishing, camping and shelters.” Pastor Roennfeldt’s photographs will become part of the State Library’s Heritage Collections. The State Library is investigating digitising the collection so it can be viewed by people across the state and throughout Australia online through the Picture Queensland database. Ms Giles-Peters said the State Library is committed to supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait communities and preserving their unique culture and stories. “In partnership with the local council, the Department of Communities and private donors, the State Library opened an Indigenous Knowledge Centre in Hope Vale last month,” she said. “The Hope Vale centre provides a place for people to come together, socialise, learn and celebrate the community’s cultural heritage and is part of the network of 17 Indigenous Knowledge Centres located across the state.” 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. |