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The importance of maintaining Indigenous languages has been highlighted at the official launch of this year’s NAIDOC Week in Bendigo.
The theme of the 2017 occasion is ‘Our Languages Matter’ and Dja Dja Wurrung traditional owner Trent Nelson encouraged people, particularly children, to tap into the resources of their family and community to regain their language.
“Our language connects us to everything in the landscape, and it connects us to you as well, because you live here… on our country,” Mr Nelson said, before offering a Welcome to Country in the language of Dja Dja Wurrung people.
Mayor Margaret O’Rourke said language was important as it expressed cultural values, norms and ways of seeing the world.
Cr O’Rourke said the council had endorsed its first reconciliation plan last year and while there was still a way to go, she was confident it was “walking in the right direction”.
The council’s director of health and wellbeing, Vicky Mason, outlined some of the progress the council had made, including the inclusion of three Aboriginal productions in the Capital events program in the past 12 months, a cultural awareness training program currently in development, and an Aboriginal artist register in progress.
Scores of people gathered at Bendigo Town Hall for the event, where six scholarships were announced by Access Australia Group for Molly Reville, Letitia Crowley, Nigheisha McCurdy, Lachlan Priest, Russell Whyman and Emily Brown.
Committee chairwoman Leanne Fary said organisations holding events for the occasion were encouraged, where possible, to incorporate the Dja Dja Wurrung language in their proceedings.
Ms Fary said NAIDOC Week was an important event for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to share their culture with the broader community.
She said the response to the occasion had always been positive and it was growing each year.