Circling the square with Karl Telfer
Story by Nina Keath. Photograph by Jason Porter. Above: Karl Telfer at Port Noarlunga – Site 3 of the Trilbuke Dreaming Track.
One Autumn morning on a day of liquid sunshine, Karl Telfer and I meet to talk. I’m not sure what to expect but by the end of our conversation we both burst out laughing. Karl is the first to say what we’re both thinking, ‘I hope this isn’t going to be too full on for your article.’ We talk back and forth for a while before Karl chuckles and decides, ‘Let’s do it. I think we’re ready to have this conversation.’ I think so too. So, let’s begin. Karl Telfer, a highly respected senior man from the Mullawirra Meyunna dry forest family clan – known today as the Kaurna Nation from the Adelaide region – has never done a Welcome to Country. He’s chosen not to because of a question our community still needs to answer. We’re standing at the entrance to the Gemtree Eco Trail where Karl runs cultural tours, when Karl articulates the question with straightforward clarity, ‘How can I welcome you to country that I don’t have any birthrights to?’
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It’s an important question with no easy answers. But it’s impossible to ignore the fact that Karl is delivering cultural tours on land owned by others while he has no ancestral lands of his own to welcome us to. Karl believes in land tenure and Traditional Ownership and says this is where Native Title has failed. ‘How can we truly be Traditional Owners and custodians of culture if we have no country on which to practise our culture?’ he asks. ‘I see two ways of communicating bi-cultural understanding of country: our role should be as stewards (current landholders) and cultural custodians (Traditional Owners).’ For many it’s an uncomfortable proposition, which Karl acknowledges, ‘When you want to talk to people about history, truth, reconciliation and truth telling, it gets a bit hard because you need to ask, do people want to experience that?’ This is where Karl brings people into his circle. ‘I respectfully create a space for people to feel safe and I bring them into country through ceremony. I acknowledge that we can’t change history, and that this is where we are. There is still much to do, but it is better we journey together. I use storytelling and the humour that lives inside of those stories, because it shows our human connection, which brings out the smiles and laughter. They feel more connected,’ he says. But laughter and connection don’t take away the need for accountability. ‘People that are part of the current system need to accept some responsibility. If you’re going to walk on country, walk softly, cos you’re walking with me and alongside the footsteps of my ancestors, from the first sunrise,’ Karl explains.
