Culture and Connection

By the 1970s environmental concerns about the degradation of the Georges River were shared by European and Aboriginal People alike. Aboriginal People who had lived along the waterways - both Traditional Owners and people who had migrated from regional areas - understood cultural responsibilities towards the river and increasingly took an ‘active role in the custodianship of the land on which they [were] now living’1. By 1983 under the Land Rights Act, the Sydney Metropolitan, Gandangara, Tharawal (Dharawal) and La Perouse Aboriginal Land Councils (LALCs) led initiatives to preserve the natural ecology of the river, working in partnership with the Georges Riverkeeper program, particularly from 2014-2018. With guidance from Elders and knowledge holders, the Aboriginal Riverkeeper team undertook conservation and land management traineeships, with ecological restoration occurring at 17 sites across the Georges River catchment.

Today the Aboriginal population living along the Georges River is small, but forms a culturally significant minority, at 1-2% of the population. The Georges River catchment area forms part of the lands of the Dharawal (Tharawal) Nation to the east and Dharug Nation to the west. Through NAIDOC and Reconciliation week programs, principles of respect, recognition, access and equity, consultation and opportunity, Georges River Council acknowledges the Bidjigal People as the Traditional Custodians of all lands and waters in the Georges River region. The continuity of Aboriginal culture, history, and connection remains integral to the Georges River and its many stories of people and place.

Dennis Golding, Latoya Brown, Aunty Diane Bundy, Aunty Beverly Simon, Aunty Heather Cook, Aunty Joyce Timbery, Aunty Rene Campbell, Uncle Troy Stewart, Monica Stewart, Nuinkala Stewart-French, Bradley Stewart, Thomas Stewart, Kerri-Ann Youngberry, Sophie Youngberry, Bella Kelly, Wesley Shaw, Jack Cook, Vicki Golding, Honie Golding, Vickie Simms, Julie-Ann Mason, Timothy Ella, Gail Brown, John Brown, Richard Brown, Margaret Brown, Joe Brown, Kimberly Brown, Terrence Brown.

Sewer: Carol McGregor. Ochre: Latoya Brown

La Perouse Aboriginal Community Cloak, 2020-21

Ochre, binder, waxed cotton thread on possum skins

Lent by the La Perouse Aboriginal Community