Come and visit historic Bare Island at La Perouse on Sunday 6 April 2014 to join a range of cultural tours and participate in creative workshops by recognised Aboriginal artists. Bare Island will be open for this event on the first Sunday of every month throughout 2014. In addition to the tours and workshops, the Bare Island open day…

Do we need to examine our relationship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, to heal old wounds and delete discrimination from our founding document? The Exploring Perspectives Forum is an exciting event that will be looking at the proposed Constitutional Recognition of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. The forum will feature insights…

Did you serve in the Army, Navy or Air Force or auxiliary services such as coast watch? Or did someone from your family or community serve in the Army, Navy or Air Force or in auxiliary services such as coast watch? If so we want to hear from you! If you would like to come and…

Telling Indigenous stories from beyond the block is a panel discussion with Malarndirri McCarthy, Martin Butler and Kathy Marks which will celebrate the diversity of story-telling and the many new platforms indigenous journalists and storytellers now have space on to tell their stories. The discussion will examine the rise of indigenous media into the mainstream and new innovations…

Discover and experience Sydney’s rich cultural diversity at the annual Living in Harmony Festival. Together with many community organisations, the City will provide opportunities for residents to discover and experience diverse cultures during March 2014. The Festival program includes student forums, tours, talks, workshops, exhibitions, intergenerational debates and more which explore Sydney’s multi-cultural heritage. As…

Boomalli flies the rainbow flag yet again for the 2014 Mardi Gras. With open arms Boomalli Aboriginal Artist’s Co-operative would like to invite you into our world. A world of passion and colour that is given a voice to celebrate and embrace who we are and how we see the world. Artists on show include: Jeffery…

Professor Ghil‘ad Zuckermann will join the State Library of NSW for an exciting talk about the ethical, aesthetic and utilitarian reasons for language revival in the Metcalfe Auditorium on 3 February 2014 at 6pm. In his talk, titled Sleeping Beauties Awake and Native Tongue Title: Reviving Aboriginal Australian Languages, he will share his experience in reclaiming the dormant…

Yabun Festival showcases Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural arts in Sydney each year. It’s organised by Gadigal Information Service. In 2014 the theme of the Yabun Festival is “Survive”. This year Yabun is set to take us on an exhilarating ride along the song lines of contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander music with…

Menagerie at the Australian Museum is a fascinating and vibrant exhibition of Indigenous Australian art inspired by animals. Come and discover how Indigenous Australian artists view them as they share with us their understanding of animals and, through their art, their relationships to place, identity, culture and survival. Artworks on display include: Contemporary wooden, fibre, metal and…

Amala Groom is a proud Wiradjuri woman who works across various fields to promote the rights and interests of Aboriginal Peoples in the advancement and implementation of Aboriginal sovereignty and self-determination. She is a social justice advocate and law student, an artist, a filmmaker, a researcher and a network builder. Since 2009, Amala has been…

To mark the eve of the centenary of the First World War, Sydney Festival presents a work of significance, scope and monumental ambition, in a world premiere event at Sydney Opera House. Directed by Wesley Enoch and written by Tom Wright, Black Diggers uncovers the contribution of First World War Aboriginal Diggers, following their exceptional…

Libraries and archives hold vast amounts of cultural heritage material of deep significance to Indigenous communities. Yet there are often barriers to identifying and accessing dispersed collections in Australia and overseas, and the institutions themselves can be difficult to navigate. The past two decades have seen major developments in recognising the importance of collections for…

Coranderrk is about what might have been. In the neglected storehouse of Australian history, this is one of the definitive stories. At a Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry in 1881, the men and women of the Coranderrk Aboriginal Reserve went head-to-head with the Aboriginal Protection Board. Their goal was both simple and revolutionary: to be allowed to…

The National Trust is looking to promote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural events between April and May 2014 as part of their annual Heritage Festival. It’s free to register an event and is a great way to promote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage. Sorry Day, Reconciliation week, Anzac Day Memorials and events including exhibitions, talks, music…

Metro Screen has a wide variety of short courses for everyone from beginners to working professionals. In order to provide access to the tools for contemporary storytelling, and to empower visual storytellers from Indigenous backgrounds, Metro Screen offers Indigenous people based in NSW the opportunity to apply for a free place at one of our…

“Bare Hands” is a new social enterprise offering an authentic Aboriginal tourism experience to the Sydney market while supporting cultural education for young Aboriginal people. Its first initiative is a fundraising day on the historic Bare Island at La Perouse on Sunday 1 December 2013 featuring creative and interactive workshops by recognised Aboriginal artists. Special 2…

The Royal Australian College of Physician’s final lecture for 2013 will be delivered by historian Barry Leithhead on Monday 25 November 2013 at the RACP Education Centre, Level 8, 52 Phillip Street, Sydney. Barry will be speaking on ‘Aboriginal health, public health and tropical medicine: 50 years of contributions by Dr Cecil Cook (1897-1985)’ Dr Cecil Cook,…

Back in the early 1970s a group of pioneering Indigenous theatremakers occupied a dilapidated terrace in Redfern and started the National Black Theatre. The first full-length play they staged was Robert J Merritt’s The Cake Man. A droll examination of white paternalism from a black point of view, Merritt’s play kicked off a renaissance of…

Aboriginal Astronomy talk by Ray Norris Let Ray Norris introduce you to Aboriginal astronomy. How did Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people use the sun, moon and stars for practical and social purposes? Working closely with Indigenous elders and communities, Ray’s rigorous research explores how astronomical knowledge and traditions have developed and how the stars…

Les Bursiill talks about the rock art of Southern Sydney. How are traditional Aboriginal Dreaming stories and rock art connected? Les Bursill is an Aboriginal man with a comprehensive understanding of the Southern Sydney Aboriginal community. With his cultural heritage and strong academic background, Les has been working in Dharawal Country for 30 years, concentrating…

Join Bill Gammage as he outlines his view of Aboriginal land management at the time of European contact. Bill argues that people used fire (and no fire) not just to create grasslands, but to distribute plants carefully and attract specific animals. His historical research reveals how Indigenous people made long-term, precise and detailed management of…

Artists talk on the Native Institute with Karla Dickens and Leanne Tobin The Native Institute was established in Blacktown in 1823, to ‘educate’ and ‘reform’ Aboriginal children during colonisation. This potent site represents the origins of the institutionalization of Aboriginal people in Australia and holds great cultural, spiritual and heritage significance for Aboriginal communities. Come along…

As part of Corroboree Festival 2013, Sydney Opera House is giving you the opportunity to take an Indigenous Guided Tour around ‘tubogulle’ on the land of Gadigal, where the Opera House now resides. Discover the Indigenous history of the land including its use as a gathering ground for thousands of years, the cultures and spiritual…

Corroboree Sydney is a new way of celebrating Australia’s rich cultural heritage. Over 11 days and nights in November 2013, leading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists, writers, dancers and musicians will showcase their creativity and share their stories. Presented at significant sites around the world-famous Sydney Harbour – from the nation to your neighbourhood –…

A public artwork in Hyde Park to honour the sacrifices and bravery of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander service men and women will be created Tony Albert, an Aboriginal artist whose family has over 80-years of combined military service. The sculpture will feature four seven-metre tall, oversized bullets among three large-scale fallen shells to represent…