Council launches Reconciliation Action Plan

Published on 18 September 2019

Pyrenees Shire Council has launched its Reconciliation Action Plan and unveiled a magnificent Aboriginal artwork.

Dja Dja Wurrung Chief Executive Office Rodney Carter joined Pyrenees Shire Council Mayor Robert Vance and Wadawurrung Traditional Owner Tammy Gilson for a smoking ceremony on the shores of Beaufort Lake.

The launch included the unveiling of My Totem Brewarrina by Ralph Rogers (Bushka) which will hang proudly in the foyer of the Council office in Beaufort.

Reconciliation Australia has endorsed Council’s Reconciliation Action Plan.

“The Plan is about taking the first steps towards increasing our cultural awareness, and seeking to build and enhance our relationships with Traditional Owners,” Council CEO Jim Nolan said.

 “We believe that due to our influence we have in our local area, we have a role in the country’s reconciliation journey,” Mr Nolan said.

The land of the Wadawurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung, Djab Wurrung and Wotjobaluk tribes forms the Pyrenees Shire.

The artwork My Totem Brewarrina is a painting of the artist’s totem animal.

Ralph Rogers (Bushka) writes of his work “The Brewarrina is one of my family totems and I am on a journey to look for the rest of my family.  When you are given a totem you grow up and learn about what they eat, where they drink.  In my culture I have learnt that I can’t eat my totem but I can give it to someone that doesn’t belong to that totem and he will give me his totem to eat.  This is my dreaming, this is my story”.

Bushka’s work also appears on the Koori Art Trail around the Beaufort Lake. Bushka kindly donated the piece to Council.

Pictured from left: Dja Dja Wurrung Chief Executve Officer Rodney Carter, Wadawurrung Traditional Owner Tammy Gilson and Mayor Robert Vance.