Page 2560 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 31 July 2019

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organising this tree planting and all those who turned up near the barbecue area at Stranger Pond in Bonython to help not just to plant trees but to water some of the other plants and generally beautify the area. It was a great community event and a great community feel.

Next time you are out and about in Canberra take the time to look at some of our older and more significant trees, wonder who planted them and wonder what Canberra is going to look like in the future with the trees we are planting now and potentially the trees we may be cutting down now.

Yerrabi electorate

MS ORR (Yerrabi) (5.51): I rise to update the Assembly on some of the things that have happened in my electorate of Yerrabi since our last sitting. During NAIDOC Week I attended the NAIDOC in the north event in Gungahlin, a celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture through songs, stories, dance, art and ceremony. I was also able to participate in a program of drop-in workshops that enabled Indigenous participants to practice or revive traditional skills alongside non-Indigenous participants. Overall the day provided our community with the opportunity to connect through cultural exchange and to build an understanding and appreciation of the region’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

I also had the opportunity to drop in to the Gungahlin Child and Family Centre to see their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander holiday program. Dhani, a young Wiradjuri woman and educator from the Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary, taught the children about some of the native animals around the Canberra region, and we all took part in a special acknowledgement of country. I had a fantastic time at the program and enjoyed seeing Gungahlin families engaging with the culture of the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Gungahlin’s community has been exceptionally active this month because I was also invited to attend the Gungahlin Jets high-flyers ball. The club and its players came together to celebrate the success of the Gungahlin Jets, in particular their women’s team who had scored their first goal of the season that day after working very hard to rebuild their team.

Earlier this month I attended the BAPS ladies cultural program as part of the Guru Purnima Festival. I was honoured to be offered the opportunity to speak on my experiences in becoming a member of the Legislative Assembly and encourage the ladies and girls to pursue challenging job opportunities and career aspirations.

In environmental news I am pleased to say I have been working with Friends of Grasslands and the Ginninderra Catchment Group towards a plan for the North Mitchell Grasslands reserve as a conservation and recreation reserve. We have proposed a model with high value grassland patches surrounded by urban development that prioritises the grasslands. Together we hope to make the grassland more attractive to Gungahlin residents as a place to experience and enjoy nature.


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