Page 4724 - Week 13 - Thursday, 28 November 2019
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
This particular event was supported by the Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate as part of its reconciliation action plan. The government looks forward to continuing to work with members of the Ngunnawal community as these events evolve and, hopefully, are held again in the future.
I particularly want to acknowledge the leadership and work underway by the Ngunnawal community on the Ngunnawal language centre proposal, which is mentioned in the motion. The ACT government and ACT Labor absolutely recognise the importance of keeping language strong and sharing it with new speakers. We look forward to continuing our discussions on a Ngunnawal language centre with members of the Ngunnawal community, and particularly its elders.
I also welcome the continuing and evolving conversation in the broader community about a Ngunnawal language centre. The enthusiasm of the Canberra community and their active engagement in this project will be an important part of its development, and, in itself, part of our broader community’s acts of reconciliation here in our wonderful capital city, where we so often take the lead.
Madam Speaker, as you know, the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander agreement 2019-2028 was signed in February this year by the ACT government with the chair of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body. The agreement includes 10 focus area action plans which outline the key actions to be progressed in the first three years of the agreement.
Included under the core focus area of cultural integrity and the significant focus area of lifelong learning, the ACT government is committed to, among other things, embedding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives into learning programs, with a focus on local history, culture and knowledge, and assisting teachers in becoming confident and capable in teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, with their histories, cultures and languages visible throughout school communities and learning programs.
These focus areas and associated action plans were driven by the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body as an important issue for the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. I have no doubt that the elected body will be closely following their progress.
I am pleased to say that work is progressing on recognising, strengthening and celebrating Ngunnawal language across Canberra. Of course, at the core of this is the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, which does world-leading work on revitalising, capturing and sharing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages across Australia.
In 2014 AIATSIS and the Ngaiyuriija Ngunawal Language Group signed a cooperative research agreement to revitalise the Ngunnawal language of the ACT. Ngunnawal community members and elders have spoken about how important the work done by and with AIATSIS has been in the revitalisation of the Ngunnawal language. We should all be incredibly proud of this work that happens right here in
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video